Dave Roberts Takes Shots at Manny Machado as Dodgers, Padres Rivalry Heats Up Even More

Maren Angus-Coombs | Oct 8, 2024

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

On Monday, the rivalry between the Padres and Dodgers took another turn when Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts accused Manny Machado of throwing a baseball at him during Game 2 of the NLDS.

Roberts said he noticed the throw after reviewing video footage and described Machado’s actions as “unsettling,” according to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.

When asked about the situation, Machado quickly deflected, telling Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune, “I spoke about this last night after the game. I’ve already turned the page, and I’m just looking forward to playing in front of our fans tomorrow and preparing for another tough battle against a very good team.”

Machado’s response:
“I spoke about this last night after the game. I’ve already turned the page, and I’m just looking forward to playing in front of our fans tomorrow and preparing for another tough battle against a very good team.”

— Kevin Acee (@sdutKevinAcee) October 8, 2024

A Dodgers team member confirmed that Machado’s throw was directed toward the part of the dugout closest to home plate, where Roberts typically sits during games. The Athletic's footage shows the ball hitting the netting in front of Roberts and bouncing towards home plate.

After the incident, umpire Tripp Gibson can be seen approaching Machado.

The Dodgers have submitted the video to Major League Baseball for review and Roberts took a shot at Machado when asked about the situation.

“There was intent behind it,” Roberts said. “It didn’t almost hit me because there was a net. And that was very bothersome. If it was intended at me, I would be very —it’s pretty disrespectful.

“I don’t know his intent. I don’t want to speak for him. But I did see the video. And the ball was directed at me with something behind it.”

Here’s the video of Machado throwing the ball into the Dodger dugout. I’d venture to guess that’s the hardest he’s ever thrown a ball into a teams dugout but this IS Machado so I could be very wrong. As I said, I wanted to see the footage & here it is! pic.twitter.com/Vl3Z3jDsgq

— Dallas Braden (@DALLASBRADEN209) October 8, 2024

Machado, who played for Roberts and the Dodgers in 2018, admitted to The Athletic that he threw the ball toward the Dodgers dugout. However, there’s a dispute about how hard he threw it.

“Did Flaherty throw the ball hard at the other guy?” Machado told The Athletic, alluding to Dodgers starting pitcher Jack Flaherty hitting Fernando Tatis Jr. with a pitch the previous half-inning. “They can say whatever they want. I threw the ball like I always throw it into any dugout.”

It seems the Padres have fully embraced a “villain” mentality, and if they manage to get under the Dodgers’ skin, it could give them the edge they need to win the series.

“Clearly that team over there, they like the villain-type kind of role and they feed off of that,” Roberts said. “So whatever gets us going, the motivation is individually, collectively, to win a baseball game, to win a series.”