By Orioles Rookie Manny Machado Gives Baltimore a Boost with AL Co-Player Of The Week Honors
August 14, 2012 – 8:00 am by Steven Cuce
Going into Tuesday night’s action Orioles rookie Manny Machado had gone 6-for-16 with three homers, one triple, one double, five runs and seven RBIs over his first four games. Machado’s standout performance earned him American League co-Player of the Week honors.
Jim Duquette and Buck Showalter sure have looked good since Machado’s debut on Thursday night. Last week Machado played at Double-A Bowie and over the weekend he became the 12th player in major league history to record a two-homer game before his 21st birthday, and the youngest player in franchise history to homer twice in a game.
Manny Machado joined WNST in Baltimore with Glenn Clark to discuss the moment he realized he was in the big leagues, the possibility of making it onto the Baltimore Orioles team this season, a moment that he will never forget from his weekend debut, moving from shortstop to third base at the big league level and taking a part in meaningful baseball in September.
Give me the first moment when you got to Baltimore where you felt this was the big leagues?
“Oh yeah I worked so hard my whole career and my whole life for this moment and once I got inside that locker room and stepped onto the field I just took it in and just took a deep breath. All the hard work I did my whole life and this past couple of off-seasons finally paid off.”
Did you feel there was a possibility that you would be called up to the big leagues this season? Did you think it would take another year?
“Yes. I didn’t know this. This was very unexpected for me. I was just trying to finish the year off healthy and finish up the year well and maybe go to the Fall League and prepare myself for the next year, so this caught me off guard. I am glad it happened and I’m just glad and give thanks to Jim Duquette and Buck Showalter for giving me this opportunity.”
Was there a moment this weekend that you will never forget for the rest of your life?
“Well, I will never forget this weekend. This is my first debut and this will be the only debut I will ever make to the big leagues. This only happens once, so I am going to take this for my whole life and I am going to take this for my whole career.”
Did you prepare to play third base in Triple A because you knew that would be the position for you at the big league level?
“I had been told a month or two that I might be playing third base in the future or maybe even this year, so they told me you go out there and practice and play a couple of games down in the minor leagues at third, so I just kept it going and kept working at it cause you never know. You never know what position I will end up at. I’m not the shortstop and hopefully I can continue playing there, but wherever Buck Showalter wants me to play I am going to go out there and play that position .”
How does it feel to be called up to play meaningful baseball with a team in the pennant race?
“Well I am glad. I am just glad Buck Showalter had the faith and trust in me to come up here and help this team win and not only win, but get to know the older guys and the league and go out there and just have fun and win a pennant race. I am just glad that Jim Duquette and Buck Showalter gave me the opportunity to try to play.”
Listen to Manny Machado on WNST in Baltimore here
Tags: Baltimore Orioles, Glenn Clark, Manny Machado, MLB, WNST in Baltimore
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