Everybody hates Machado: 'I'm always the villain'

The phrase "Manny being Manny" may carry more negative connotations for Manny Machado than it did for Manny Ramirez.

The Baltimore Orioles slugger narrowly missed being hit in the head by a high pitch by Boston Red Sox reliever Matt Barnes in the eighth inning of Sunday's tension-riddled game. The pitch was seen as retaliation for Machado's aggressive slide that injured second baseman Dustin Pedroia on Friday.

Machado voiced he was upset by the pitch, but also by how he's perceived by others.

"I'm the villain. It's always me, Manny always does something wrong," he said, according to Dan Connolly of BaltimoreBaseball.com. "It's never me. I ... play a game I love and leave it on the field."

The best revenge, however, is playing well. Machado will get six games between the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees to blow off some steam before the Orioles walk into Boston for a four-game set on May 1.