Dusty Baker’s most trusted ally was quick to react to Astros series loss

When you go from seven straight ALCS appearances to failing to win a single postseason game, you're bound to take heat from all angles. And that's certainly been the case since the Houston Astros were swept out of the Wild Card Round by the upstart Detroit Tigers, with fans taking everybody from stars like Kyle Tucker, Josh Hader and Framber Valdez to manager Joe Espada to even GM Dana Brown to task.

But the criticism has been limited to fans and talk radio hosts. At one point Wednesday evening, things got so heated that even one much-loved former Astro posted his reaction — and may have done a little bit of score-settling while he was at it.

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Did Martin Maldonado take a shot at Joe Espada after Astros loss?

Former Astros catcher Martin Maldonado was apparently watching Game 2 like everyone else, and when it ended, he expressed himself via emoji in an Instagram story:

On the one hand, this could just be a player expressing shock over a team's loss; Houston's primary catcher from 2020 through 2023, Maldonado was a central figure in that ALCS streak, and it would certainly be understandable if he still pulled for the Astros in his spare time.

On the other ... that thinking-face emoji seems to stick out, doesn't it? Let's read between the lines a bit. Maldonado was a favorite of former manager Dusty Baker, seeing regular time in both the regular season and postseason despite being a consistent nothing at the plate — much to Astros fans' dismay.

When Baker gave way to Espada at the end of last season, the writing was on the wall, and Maldonado was forced to go elsewhere to continue his career. (He wound up signing a one-year deal with the Chicago White Sox, with whom he posted a dismal .403 OPS over 48 games.)

There's no reason to think there's bad blood between Maldonado and Espada, who before being promoted to manager served as Baker's bench coach for six seasons. (Although Espada did pinch-hit for Maldonado in the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2023 ALCS, a move that helped set up Jose Altuve's iconic game-winning homer.)

But Maldonado could very well feel a little bit salty about how things ended, and he could be taking a little bit of pleasure in his old team flaming out without him behind the plate.