Padres star Manny Machado makes 5-word declaration after sweeping Braves
It seems like it was always destined to happen. The San Diego Padres, baseball’s hottest team since the All-Star break, are set to face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Division Series for the third time in five years. Baseball fans are in for a treat if this series is anything like their regular season affairs.
The Padres clinched a spot in the Division Series with a 5-4 win in Game 2 of the NL Wild Card Series, finishing a two-game sweep of the Atlanta Braves. Nine of the Padres’ 10 hits Wednesday were from their one through five hitters. Their stars are showing up in the MLB playoffs and making an impact which is what a championship team needs as fuel.
Manny Machado delivered with other Padres stars as San Diego scored five runs in the bottom of the second inning. Turns out that’s all they needed in the 5-4 win.
Machado ripped a two-run double to left that gave the Padres the lead. He then scored the game’s winning run on Jackson Merrill’s two-run triple. After the victory, Machado looked ahead to the Dodgers and reflected on a long season that started in another country.
“This is what everybody wanted,” Manny Machado said per ESPN’s Buster Olney.
“We’ve been going at it all year,” he said, per AJ Cassavell. “It’s been playoff baseball since Korea. Enjoy this moment today, and then get ready for them.”
The Padres have a chance to prove their regular season wasn’t a fluke. They seem more than up for the challenge.
Padres, Dodgers ready to clash
Denis Poroy-Imagn Images
The MLB playoffs wouldn’t be complete without a few rivalry matchups. The Padres and Dodgers are among the best head-to-head meetings in the sport. Their games this season and the playoff history between the two sides should mean this series will be memorable.
The Padres will enter as underdogs but won’t lay down to a team they beat in the same round in 2022 after the Dodgers posted a historic regular season. San Diego understands the magnitude of the series and is confident the season won’t end against the Dodgers.
“We fought tooth and nail to get to the end of the season, for the division. But now we’re in the part of the season where winner moves on and we wouldn’t want it any other way,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said. “It’s going to be a wonderful series. We’re super excited about it. Can’t wait.”
This will mark the third time the Padres and Dodgers meet in the playoffs, all three in the Division Series. The Dodgers swept the Padres in 2020 en route to winning the World Series. The Padres reached their first NLCS since 1998 after beating the Dodgers in four games in 2022.
Anything goes for the third postseason meeting between the California rivals. The Dodgers took eight of 13 in the regular season series. They’ll be the favorite on paper and in the eyes of many analysts. The Padres are hot though and have stood with the Dodgers for much of the past five seasons.
The post Padres star Manny Machado makes 5-word declaration after sweeping Braves appeared first on ClutchPoints.
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