Padres star Manny Machado let out his frustrations in a loss against the Brewers by having a full-blown dugout meltdown.
Is the Padres' 2023 season not going as planned? How can you tell?
San Diego Padres slugger Manny Machado was caught on camera destroying a poor and innocent water cooler during Sunday's defeat against the Milwaukee Brewers. Machado popped out with bases loaded in the seventh inning, walked into the dugout, and proceeded to smash a Gatorade cooler several times with his bat. He then threw his gloves and helmet and sat down on the bench with his head hung low.
The water cooler didn't deserve that level of abuse, but then again, neither do Padres fans who just saw their team lose 10-6 to get swept by the Brewers and sit 61-70 overall. Make that 15 losses after the trade deadline, when the Padres took a leap of faith to be buyers instead of sellers.
Machado, one of the team's Big Four, went 1-for-5 at the plate on Sunday; he recorded a double and a strikeout.
Padres' Manny Machado obliterates a water cooler amid losing season
Machado has batted .207 this month, a noticeable drop-off from his hot July. This year, he's slashing .250/.318/.462 with an OPS of .780, his lowest OPS since the 2014 season.
Machado and the Padres take on the lowly Cardinals next -- water coolers everywhere, beware.
San Diego is currently nine games under .500 and eight games out of the final NL wild card spot. The team is picking the worst time to go through a drought as their playoff hopes (down to 2.5 percent) keep dwindling week after week.
Maybe there's something worth salvaging in this disappointing season, but it's difficult to see the glass half full when Juan Soto has one foot out the door and the Padres' exorbitant spending has gotten them nowhere near last season's success. For Machado, the glass is completely broken, and water is spilling everywhere. The Padres are not done mopping up defeats.
