Tweet
San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado won't use offseason elbow surgery as an excuse for his struggles throughout the first couple of months of the 2024 season. "We get paid the big bucks," he told Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune before citing his game-ending double play against the Colorado Rockies as an example of the struggles he's attempting to overcome."You know how everyone is saying I was supposed to hit a home run yesterday, right? I get paid the big bucks. So we've got to make adjustments. There's always things that you learn, and you've got to be better."Machado enters Tuesday with a career-low .640 OPS after undergoing offseason surgery to repair the extensor tendon in his right elbow. The injury has prevented the six-time All-Star from playing third base throughout most of the season. He's slotted in defensively just 10 times so far.The 31-year-old admitted this season has been "a roller coaster that you're gonna have to ride," but he's building up to play third base on a more consistent basis and will continue to work through the recovery to find his normal form and production at the dish."There's no excuse," Machado said. "It's not my elbow. Obviously, we all know that I got the surgery on it. I'm not making an excuse that my swing is not where it needs to be because of my elbow because there's days that I feel great."He continued: "But it's just a matter of just making the adjustment and finding things that click, and right now things aren't clicking. And you just gotta keep swinging through it, keep grinding through it until it does. And when it does, it's going to be fun."The Padres own a 22-22 record and sit 6 1/2 games back of the Los Angeles Dodgers for top spot in the NL West.
More...
More...