Padres' Manny Machado criticizes reporter after Wild Card loss to the Cubs

Matt Sullivan

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Padres' Manny Machado criticizes reporter after Wild Card loss to the Cubs image

The San Diego Padres lost Game 1 of their NL Wild Card series against the Chicago Cubs, but after winning Game 2, they had a chance to complete the upset in Game 3.

Unfortunately for the Padres, they came up short, losing frustratingly thanks to a bad strike call and some bad luck.

In the clubhouse after the game, Manny Machado was interviewed by reporters. Near the end of the interview, Jake Garegnani of CBS 8 San Diego asked Machado a question that the seven-time All-Star took exception to.

Garegnani asked Machado a simple question: How do you assess a season like this? It sparked a scathing response from Machado, where he criticized Garegnani for both the question and the timing of said question.

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Manny Machado criticizes a reporter for question after Wild Card loss

Machado responded to Garegnani asking how he assesses San Diego's season with his own question.

"I mean, what type of question is that, dude?" Machado responded. "My guy, how do I assess the season? We just lost. How do you think I assess the season? How do you think I assess it?"

Garegnani responded to Machado, saying, "I don't know, that's why I was asking." That response set Machado off once more, as he continued to lay into the CBS reporter.

"You tell me," Machado said. "What's a loss? We lost. How do you assess it? It's a loss. You lost. (Laughs). Come on, dude. I mean, you can ask better questions than that. Let's go. Come on. ... You're going to wait until the last second to ask that? Come on, bro, you know better than that."

Machado had some major scolding for this reporter, as the question was clearly something he took offense to. The Padres just lost a close game, coming up just short and being eliminated from the playoffs.

While Machado might've overreacted, the instant assessment of the season right after such a brutal loss is hard to be anything other than frustration and disappointment.

The Cubs beat the Padres 3-1 with runners on second and third with two outs. Jackson Merrill hit a solo shot to begin the inning, while Xander Bogaerts struck out on a pitch well below the zone. Two hit-by-pitches later, and if the Bogaerts strike was accurately called a ball, it would've been bases loaded, down two, with no outs.

To be frustrated after such a brutal call went against them is no surprise. That frustration could be felt in Machado's answer.

If the Padres lost due to their own poor play, Machado might've had a different answer, even if he was still frustrated. But the controversial call in the ninth inning has Padres fans and the players frustrated. It's not hard to see why Machado reacted to this question this way, even if he might've gone on too long with his criticism of Garegnani.

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Matt Sullivan

Matt Sullivan is a freelance writer for The Sporting News, predominantly covering MLB. Matt is a native of Pennsylvania and has worked with Athlon Sports, Last Word on Sports, and other outlets.