MLB Rumors: Orioles threaten to demote Manny Machado to Triple-A

Could Manny Machado be back playing in the minor leagues? Seems a little hard to believe, but Baltimore Orioles executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette told FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal that Machado isn’t immune to a demotion and his poor play could warrant such if it continues.

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“That’s always an option,” general manager Dan Duquette told FOX Sports on Tuesday. “The guy distinguished himself in the big leagues last year. We’d much rather see him develop his skills here. But that’s always an option.”

Just 21, Macahdo came up and played relatively elite ball for a player his age, but has struggled this season as he attempts to recover from offseason surgery. His bat wielding antics from this past weekend likely didn’t help his case, though, it’s hard to believe the Orioles would demote him over that despite the fact he’s likely to face a hefty find and possible suspension from Major League Baseball.

The most likely scenario is that the Orioles are doing what they can to motivate Machado in hopes of having him return to form. It’s a tactic we’ve seen used a handful of times, though occasionally a few teams (like the Boston Red Sox) actually do follow through so it’ll be interesting to see what the Orioles do if Machado doesn’t improve his plate discipline in the coming weeks.

Even if he is sent down, it’s unlikely he’d be left there for very long.

Baltimore could opt to play Ryan Flaherty at third and Jonathan Schoop at second like they did when Machado was recovering from injury or it’s possible they dip into the minor leagues to fill his roster spot.

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