DAVID GINSBURG
AP Sports Writer
BALTIMORE (AP) — 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 is that the punishment would be so harsh.
Machado received a five-game suspension and an undisclosed fine Tuesday for tossing his bat in Sunday’s game against Oakland.
He has appealed the suspension, which was slated to start immediately. Machado was in the starting lineup Tuesday against Boston.
“I don’t want to be down for five days,” Machado said. “We’re just going to go ahead and get that down, and that’s it. Need to try to help out this team in any way.”
Machado let his bat fly toward third base after swinging at a pitch from Fernando Abad in the eighth inning. The bat-toss came during a plate appearance in which Abad threw successive high-and-tight pitches.
After the bat went soaring, both benches emptied. Machado and Abad were ejected.
Abad was fined but not suspended Tuesday.
“I don’t really care,” Machado said. “He’s part of the Oakland A’s organization and I’m a Baltimore Oriole. I know what I did and he knows what he did. We both got to pay the consequences.”
Machado, however, isn’t prepared to sit out five games — yet. His hearing could take place next week in New York, or he could drop the appeal as soon as Wednesday.
“We’ll see what tomorrow brings,” Orioles manager Buck Showalter said Tuesday. “I think right now he’s going to appeal and take 24 hours to think about the next step.
“Plus, probably the most important thing for him right now is make sure he puts the club in a position in case we make an adjustment in our roster. It’s a little short notice to get somebody here if he started (the suspension) tonight.”
Machado apologized to his teammates Monday for twice losing his temper during the three-game series against Oakland.
On Friday night, he yelled in the face of Oakland’s Josh Donaldson after the third baseman tagged him on the chest, knocking Machado off his feet.
The dugouts also emptied after that confrontation.
“It’s been a frustrating last couple days,” Machado said. “We’re just going to try to put this behind us.”
Showalter agreed.
“He’s a 21-year-old young man that made a mistake, and he’s done the right thing since then to move forward with it the way it’s supposed to be done,” the manager said. “Now there are some more steps involved before we can put it behind us.”
Orioles first baseman Chris Davis thought it might be prudent for Machado to accept the sentence and turn the page.
“Personally, I would kind of let it go away. I’m not in his shoes. It’s easy to say that on the outside looking in,” Davis said. “You screw up, you have to deal with the consequences. He’ll deal with it and move on. We’ve already moved on.”
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