The next time a Red Sox pitcher wants to avenge one of his teammates, he might want to clear it with the guy he’s sticking up for first.
In the eighth inning Sunday, Boston reliever Matt Barnes threw behind Orioles third baseman Manny Machado, presumably in retaliation for a hard slide Friday in which the slugger spiked Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia.
The pitch nearly hit Machado in the head – and actually hit his bat behind him, resulting in a foul ball – and Pedroia seemed none too happy at the initiative Barnes, who immediately was ejected, had taken.
In video taken after the pitch, Pedroia can be seen yelling out to Machado from the dugout and pretty clearly seems to be distancing himself from the head-hunting pitch.
He appeared to say: “It wasn’t me. I know that and you know that. … That was them.”
“I had nothing to do with that. That’s not how you do that, man,” Pedroia told reporters afterward. “I’m sorry to him and his team. If you’re going to protect guys, you do it right away.”
Machado seemed to accept what Pedroia is saying then points to his helmet, suggesting he did not appreciate the location of the pitch more than anything.
The incident Friday, which knocked Pedroia out for the remainder of the series, set off a war of words between the AL East rivals, with Red Sox manager John Farrell telling reporters he believed the slide was illegal.
“Bottom line is this: If that slide [Friday] night is not deemed an illegal slide, we should just get rid of the rule,” Farrell said.
Meanwhile, Orioles manager Buck Showalter understandably had a different view of things.
“I look at things through Orioles glasses, orange and black,” Showalter told BaltimoreBaseball.com. “They look at it through [Red Sox glasses]. I understand their feelings, but I do understand ours.”
When asked for his own thoughts after the play, Pedroia said: “I’m not the baseball police, man. I got three kids. I don’t have time for that.”
He also added Machado texted him after the game to apologize.
So while it appears the two players actually involved in the incident were ready to let things go, the unwritten rules of baseball demanded an eye for an eye – and nearly got it with Barnes’ dangerously high pitch.
Perhaps all involved would do well just to listen to Pedroia when he talks.
“I don’t have an issue with anything,” he said. “My job’s to play baseball and win. This isn’t seventh grade, man.”
Now, somebody just needs to tell that to Barnes.