It took seven games over 11 days for the simmer to reach full boil.
TheLos Angeles Dodgersand the San Diego Padres flashed playoff intensity in their long-awaited first two series of the season and went face-to-face, quite literally, after 10 batters were hit during a stretch the Dodgers owned on the scoreboard.
In winning five of the seven games, the Dodgers also hit Fernando Tatis Jr with pitches three times. The last of those came in the eighth inning of Thursday’s 5-3 Padres victory when the benches finally cleared after Tatis was hit near the right hand.
While the staredown behind home plate was more peacock feathers than fisticuffs, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and Padres manager Mike Shildt were ejected following a tense back-and-forth exchange.
Afterward, the Padres’ Manny Machado said his true feelings won’t be known until Tatis gets results from X-rays and a CT scan.
“They gotta pray for [results] to come back negative tomorrow,” Machado said. “They should. Us, too, but they should for sure.”
After Tatis was hit, the Dodgers’Shohei Ohtanitook a pitch to the back of his right (pitching) shoulder from Robert Suárez. With Dodgers players starting to move over the dugout railing, Ohtani waved back his teammates and took first base.
Shohei Ohtani plays peacemaker at the end of another wild game between the Padres and Dodgers.pic.twitter.com/V03xUugs8z
“Well, I think he knew it was intentional,” Roberts said. “He wasn’t hurt by it, and he didn’t want any more drama, which I respect that a lot.”
Ohtani was hit twice in the series, each a half inning after Tatis was hit. The Dodgers’ Andy Pages also was hit twice in the series.
Roberts said he hoped Tatis does not miss extended time.
“I didn’t feel good about Tatis – great player, good guy – getting hit,” Roberts said. “I didn’t feel good about it. And so as [Shildt] comes out, and he’s yelling at me and staring me down, that bothers me. Because, to be quite frank, that’s the last thing I wanted.”
Shildt said he has respect for the Dodgers but seeing Tatis get hit three times by their pitchers in less than two weeks doesn’t sit right. He has also been hit by the Dodgers six times in his career, the most by any club.
“Whether it was [intentional] or it wasn’t, enough is enough,” Shildt said. “We got a guy who’s getting X-rays right now, is one of the best players in the game, fortunately he’s on our team, and this guy has taken shots, OK?”
While the teams waited more than two months to face each other for the first time this season, there will be another two-month wait until they face off again 15-17 August at Los Angeles and 22-24 August at San Diego.
“It’s going to be a fun ride,” Machado said. “This division’s freaking awesome, and it’s going to be a fun ride going down the road. The Giants got better with [Rafael] Devers, and we know what these guys have on the other side. And what we have on this side. And obviously you can’t count out Arizona. They’ve got a really good team over there. They’re going to be battling. It’s a four-headed monster battling it out, so it’ll be an interesting second half.”