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For seven seasons, Manny Machado painted a flattering self-portrait that sold for $ 250 million or more at independent auction this winter. Now, in the National League championship series, Machado cuts himself off from his own masterpiece.
By his actions, his satisfied quotes and his sarcastic expressions, Machado runs the risk of seeing his market price fall and even possibly damage the pay scale of others. Machado's phone should explode with the players shouting: "Cut yourself. You're breaking my money too.
So far, the Los Angeles Dodgers championship player has not failed to crush an attacker, was summoned for an illicitly dangerous hard slide on second base, and beat out a troubled third shot after the 'marble money refused his request for' delay ', and Eventually, he started doing silly things when he hit Milwaukee Brewers' first baseman, Jesus Aguilar, at the ankle while he was running in the first goal Tuesday night. And that covers the first four games of the NLCS between the Dodgers and the Brewers. The series was tied at two games each before the fifth game on Wednesday.
Prior to the fifth match, Machado had been fined an amount not disclosed by Major League Baseball for the Aguilar incident.
After what seemed to many, including me, to be a deliberate attempt to kick Aguilar – and possibly hurt the Brewers cleaner, who held 108 RBIs in the regular season – the fuse hit the dynamite . Reputations are built over years. And Machado certainly has one.
"It's a player who has a history of this type of incident," said Christian Yelich, the Milwaukee hitter, who will likely be NL's most valuable player. "Once, it's an accident. Repeated over and over again, you are just a dirty player. It's a dirty game from a dirty player, and that's what it is. I have a lot of respect for him as a player, but you can not respect someone who plays the game like that. "
[Barry Svrluga: Why does Manny Machado do the things he does?]
That's how I often hear a major player say something so direct and so damning about a dirty game: almost never. It is almost unthinkable to say that one of the biggest stars of the game is talking about a peer – with "repeated over and over again". Baseball players are a club. Machado has found a way to get fired.
"It is not an error. You do not hit someone like that [by] accident, "said Travis Shaw, Brewers. "You can say that it was not done on purpose, this and that, but that it is a dirty game."
Machado's answer did not dampen Brewers' feathers, but should help television ratings for the rest of the NLCS series: "I was trying to overtake him and hit him on the foot . If it's dirty, it's dirty. I do not know. Call it what you want. "
It was essentially Machado's reaction to the dropping of the first goal – in a playoff game.
"I will not be Johnny Hustle," said Machado. "It's just not my personality. It's not my cup of tea.
Machado's problem is that, one way or another, he always walked on his feet, was always a diva or a spoiled brat that everyone hoped to mature gradually. Years ago, a Baltimore Orioles staff member said to me, "Wait until another manager arrives here. [after Buck Showalter]Then, they will discover how easy it is to manage Manny Machado. "
Since then, many have believed that Machado had become too big for such a label. Maybe not. Once Machado left Baltimore and departed from Showalter – who understood, appreciated and worked with him – the infielder's ride seemed inflated as if the closeness of Los Angeles's celebrity and the enormous imminent wealth swelled him.
The October spotlight is, of course, the worst time possible for a player as fabulous as Machado to show the less attractive aspects of his temperament.
"You will lose tens of millions of dollars a second if that becomes the story," said Alex Rodriguez, now an analyst at Fox Sports.
Machado assured that the Manny-and-dirty-play file would be examined. In June 2014, Machado, who was angry at a tough tag in a previous match, Derek Norris, Oakland Athletics club catcher, then hit the head with his racket twice in the same match with long reckless pursuits. Watching the match live at that time, I thought it was as close to a deliberate MLB attack as I had seen it. Norris, who left the match, later said he would have "caught [Machado] smiling at him.
Later in the day, after retaliatory bullets hit Machado's lap, Manny waited for the next shot to pass before throwing his stick at A's pitcher Fernando Abad. The Machado uprising only endangered the third goal, but it earned him a five-match suspension and a lightning rod reputation.
Machado left bad hopes, including Mitch Garver and A.J. Pierzynski. Machado's answer, as in the case of the Aguilar incident, is: "That's how I balance. [or slide or run to first base]. "And he clearly says that he will not change.
[Christian Yelich calls Manny Machado a ‘dirty player’ after NLCS Game 4 incident]
The list of grudges against Machado is at least as long as that of the American League. If the Dodgers meet the Red Sox in the World Series, two Boston pitchers have already had the history of starting in melee throwing behind the head of Machado (Matt Barnes), drilling and then smashing (Rick Porcello).
Machado provokes, is sometimes provoked and rarely recedes. It's not about throwing a bat, showing an enemy, or letting the kids play. This is the way that players of all sports, at all times, have codes indicating what is dirty to survive.
In the fourth game, Hunter Wendelstedt, a respected player, took a piece of Machado, who called for "time" a moment after the Pitcher Brewers started his bet on a 1-2 throw. Batters often do this to shake pitchers, and stars expect deference. Wendelstedt squatted behind the plate as Machado waved helplessly and took a fast third-shot ball in the middle. Previously, Machado made grimaces and gestures of disagreement from his immediate stopping position after some Wendelstedt calls. You can sometimes annoy some people, but if you go beyond an invisible line, the whole culture discipline you.
Each month of October, the playoffs of the MLB constitute the ultimate audition for free agents. Potential buyers are looking for players who handle the pressure well, who collapse and if high stress situations reveal personality defects that generally remain hidden.
This year, the biggest loser is Machado, even though he had nine points in eight playoff games on Wednesday after a big regular season with 37 homers.
For seven seasons, those of us who watched Machado play hundreds of games thought that he was a superb player with the kind of annoying minor flaws that no matter what. between us could have – and get out. In terms of the moments of play that graze the dirt, could not it be partly a misplaced competitiveness? A week ago, my only drawback about Machado was his request to be a short-stop, the position of his youth, where he was only enough, rather than playing at third base, where he is heavenly.
Now, I'm wondering, "Do I really know Machado?" And "How will he manage a contract for life?" And "how is it going to affect the chemistry of the team?"
These are exactly the questions you do not want your future employer asking.
A good reputation, it is said, takes years to brown but can be tarnished in the blink of an eye. Machado shone a few days ago. Now, a little less. Think of it as a free object lesson – at the expense of Macahdo.
For more from Thomas Boswell, visit washingtonpost.com/boswell.
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