By most accounts, the Phillies made a serious effort to trade for former Baltimore Orioles megastar Manny Machado but didn’t put together a package of prospects that could best the one that ultimately landed him with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Orioles’ decision-makers took the deal that they believed was best for their organization. They didn’t take a lesser package in order to accommodate whatever Machado's preferred destination may have been. So in a sense, Machado didn’t really get a say in where he landed in a trade.
He absolutely will get final say about where he lands in free agency this winter.
Now, Philadelphia sports fans like to pride themselves on being among the most knowledgeable in all the land when it comes to their understanding of the game.
With all of that said, I’ve heard from a few fans that they’re debating whether or not to boo Machado when he visits Citizens Bank Park tonight with the Dodgers.
My response to that? Why in the world would you boo Manny Machado?!?
The idea of booing Machado just to boo him is a very bad one.
MLB
I’m talking about the kind of booing for no reason at all here where Machado comes up to his first plate appearance and hears the boos rain down from the crowd. Don’t do that. That is a very bad look. If he hits a home run against the Phils tonight? Feel free to boo all you want. If he says what an ugly city Philly is today? Boo him back to Baltimore.
Boo a guy if he deserves it. But Machado has said nothing but positive things about Philadelphia in the past. When he played against the Phillies back in July with Baltimore, he got cheered and he noticed.
"Philly. I did hear that nice ovation when I was there," Machado told reporters over the All-Star break. "That was pretty awesome.”
And Phillies fans — think about it — if you want Machado to sign here for a whopper of a contract in the offseason, you’re going to have to convince him that this is a wonderful place to live and play baseball. Booing him for no reason other than he didn’t get traded here certainly does not accomplish that and it does not make you look like a smart baseball fan.
I’d even argue giving Machado a loud positive cheer in his first plate appearance could be the smart thing to do. If you want him to chose Philly over the lore of being a New York Yankee, every positive image you can help him have of Philly can only help.
Make up a cheeky sign if you want. "Manny, I love you very much. You're the best. Just like Chase. But I hope you lose tonight. I know you understand."
And finally, Milwaukee Brewers fans booed Machado over the weekend and any self-respecting fan doesn’t ever want to do what they do.