Pedroia unfazed by Machado's slide: 'I'm not the baseball police'

Hand in your badge and your glove Pedroia, you're off the force.

Boston Red Sox sparkplug second baseman Dustin Pedroia was wincing and knocked out of the game following an aggressive slide Friday by Manny Machado from the Baltimore Orioles.

Despite the controversial nature of the slide, Pedroia isn't going out of his way to label Machado a villain, according to Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald.

"I’m not the baseball police, man," he said. "I’ve got three kids. I don’t have time for that."

Machado apparently sent Pedroia a text message to clear the air, though Pedroia was reluctant to reveal the specifics of the message beyond a few pleasantries.

"He said he hopes I’m OK," Pedroia said. "You want me to add you to the text now? This isn’t a group chat. I just said thanks for reaching out. That’s it."

While Pedroia is sitting out Saturday, he said he feels fine and doesn't think he'll be placed on the disabled list. He also disregarded notions there will be any kind of retaliation, Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal reports.

"My job is to play baseball and win. This isn’t seventh grade, man. I just play baseball. That’s it. I care about our guys. I don’t care about anybody else. We just play the game."

The Red Sox play the Orioles again Sunday before a day off Monday. Boston opens a three-game series Tuesday at Fenway Park against the New York Yankees.