Timeline of how 1 slide caused Orioles-Red Sox tensions to boil over

(Warning: Story contains coarse language)

The spike heard 'round the baseball world.

In an April 21 game, the third matchup of the season between the Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles, star third baseman Manny Machado slid into - and spiked - long-time Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia in the leg.

Traditionalists would, presumably, characterize the play as part of the game, while Red Sox supporters would arbitrarily defend Pedroia, who would miss three games due to the incident. Shortly after the controversial play, theScore conducted a poll with the question, "Was Machado's slide vs. Red Sox dirty?" Out of 16,000 votes, 60 percent thought Machado didn't do anything wrong, while 40 percent thought differently.

Regardless, it's the aftermath of Machado's slide that has many questioning baseball's unwritten rules, specifically the dangerous repercussions of pitchers trying to get even by tossing fastballs at players, and some Red Sox fans berating Orioles outfielder Adam Jones with inexcusable racist taunts.

How did one slide turn into a nasty affair between two division rivals that led to a suspension, warnings from umpires, and an ejection to Orioles starter Kevin Gausman?

Here's a look back at the timeline of the controversial events:

Friday, April 21 in Baltimore: Machado spikes Pedroia

After singling to lead off the eighth, Machado would hustle to second on a ground ball hit by Mark Trumbo. His spike caught Pedroia as he attempted to make the throw to first base, causing him to leave the game. Machado seemed sympathetic, apologizing after the game while adding it wasn't intentional and he'd never want to hurt someone like Pedroia.

Pedroia was understandably upset, though not directly at Machado, or so it appeared. He questioned the legitimacy of the slide rule at second, with manager John Farrell adding he thought the rule "failed."

Saturday, April 22 in Baltimore: No retaliation from knuckleballer Steven Wright

The next day, with Wright as the starting pitcher, nothing materialized from the Red Sox in terms of retribution. The Orioles would win 4-2, with Game 3 of the series on deck for Sunday.

Sunday, April 23 in Baltimore: Eduardo Rodriguez fails to hit Machado, leaving Matt Barnes the culprit

This is when the situation escalated. Red Sox starter Rodriguez was effective, tossing six innings of one-hit baseball. He did, however, allow five walks. None of which was more suspicious than the one issued to Machado in the sixth inning.

In what appeared to be a blatant attempt to plunk the 24-year-old, Rodriguez misses four times. If the southpaw simply hit Machado in the leg or back, it might have put an end to the festivities. Instead, it resulted in Barnes having to clean up his mess.

The right-hander would throw a 90-mph pitch directly at Machado's head, resulting in an immediate ejection. Pedroia was seen telling Machado from the dugout that it wasn't his call. After the heated affair, Pedroia called the situation "mishandled" and apologized, with Barnes also offering sympathy. Machado would go on to proclaim that he's always seen as a "villain."

April 23: Zach Britton uselessly chimes in

Britton, who wasn't even active due to a forearm injury, would question Pedroia's apology saying: "Dustin, him telling Manny, 'Hey, that didn't come from me' may be even more frustrating because he's the leader of that clubhouse and if he can't control his own teammates, then there's a bigger issue over there."

Monday, April 24: Barnes suspended 4-games

For his part in the incident, Barnes was suspended four games and fined an undisclosed amount by the league.

Tuesday, April 25: Farrell, Britton say both teams have moved on

With the dust appearing to be settled, Farrell's comments seemed to indicate the situation was over, adding his team was "moving on." At the time, the Red Sox sat two games behind the Orioles for first place.

Britton would go on to reiterate Farrell's sentiments, saying ahead of the series opener in Boston that it was over and he didn't expect things to continue.

Monday, May 1 in Boston: Machado silences boos with stellar play, mammoth HR

Exacting his best form of revenge, Machado let his play do the talking. After making a number of great defensive plays, it's his 420-foot solo shot off Rick Porcello that silenced the boos at Fenway.

May 1: Dylan Bundy hits Mookie Betts

The Orioles decisive win didn't come without a notable moment. Up two runs, Bundy would hit Betts with a 95-mph fastball - his hardest of the game. Nothing came of it, but it sure didn't to put an end to the fireworks, either.

Tuesday, May 2 in Boston: Jones says fans threw peanuts, taunted him with racial epithets

By far the most unfortunate development came when fans berated Jones with racist taunts, including one fan who threw a bag of peanuts at him.

It immediately led to severe backlash directed at Red Sox fans, especially with Jones adding it's not the first time he's dealt with racial abuse at Fenway Park. Ahead of Game 2, several members of the Boston community spoke out on the incident - specifically Farrell, Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr., and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh who professed in defense of his city: "We are better than this."

In his first at-bat of the game, Fenway greeted Jones with a standing ovation which he admitted "caught him off guard."

May 2: Chris Sale throws 98-mph pitch behind Machado

Immediately after the moment of solace, tempers flared once again. In his first at-bat, Machado would have an 98-mph fastball from Sale thrown directly behind him.

It shifted everyone's attention to Machado - the "villain" who injured Pedroia nine days earlier. After a warning to both benches from umpire D.J. Reyburn, Sale would eventually win the battle, striking Machado out.

The Red Sox ace continued his dominance, going eight innings while striking out 11 in the win.

May 2: Machado rips into Red Sox with profanity-laced tirade

After Sale's antics, Machado went on to drop a series of F-bombs in a postgame interview, saying: "Get thrown at on my fucking head. They're fucking throwing everywhere. It's fucking bullshit, you know, I've lost my respect for that organization."

Sale didn't seem concerned with Machado's obscenities, saying he wasn't "losing sleep" over it.

Wednesday, May 3 in Boston: MLB says there will now be zero tolerance

Ahead of Game 3, MLB chief baseball officer Joe Torre admitted Sale could face discipline, saying: "That's something we don't really tolerate."

Commissioner Rob Manfred and Torre said on a conference call with Red Sox and Orioles managers and executives that there would be zero tolerance for any other reckless behavior.

May 3: Kevin Gausman hits Xander Bogaerts, gets immediately ejected

With umpires told to keep a close eye on any funny business, Gausman would hit Bogaerts in the second inning with a 77-mph curveball. It resulted in an immediate ejection from umpire Sam Holbrook, which left the Orioles pretty upset.

Holbrook defended his decision, admitting that, although the pitch was a curveball, he was simply following orders. Gausman, meanwhile, called it "bush league" with catcher Caleb Joseph adding it was "BS."

The Red Sox would win the game 4-2.

May 3: Joseph wants to 'get the hell out of Boston'

After Game 3, Joseph - who was animated after Gausman's ejection - said, "I am the most excited person to get the hell out of Boston."

The 30-year-old would rant about how he thought it was unfair Sale stayed in the game for throwing a 98-mph pitch behind Machado, but Gausman was tossed for a curveball that simply got away from him. He offered a solution, saying umpires should collectively make a decision before ejecting someone.

Game 4 will be played Thursday, with the next series starting June 1 in Baltimore.

(Photo courtesy: Action Images)