Manny Machado looks like his usual self again, and the suddenly competitive Baltimore Orioles are benefiting in the Wild Card standings.
It’s hard to believe any extended slump could make baseball fans forget what Manny Machado is capable of, but in case you needed a refresher, the Baltimore Orioles third baseman was more than happy to oblige last night. He mashed three home runs, including a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the ninth inning in a 9-7 win over the Los Angeles Angels.
While a thrilling victory in its own right, the game was an especially important one for both clubs. With the win, the Orioles moved to within just two games of the second AL Wild Card spot, currently co-occupied by the Angels and Minnesota Twins. We questioned Baltimore’s decision to maintain a holding pattern at the trade deadline, but right now it’s actually looking like the right move.
Much of the credit for the Orioles’ revival should go to their All-Star third baseman, who endured a bleak first few months of the season in which he looked far from the player routinely placed among the game’s very best. Machado slashed a meager .216/.289/.423 through the month of June. His saving grace was that the power was still on, as he hit 15 homers and drove in 38 runs over that span.
Since the calendar flipped to July, Machado has looked much more like the perennial MVP contender we had all become used to seeing. He owns a boisterous .341/.368/.609 slash line with 11 homers and 43 RBI over his last 43 games. Last night’s three-homer, seven-RBI performance at Camden Yards was a real exclamation point on what has turned into a legitimate turnaround from the 25-year-old (yes, still just 25) superstar.
Machado is well aware that he’s been fighting an uphill battle. Zombie imagery isn’t too out of place. Per Jorge L. Ortiz of USA Today Sports:
"The Baltimore Orioles third baseman says he was “un muerto” – a dead guy – at the plate during an extended slump that saw him take a .216 batting average into July."
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Muerto no more, Machado is back among the living, and it couldn’t be happening at a better time for these O’s. Baltimore still has four teams to jump over (with a couple others right behind), which makes their task seem a bit more daunting than the two-game deficit might suggest.
But Machado is one of the few players in this game who can truly put a team on his back when he gets hot. If his resurgence continues through September, the Orioles could very well be battling for a playoff spot to the end.
On an individual level, Machado’s torrid hitting should re-establish some confidence as he heads toward his final year before free agency. Prior to the start of the season, many fans and pundits debated whether Machado or Bryce Harper would be the better investment in the 2018-19 offseason. Those discussions cooled a bit during Machado’s rough start, while Harper hit the ground running.
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Machado’s season slash line (.264/.319/.494) still isn’t at his accustomed level, but he’s on track to break the 30-homer mark for the third consecutive year and the 100-RBI threshold for the first time in his career. Meanwhile, his aptitude with the glove hasn’t wavered with seven defensive runs saved (DRS) and a 5.0 UZR/150 at the hot corner. We might indeed be hearing some Machado vs. Harper talk again this winter.