Padres slugger Machado draws first pitch clock violation

machado pitch clock
Rick Scuteri/USA TODAY Sports
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Tick, tock, Manny Machado. Better watch that pitch clock.

Baseball’s new timing device made its big league debut Friday during a limited schedule of spring training openers and wouldn’t you know it, it was Machado, the San Diego Padres’ All-Star slugger, not a pitcher, who was called for the first violation.

Machado found out the hard way that the pitch clock works both ways. He wasn’t fully in the batter’s box and facing Seattle Mariners left-hander Robbie Ray as the 15-second clock wound under 8 seconds in the bottom of the first inning in Peoria, Arizona. Umpire Ryan Blakney called time and signaled strike one against Machado, who finished second in last season’s NL MVP race.

Machado was hardly fazed. He singled on a 2-1 pitch and then collected another single his second time up.

Machado, who batted between fellow superstars Xander Bogaerts and Juan Soto, laughed about it afterward.

“Going into the record books, at least. That’s a good one. Not bad,” Machado said. “I might just be 0-1 if I can get two hits every game.”

If Major League Baseball was looking for immediate results from the new rules designed to improve pace of play, including the pitch clock, it got them. The Mariners won 3-2 in 2 hours, 29 minutes, which is fast for any game, spring or regular season. In nearby Surprise, the Kansas City Royals beat the Texas Rangers 6-5 in 2:33.

Padres manager Bob Melvin said he walked over to MLB officials Morgan Sword and Mike Hill afterward and said: “If this is going to be the pace of these games, I’m OK with it.”

The game “felt really fast at the beginning. Guys were looking at the clock, Manny makes history with the first infraction in major league history, another feather in his cap,” Melvin quipped. “During the course of this game we acclimated a little bit. So far, so good.”

With the pitch clock, players will have 30 seconds to resume play between batters. Between pitches, pitchers have 15 seconds with nobody on and 20 seconds if there is a baserunner. The pitcher must start his delivery before the clock expires. After a pitch, the clock starts again when the pitcher has the ball back, the catcher and batter are in the circle around home plate, and play is otherwise ready to resume.

Batters must be in the box and alert to the pitcher with at least 8 seconds on the clock. Batters can call time once per plate appearance, stopping the countdown.

When a pitcher doesn’t throw a pitch in time, the penalty is an automatic ball. When a batter isn’t ready in time, it’s an automatic strike.

“That time came by quick,” Machado said. “It’s definitely something we’re going to have to get used to. It kind of takes away your routine, being up there and zoning in before the pitch. The umpire gave me a little warning – `Hey, you got two seconds’ – but I was already late when I got in there.”

“You got 30 seconds and you got to be ready by eight. Forget about walk-up songs for real,” he added with a laugh. “It’s going to be interesting. I always tap the umpire for respect. Those things will start going out of the way.”

Batters can’t leave the box between pitches, “which I don’t mind,” Machado added. “You can just keep a foot in the box and gather yourself again.”

“Getting to the box is where it’s going to speed up guys,” Machado said. “Even pitchers, if you’re down 2-0 how are you going to catch a break and lock yourself back in without getting penalized? It’s the same thing going up there when you’re hitting.

“It’s going to be an interesting year. It’s going to be fun. Who knows where this leads? There’s going to be a lot of strategy that goes into this.”

Machado will play for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic, which won’t have a pitch clock.

“I’m going to take my time,” he said.

Padres starter Nick Martinez added that the clock will make things “a little tricky. Got to find some areas that I can save some time so I can get some time when I need it.”

Martinez said the clock will affect how pitches are called.

“Today the way to alleviate the pressure was having the PitchCom with me,” he said. “For the majority of the time (Luis Campusano) was calling the game but if I had a pitch that kind of stood out for me I just pressed it. I didn’t wait for him to call it, I was like `I want this one.’ I did it a few times. There are times when I like to slow the game down, so that’ll be interesting.”

Melvin said pitchers and batters will have to adjust as spring training moves along, especially those who go to the WBC and then return to MLB’s new rules.

“The one thing, guys are going to get a little bit tired working at this pace,” Melvin said. “Whether it’s starters, relievers throwing a lot of pitches, there’s going to be an endurance factor with this as well.”

RANGERS-ROYALS

Texas left-hander John King was called for a pitch clock violation in the bottom of the fifth, changing the count from 1-2 to 2-2. Umpire supervisor Mike Everitt was in the press box watching to see how the umpires were implementing the new rules as well as how the clock operators were doing. “That is a big job,” Everitt said.

MORE PITCH CLOCK MUSINGS

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he’s looking forward to the pitch clock when the Bronx Bombers open their spring schedule Saturday against the Philadelphia Phillies in Clearwater, Florida. The Yankees have had Triple-A umpires working the plate during simulated games.

“I think these last few days, grateful for the umpires that have come out here and helped us out in that regard,” he said. “I think it has been really valuable. It’s sparked more conversation around it, but now to get to start applying it in games obviously will serve us well. It’s important to get going.”

BIGGER BASES

Machado said the new bases, which are now 18-square inches, up from 15 inches, “weren’t too bad. I like the big base. They’ve got to be a little more consistent with how they were last year, the firmness, the grip of it. I definitely like the new ones with the bigger size.”

Rutschman has five hits in opener, Orioles outlast Red Sox 10-9

Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports
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BOSTON – The last time Adley Rutschman recalls feeling this level of emotion on a baseball field was playing in front of intimate, 5,000-seat crowds in college at Oregon State.

He trumped that experience at Fenway Park on Thursday in his first career opening day start.

“This blows that out of the water,” Rutschman said.

Rutschman became the first catcher in major league history with five hits in an opener, and the Baltimore Orioles survived a wild ninth inning to beat the Boston Red Sox 10-9.

“To have that close game in the ninth inning and the crowd get so loud. You kind of sit there and say, ‘This is pretty cool,’” said Rutschman, the top overall pick in the 2019 draft.

Rutschman – who debuted for the Orioles last May and quickly became indispensable to the young, resurgent club – homered in his first at-bat and finished 5-for-5 with a career-best four RBIs and a walk on a chilly day at Fenway Park, with a temperature of 38 degrees at first pitch.

Ramon Urias hit a two-run homer for Baltimore, which finished with 15 hits, nine walks and five stolen bases.

Kyle Gibson (1-0) allowed four runs and six hits over five-plus innings to earn his first opening-day victory since his 2021 All-Star season with Texas. Gibson gave up an RBI groundout in the first inning before retiring nine straight Red Sox hitters.

The Orioles nearly gave the game away in the ninth.

With Baltimore leading 10-7, closer Félix Bautista walked pinch-hitter Raimel Tapia. Alex Verdugo followed with a single and advanced to second on an error by center fielder Cedric Mullins.

Rafael Devers struck out. Justin Turner then reached on an infield single to third when Urias’ throw was wide, scoring Tapia. Masataka Yoshida grounded to shortstop Jorge Mateo, who stepped on second for the force but threw wildly to first, allowing Verdugo to score.

Bautista struck out Adam Duvall on three pitches to end it and earn the save.

The Orioles scored four runs in the fourth and three in the fifth to take an 8-2 lead. Baltimore led 10-4 before Bryan Baker allowed three runs in the eighth to give the Red Sox some hope.

The eighth could have been even better for the Red Sox had Devers, who led off the inning, not become the first player in major league history to strike out on a pitch clock violation. Devers was looking down and kicking debris off his cleats when umpire Lance Barksdale signaled a violation that resulted in strike three.

“There’s no excuse,” said Alex Cora, who dropped to 0-5 in opening-day games as Boston’s manager. “They know the rules.”

Boston offseason addition and two-time Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber (0-1) struggled in his Fenway debut, surrendering five runs on six hits and four walks in 3 1/3 innings.

“Less than ideal,” Kluber said. “Didn’t turn out the way I would have hoped for.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Red Sox: Christian Arroyo stayed in the game after taking an inadvertent cleat to the side of his head in the second inning. Arroyo was applying a tag to Rutschman at second base as he attempted to stretch out a single. Rutschman’s leg flipped over as he slid awkwardly. … LHP James Paxton was placed on the 15-day inured list (retroactive to March 27) with a strained right hamstring.

GOOD COMPANY

Rutschman, one of six Baltimore players making his first opening-day appearance, became the youngest Oriole to homer in his first opening-day at-bat since Cal Ripken Jr. in 1984.

BIG BAGS

The Orioles took advantage of MLB’s bigger bases – going from 15- to 18-inch squares – that are being used for the first time this season. Baltimore hadn’t stolen five bases in a game since last June 24 against the White Sox. Mullins and Jorge Mateo swiped two bags apiece, and Adam Frazier got a huge jump on his steal against reliever Ryan Brasier. There was nothing Boston catcher Reese McGuire could do to stop them and on the majority of Baltimore’s steals, he didn’t bother to throw.

FINAL SPOTS

Right-hander Kaleb Ort and Tapia earned Boston’s final two roster spots to open the season. Tapia got the nod over Jarren Duran, who was sent down to Triple-A Worcester. Ort pitched a scoreless sixth with one strikeout Thursday.

UP NEXT

Orioles: RHP Dean Kremer will make is sixth career start against Boston when the three-game series resumes on Saturday. In 11 road starts last season, he went 5-3 with a 3.63 ERA.

Red Sox: LHP Chris Sale, who has pitched in only 11 games over the past three years due to injuries, is set to begin his seventh season in Boston.