Dave Roberts calls out Manny Machado to intensify Dodgers-Padres NLDS

The Dodgers have at least two games to go before they get a break from seeing the Padres for a few glorious months, but this NLDS has already given us a lot to talk about for the foreseeable future. In Game 1, Shohei Ohtani powered LA to a clutch win in his first attempt to prove that the Dodgers' seemingly infectious postseason hitting woes won't spread to him, but that paled in comparison to the way Game 2 played out.

Not only were Jurickson Profar and Fernando Tatis Jr. at the center of some ugliness in the outfield, but Manny Machado and Jack Flaherty also engaged in a yelling match between the dugout and third base. There's no love lost between Machado and Dodgers fans, and Flaherty immediately earned his stripes by mouthing back to him and striking him out in the sixth.

But it didn't even end there. The reason why Flaherty started yelling at Machado in the first place was because as Shohei Ohtani was digging in at home plate, Machado threw a warmup ball toward the Dodgers dugout. Dave Roberts didn't look up initially as the ball caromed off the rail, but Teoscar Hernández quickly came up to the top step to come to the defense of his skipper. Roberts, realizing what had happened, looked up and started to shout at Machado as well.

Roberts said of the incident the next day, "It was unsettling. Obviously I have a relationship with Manny from years past. There was intent behind it."

Dodgers-Padres NLDS drama escalates with footage of Dave Roberts-Manny Machado incident

The Dodgers and MLB have been in contact about the incident, with the team supplying footage that Fox didn't have, although ESPN noted that "any punishment seems unlikely." However, Roberts still seemed pretty firm on his stance that the throw was intentional, and Machado did brush it off, but also didn't entire dispel the notion.

Machado attempted to push the controversy aside by saying, "Both dugouts; they have foul balls, you throw the ball back in there," but then immediately followed it up by referring to the hit by pitch incident between Flaherty and Tatis in the top of the sixth, which the Padres clearly also thought was intentional.

"I mean, when you try to hit our best hitter. Right? Get him out. If you can't get him out, don't hit him. Right?" Machado questioned. "They have the best player in the game, right? [Shohei] Ohtani? We don't go out there and try to hit Ohtani. We try to get him out. Don't go out there and try to hit my guy."

Instead of directly answering a question when The Athletic told him the Dodgers thought he threw the ball too hard (subscription required), he asked, "Did Flaherty throw the ball hard at our guy?"

All of that is definitely fishy, but this one is going to get chalked up to a he said-he said situation with no resolution other than how the rest of this series plays out. But the Dodgers should use it as fuel. They need something to help them bounce back from their abysmal Sunday night.