The Padres didn't just lose on Thursday night. They lost in a way that left everyone in brown and gold furious. That included Manny Machado.
Videos by FanBuzz
Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images
San Diego was eliminated from the MLB postseason after a 3-1 loss to the Chicago Cubs in Game 3 of their NL Wild Card series at Wrigley Field. The game ended on a highly controversial called third strike in the ninth inning that effectively killed a Padres rally.
Home plate umpire DJ Reyburn rang up the final batter on a borderline pitch, and Padres players immediately let him hear about it. Viral videos showed several Padres yelling at the umpiring crew as they walked off the field.
That mood carried over into the locker room, where Machado's postgame availability ended with fireworks. Jake Garegnani of CBS 8 San Diego asked Machado how he would assess the season. Machado was not having it.
"What kind of question is that, my guy?" Machado snapped. "How do I assess the season? We just lost. How do you think I assess it? ... What's a loss? We lost. How do you assess it? It's a loss. We lost. Come on dude. You can ask better questions than that. Let's go. Come on."
Even after stepping away from the scrum, Machado kept going.
"You're gonna wait til the last second to ask that question? Come on, bro," he said.
I asked Manny Machado how he would assess the 2025 season. Here is what he said to me. @CBS8 | #FightForTheFaithful #Postseason #Padres pic.twitter.com/es85lKSj99
— Jake Garegnani (@JakeGaregnani) October 3, 2025
The question itself wasn't unreasonable. The Padres won 90 games, one of the better regular seasons in franchise history. But the timing was raw, and Machado made it clear he wasn't ready to reflect.
Between the strike call, the early exit, and the postgame tension, San Diego ended its season in a foul mood that matched the chill in Wrigley.
