San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado was called out on Tuesday after a pitch clock violation, resulting in a third strike in his first at-bat against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Machado, 30, was livid with the decision from home plate umpire Ron Kulpa, who proceeded to eject Machado from the game after he was seen arguing the decision — and after Padres manager Bob Melvin came out to plead his case alongside Machado, he was also ejected by Kulpa.
Machado could be seen tapping his cleats with his bat and re-adjusting his batting gloves while standing in the box on the play in question that resulted in the pitch clock violation. Pitcher Zac Gallen was ready to pitch, but Machado continued to fidget with his equipment. That’s when Kulpa proceeded to call time and rule the automatic strike, which ended the Padres’ half of the inning.
Machado is the latest player to fall victim to MLB’s new pitch clock rules. The six-time All-Star infielder spoke on the new rules prior to the season, saying he “might be down 0–1 a lot” due to the increased pace that comes with the rule change.
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