Machado: "The bat slipped out of my hands" (plus Jimenez quotes)

Manny Machado said he did not intentionally throw his bat in the last of the eighth inning today. On the second pitch from Fernando Abad, after the first one came in tight, Machado's bat went flying toward third base. The dugouts emptied and it looked like the Orioles and A's were headed for an on-field brawl, but cooler heads prevailed. Machado and Abad were both ejected. "The bat slipped out of my hands," Machado said. "Tried to make contact and the umpire thought it was intentional and he tossed me at that point." Asked again, Machado said it was not intentional. "No, it slipped out of my hands. It slipped right out," he said. "Umpire thought it was intentional. So at that point, I guess you have to toss the pitcher and the hitter at the same time." Did Machado expect to get ejected and that the umpires would assume he threw his bat on purpose? "I guess. It's out of my hands," he said. "I mean, it was their decision to toss us at that point. It was a weekend that had its up and downs. We got beat today. That is the only downer at this point. We got our (butts) kicked." Meanwhile in the A's clubhouse, Oakland reporters tweeted that catcher Derek Norris said, "What he's doing, I think it's a disgrace to baseball." For a few moments, it looked like it could get real heated and intense on the field in the eighth. "You know, heat of the moment," Machado said. "Obviously it's going to get heated. You can't do nothing about it. Only thing you can control is, come back out there and play baseball." Machado was asked what was said between him and A's catcher Stephen Vogt. "I have no idea," he said. "He came up to me and said something. We said a couple of words back and forth but nothing too crazy." Machado's ejection is probably the most discussed topic of today's game and it almost overshadows a very poor outing from Ubaldo Jimenez. He gave up six runs and walked four in the third inning and lasted just 2 1/3 frames today in his shortest start as an Oriole. He is now 0-5 with an ERA of 7.02 in six home starts. "I guess I lost everything," Jimenez said about that third inning. "The fastball was moving too much. It was hard to throw it for a strike and the breaking ball, couldn't throw for a strike. "Mentally and physically, I'm good. I never give up. I put the team in a tough situation today, especially the bullpen. But I never give up. I put in my mind to forget about a tough game like this one and the only thing I can do is try to get better and be there for the team." When Jimenez starts getting wild, it seems like he can't reverse the control issues. He does not agree that his mechanics get out of whack and he can't get locked back in. "I don't think so from what I know," he said. "I didn't feel anything was out of the ordinary. It is pretty much controlling and commanding the fastball. It was moving a lot. It was like I was trying to throw in the middle and they just kept running away. "It's been difficult because I haven't been consistent at all. That is something you want as a starter, to be there every five days for the team. I just have to keep working hard and hopefully things are going to change." The third-inning implosion came after Jimenez did not allow a hit or run and needed just 28 pitches over the first two innings. "That is the tough thing," he said. "I started so good the first couple innings and in that inning, I lost the ability to throw a strike. It's one of those days. Really tough game."