Manny Machado Goes After Media For Asking About Playoffs

If the season ended today, the San Diego Padres would be in the playoffs. And that would be welcome news for a franchise that seemed to be at a turning point in the 2023-2024 offseason. 

After a postseason berth in 2020, San Diego stumbled to a 79-83 record in 2021. But a solid start in 2022 led to one of the biggest trades in recent Major League Baseball history when the team acquired Juan Soto from the Washington Nationals. A run to the League Championship Series set expectations for 2023 sky-high. But under-performance, injuries and poor luck led to a disappointing 82-80 record and a disappointing postseason miss.

The Padres then traded Soto to the New York Yankees in the offseason, seemingly limiting their hopes of competing for a playoff berth in 2024. But General Manager A.J. Preller rarely sits still, and a series of moves, including a trade for Dylan Cease, indicated the organization still intended to contend. And contend it has. For a team with one of baseball's highest payrolls and a number of big-name players, postseason baseball seems like the bare minimum expectation.

Though don't tell Manny Machado that.

NEW YORK - Manny Machado of the San Diego Padres grounds out to first against the New York Mets at Citi Field on April 11, 2023. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Manny Machado Lashes Out At Media After Being Asked About Playoffs

Machado was asked by local media about his "expectations" for the Padres the rest of the season. And he did not appreciate the question.

"I don’t like the word ‘expectations,’" Machado said. "That’s something people always like to put out there is expectations. I mean, I think we expect to go out there and win every single day."

"I think that’s the expectations we have in here as a group is to do that," Machado said before getting annoyed with the word choice. "Expectations. Look at that. You say it and now I gotta say it. That’s why I don’t like the word, cause now you’re putting it in my mouth. I didn’t say the word, you’re putting it in my mouth."

"That’s why I don’t like words. That’s why you guys always put us in these situations, and then we get caught, and then now I’m all over social media because you put something in my mouth which I didn’t say and now I just keep repeating ‘expectations.’ No, we just gotta go out there and compete."

Well he's all over social media now.

It's not clear why Machado was so upset with the specific choice of "expectations." It's a reasonable question to ask, especially for a team that currently has a 1.5-game lead in the third wild card spot. Maybe he doesn't like discussing the end of the season when it's still just July. But the Padres have frequently approached baseball with a bravado that can sometimes rub opposing teams the wrong way. 

Why not lean into that when it comes to October?

Regardless, the message to fans is fairly clear: don't have expectations for the Padres this year.