Manny Machado, a soon to be free agent, has been the subject of controversy right before the upcoming off-season but has it hurt his stock?
Let me start by saying that I am not here to debate whether or not Machado’s actions were right or wrong (specifically the play with Jesus Aguilar). I am not here to decipher ill intent. The purpose of this article is to talk about Machado’s free agent stock.
It all started with Manny Machado not hustling down the line on a routine ground ball. This started a little bit of conversation about whether or not he hurt his stock. Then, Machado ran into Jesus Aguilar at first base and may or may not have kicked his ankle on purpose. The intent is up to you to decide, but it was not a great a look.
Let’s start with the hustling. This so-called “incident” will not hurt his stock. Countless amounts of players don’t run out routine ground balls every day of the season. The reason this is a huge deal is that Manny Machado is a high profile athlete with a history. But, let me remind you the name of another big-time free agent. Bryce Harper. Is Bryce Harper not going to get paid? The answer is no.
If you think Machado should lose money for the lack of hustle, then you better say the same about Harper. I doubt you will. A big-time star is not going to lose money over not running out a routine ground ball.
Now, for the bigger issue with Aguilar. Let me start by reminding you of some players in the league with issues.
Aroldis Chapman- Domestic Violence
Roberto Osuna- Domestic Violence
Jose Reyes- Domestic Violence
Steroid users
So-called dirty players
These players find jobs. Aroldis Chapman signed a 90 million dollar contract. A year before that the Yankees exploited the fact that he was involved in a domestic violence incident, to get him in a cheap trade.
Listen, if Jose Reyes can get a job in this league after what he did, I’m pretty confident a team will pay up for the generational talent who may or may not have kicked someone.
Again, I’m not saying it’s right or wrong, but no owner is going to care about this incident. If they don’t care about domestic violence, they are not going to give any thought to a possible kick. Just a reminder, they care about winning and lining their gold pockets.
If you think Manny Machado’s stock has taken a hit, you are sadly mistaken about how these teams are run, even the New York Yankees.