Chris Sale's Historic Dominance Overshadowed by Ugly Red Sox-Orioles Feud

On a normal night, the top story from Tuesday's contest at Fenway Park would be Chris Sale taking another step toward a historic season.

But because this particular contest was between the Baltimore Orioles and Boston Red Sox, that story is currently hidden underneath a thick cloud of bad vibrations.

There was actually a brief moment of harmony early in Tuesday's game—which ultimately went to the Red Sox in a 5-2 final. Not even 24 hours after he had grabbed headlines by speaking up about enduring racist taunts—not to mention a peanut projectile—at Fenway the night before, Baltimore center fielder Adam Jones got a nice ovation from the home crowd before his first at-bat:

If nothing else, a nice gesture. And Sale did his part to keep it going, stepping off the mound to let the moment breathe.

But Sale's Mr. Nice Guy act only lasted, oh, maybe a minute. Two minutes tops.

Because the next man up was Manny Machado, whom Sale greeted with a 98-mph fastball behind his legs. Via Rob Friedman:

One of two things happened here.

One: The normally precise Sale simply misplaced the strike zone and made an honest mistake.

Or, two: He was further escalating a rivalry that had already been escalated plenty.

Both the Orioles and the Red Sox being AL East contenders makes for some tension by default. But there was a shot fired before the two teams even played a game. Orioles manager Buck Showalter poked some fun at the Red Sox for (apparently) being too public about their early struggles with the flu.

But things didn't really get ugly until an April 21 meeting at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, when Machado clipped Dustin Pedroia with a late slide into second base:

That sidelined Pedroia for three games, although he didn't mind the slide itself.

"I've turned double plays in the big leagues for 11 years It's my job," said the second baseman, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com), "and it's not the first time I've been hit and it won't be the last. It's baseball, man."

But his manager? Well...

"Fact is, we have a player who is not in the lineup tonight as a result of the slide," John Farrell said, per the AP (via USA Today).

It thus didn't seem too coincidental when Eduardo Rodriguez threw three pitches around Machado's knees two days later. Matt Barnes then upped the ante when he threw a pitch behind Machado's head:

That got Barnes ejected and ultimately suspended for four games. Machado, meanwhile, was understandably ornery at having his noggin threatened.

Still, that might have been the end of it. As unhappy as Machado was, Pedroia was plenty unhappy in his own right that things went down the way they did.

"I just told him I didn't have anything to do with that," Pedroia said, according to Jen McCaffrey of MassLive.com. "That's not how you do that, man. I'm sorry to him and his team. If you're going to protect guys, you do it right away."

Pedroia again reached out to soothe tensions before this week's series. But he evidently didn't quell Machado's desire for revenge. The third baseman hit a long home run in the series opener on Monday and sent a not-so-subtle message by taking his time watching it and rounding the bases.

Then came Dylan Bundy beaning Mookie Betts with a pitch. Whether that was intentional or just bad optics, it may have also been on Sale's mind when he buzzed Machado.

Regardless, that buzz pitch was certainly on Machado's mind when he got sweet revenge later in the game and, once again, took his time enjoying it:

To Sale's credit, he didn't let Machado's blast get him off his game. He went on to pitch eight innings, allowing just the two runs on three hits and two walks. He struck out 11.

Thus, the unseen story in all this. Sale has a 1.38 ERA in his first six starts with the Red Sox, and Tuesday's start was his fifth straight with at least 10 strikeouts. With 63 total strikeouts in just 45.2 innings, he's on a path to 300 strikeouts.

That's a figure the left-hander has flirted with before. If he actually gets there this time, he'd become the first American League pitcher since Pedro Martinez (who's a fan) in 1999 to do so. He would also be only the eighth AL pitcher to top 300 punchouts in the designated hitter era.

But right now, Sale should probably be thankful that the DH rule spares him from having to hit against the Orioles.

Because this thing isn't finished yet. Not if Machado's word can be taken for it, anyway.

"It's [expletive]," Machado told reporters, including Bob Nightengale of USA Today. "It's coward stuff. I mean, that stuff you don't [expletive] do, but I'm not that side. I'm not in that organization.

"I've lost my respect for that organization, for that coaching staff, for everyone over there."

Sale's response?

"Whatever, man. Not losing sleep tonight," he said, per Alex Speier of the Boston Globe.

Ah, you can just feel the love.

Because it is indeed so early in the season, the notion that this will all blow over must be entertained. Perhaps the 12 remaining games between the Red Sox and Orioles will go off without a hitch. Perhaps they'll be cordial. Pleasant, even.

But don't count on it. At this point, it's hard to even tell who has unfinished business and how much of it. It's just clear that there is unfinished business, and plenty of it. It's a proper rivalry, all right.

So those 12 remaining games? Those could look more like 12 rounds.

Data courtesy of Baseball Reference.