Manny Machado’s Ex-Teammate, Adam Jones, Reacts To ‘Dirty’ Play

San Diego Padres slugger Manny Machado courted some controversy over the weekend with a questionable slide against the St. Louis Cardinals that could have injured an opposing player. But amid a lot of criticism, Machado has a staunch ally in former teammate Adam Jones.

Taking to Twitter this morning, Jones called Machado’s slide “a smart play” and dismissed the criticism he’s getting. He said that the slide is well within baseball rules, even if fans and infielders don’t like it.

“That’s actually a smart play. He didn’t allow the double play to happen. Perfect execution!” Jones tweeted. “Welp within the rules. You might not like it but it’s PERFECTLY LEGAL. But the infielders don’t like it!”

The play in question took place on Sunday, when Cardinals second baseman Tommy Edman fielded a ball as Machado was making a beeline for his base. But in an effort to keep Edman from making a double-play, Machado slid into Edman’s legs.

Edman was not injured, but he easily could have been.

It’s not the first time that Manny Machado has made a play like that one. He infamously did the same thing against the Boston Red Sox in 2017, injuring Dustin Pedroia in the process.

As Adam Jones said, infielders don’t like that – and it’s easy to see why.

But while Jones is right that the move is legal, this incident could lead to the MLB reviewing whether it should stay that way.

Is sliding into second to defeat a double-play a dirty move?

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