Old friend and former Dodgers infielder Manny Machado still has that Manny Machado in him. Despite his best efforts to try and change the public opinion of him over the last few years, those moments where he forgets to think about the greater good of his team still shine through.
The Padres star became the first player in Major League Baseball to be ejected over the new pitch clock rule in the game. He attempted to call time out right as his time to get ready in the box was expiring. The home plate umpire didn’t award him time and instead assessed an automatic strike for the violation.
That was strike three. Machado was not happy… understandably. He argued with the home plate ump but crossed the line when he allegedly called him a “douchebag.”
That got him tossed.
“I called it. As you can see, my hand was up at eight seconds,” Machado said after the game. “I guess it wasn’t good enough to get awarded for it.”
Without their third baseman, San Diego lost the game 8-6 to the Diamondbacks to fall to 3-3 on the season.
So there’s your answer to the useless bar trivia question. Manny Machado was the first player to ever be tossed for arguing over a pitch clock violation.
