There's plenty of bad blood between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres heading into Game 3 of the NLDS as the series shifts to Petco Park.
In the aftermath of a contentious Game 2, Max Muncy detailed one aspect of the NL West rivalry that's been rather prevalent during the Division Series. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Muncy called out the Padres for their showboating antics and noted how they play off the emotion of the home crowd.
"Just something as simple as a single and you see a guy throw the bat 30 feet in the air," Muncy said. "That really gets the crowd going here. That is kind of part of their game, trying to get under your skin and trying to have the emotion come out. Trying to get you to do something that you're not normally doing.
"For example, if you're a pitcher and you see a guy doing that and all of a sudden you want to throw harder, and now you're missing balls right over the plate. And that's where their guys are doing the damage. ... You can't let that happen."
Max Muncy says Padres players intentionally try to get under their skin, including bat-flipping 30 feet after a single pic.twitter.com/rX5mGZvSM9
— Marty Caswell (@MartyCaswell) October 8, 2024
San Diego's stars have never shied away from celebrating their successes, even if it comes at the expense of their opponents' feelings. Muncy suggested that's just part of their identity.
The first two games of the series were anything but cordial. During Game 2, fans at Dodger Stadium caused a brief delay after throwing a pair of baseballs in the direction of Jurickson Profar during the middle of the seventh inning. They then proceeded to litter the outfield grass with trash nearby Fernando Tatis Jr.
Jack Flaherty and Manny Machado could also be seen in a war of words throughout the game, another example of the distaste these franchises have for one another.
Muncy is hoping the extracurriculars don't distract the Dodgers from focusing on picking up a win in Game 3 in front of a pro-Padres crowd.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Dodgers' Max Muncy Calls Out Padres' Antics Ahead of NLDS Game 3.
