BALTIMORE — Manny Machado figured he might be suspended for intentionally throwing his bat on the field while at the plate.
What the Baltimore Orioles third baseman didn’t expect was that the punishment would be so harsh.
For throwing his bat during Sunday’s game against Oakland, Machado was fined an undisclosed sum on Tuesday in addition to a five-game suspension.
The suspension was supposed to take effect immediately, but he has appealed it. Tuesday’s 1-0 loss to Boston featured Machado in the starting lineup, but he went hitless in his four at-bats.
Machado declared, “I don’t want to be down for five days.” “All we’re going to do is proceed to finish that, and that’s it. We need to make every effort to support this team.”
In the eighth inning, Machado swung at a pitch from Fernando Abad and let his bat fly toward third base. Abad made a plate appearance and threw a series of high-and-tight pitches before tossing the bat.
The bat shot skyward, and both benches emptied.
Abad and Machado were dismissed.
On Tuesday, Abad received a fine but no suspension.
“I’m not that concerned,” Machado remarked. “I’m a Baltimore Oriole, and he plays for the Oakland A’s franchise. Both he and I are aware of what we did. We were both made to pay the price.”
But Machado isn’t ready to miss five games just yet. He may decide to withdraw the appeal as soon as this Wednesday, or his hearing may take place in New York the following week.
“We’ll see what comes tomorrow,” manager Buck Showalter of the Orioles stated on Tuesday. “At this point, I believe he will file an appeal and take a day to consider his options.
“Furthermore, likely the foremost critical thing for him right now is to make sure, beyond any doubt, he puts the club in a position in case we make an alteration to our program. It’s a little brief take note to urge some person here on the off chance that he has begun (the suspension) this evening.”
Machado apologized to his partners Monday for twice losing his mood amid the three-game arrangement against Oakland.
On Friday night, he shouted in the face of Oakland’s Josh Donaldson after the third baseman labeled him on the chest, thumping Machado off his feet.
The burrows were also purged after that encounter.
“It’s been a baffling final couple days,” Machado said. “We’re progressing to attempt to put this behind us.”
Showalter concurred.
“He’s a 21-year-old youthful man that made a botch, and he’s done the correct thing since at that point to move forward with it the way it’s gathered to be done,” the chief said. “Presently, there are a few more steps included; some time recently, we will put them behind us.”
Orioles to begin with baseman Chris Davis thought it could be judicious for Machado to acknowledge the sentence and turn the page.
“By and by, I would kind of let it go. I’m not in his shoes. It’s simple to say that on the exterior, looking in,” Davis said. “You screw up; you have to bargain with the results. He’ll bargain with it and move on. We’ve as of now moved on.”
Orioles common director Dan Duquette recognized prior Tuesday in a meet with Fox Sports that he has not ruled out the plausibility of demoting Machado to the minors.
“That’s continuously an alternative,” Duquette said. “The fellow recognized himself within the enormous alliance’s final year. We’d much rather see him create his aptitudes here. But that’s continuously a choice.”
Machado is batting .229 in 35 recreations this year after offseason reconstructive surgery on his knee. He was an All-Star last season when he batted .283 with 14 domestic runs and a league-leading 51 copies.
The 21-year-old third baseman missed the entire month of April this season while recuperating from knee surgery and has struggled offensively since his return, hitting four home runs with 11 RBIs in 140 at-bats.
