masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgManny Machado could have dropped his bat in the second inning last night, run out his fly ball to left field and veered toward the dugout without saying a word to Royals starter Yordano Ventura.
Ventura could have stopped throwing at Machado in the second inning and resisted the urge to bury a 99 mph fastball in his back in the fifth.
There’s always blame on both sides under these circumstances.
It doesn’t rank with Babe Ruth calling his shot, but I predicted in the press box that Machado…

Manny Machado could have dropped his bat in the second inning last night, run out his fly ball to left field and veered toward the dugout without saying a word to Royals starter Yordano Ventura.

Ventura could have stopped throwing at Machado in the second inning and resisted the urge to bury a 99 mph fastball in his back in the fifth.

There’s always blame on both sides under these circumstances.

It doesn’t rank with Babe Ruth calling his shot, but I predicted in the press box that Machado would get drilled. I stopped tweeting and blogging, leaned forward in my seat and waited for it.

So did plenty of other people who know Ventura and the reputation that proceeds him.

I’m not going to judge Machado for charging the mound. It’s easy to sit back and say he should have controlled his emotions, considered the damage done to the team if he got hurt or suspended. Be the bigger man. But we’re not caught in the heat of the moment. We’re not watching our careers flash before our eyes as a 99 mph heater is aimed at our bodies by a guy who hit two Orioles last September and was suspended seven games the previous month for inciting a brawl with the White Sox.

machado-at-bat-white-day-game-sidebar.jpgMachado would have been wise to resist admiring his fly ball that appeared to be a home run before the wind knocked it down. Jawing at Ventura guaranteed that he’d wear one in his next at-bat. Then again, Ventura seemed intent on hitting him anyway. A hug probably would have brought the same result.

Machado knows he’s going to be suspended. Ventura told reporters that he sees no reason why he’d be punished.

“My plan was to pitch inside and one got away,” he said with a straight face.

I couldn’t help but notice that catcher Salvador Perez made only a half-hearted attempt to stop Machado from charging the mound. Machado took a few steps before kicking it into high gear. Perez trailed him but didn’t wrap him up.

Royals manager Ned Yost conceded that his players have become frustrated by Ventura’s actions.

“Yeah, probably,” Yost said. “There’s a little frustration when things like this happen.”

Orioles manager Buck Showalter got right in the middle of the melee, pushing Hyun Soo Kim out of the way at one point. Chris Davis dived into the pile. He’s got a history with Ventura.

It’s becoming a lengthy list.

The bad blood between the teams already existed dating back at least to the 2014 American League Championship Series. The Royals got under the Orioles’ skin. The sweep just removed a few more layers.

It’s good that the teams are done playing each in the regular season after tonight, unless you like the extracurriculars.

It’s unfortunate that a 9-1 win didn’t garner the proper attention. The Orioles have won six of seven games. They’re 11 above .500 to match their season high. But the brawl absorbed all of the spotlight.

Maybe that’s a good thing for Ubaldo Jimenez, who didn’t do much to impress Showalter despite allowing only one run. The nine hits, three walks and 106 pitches in five innings were unacceptable.

“I thought he was fortunate,” Showalter said. “Made some good defensive plays behind him. The end game statistically will look OK. That’s a lot of pitches in five-plus. I thought he made some pitches when he had to, but I thought he was fortunate. Had a lot of baserunners on. First guy. Made some mistakes ahead in the count that he had a chance to put some guys away with.

“I thought he was fortunate. We played well behind him.”

Makes you wonder again what changes are coming to the rotation. Mike Wright is supposed to start Saturday in Toronto and Yovani Gallardo could come off the disabled list and start Sunday, which would be Jimenez’s turn.

Kim had two more hits last night. He also came within a few feet of a home run to right field before flying to the track in left.

Kim has hit safely in seven of his last nine games, batting .343/.395/.486 (12-for-35). He’s hitting .378/.446/.486 (28-for-74) in his last 24 games.

In his last seven games, Mark Trumbo is batting .423/.483/.1.077 (11-for-26) with 11 RBIs.

Adam Jones has hit safely in seven of eight games, batting .314/.333/.714 (11-for-35) with two doubles, four home runs, nine RBIs and eight runs scored.

Mychal Givens is 5-0 with a 1.03 ERA and 37 strikeouts in his last 21 games spanning 26 1/3 innings.