Third baseman for the San Diego Padres, Manny Machado, unintentionally sparked public outrage when he wore this shirt that had a three-word message on it. While many people blasted him for wearing the shirt, others showed immense support.
Manny Machado is a five-time All-Star and one of the most controversial players in Major League Baseball (MLB). In 2023, he signed an 11 year extension worth $350 million with the San Diego Padres. While he may be talented on the field, his ability to create controversy is unparalleled.
An incident involving a t-shirt has now earned him another title, the “most hated player” in MLB according to BetOnline.ag.
In 2022, Manny Machado was spotted wearing a t-shirt that read “Let’s Go Brandon” at Spring Training which KUSI News shared on Twitter along with a photo of him wearing it. This phrase gained popularity after NASCAR driver Brandon Brown won a race and reporters heard members of the audience chanting “F*** Joe Biden” – they quickly changed it to “Let’s Go Brandon”.
As you can imagine, this did not go over well with those who voted for Biden during the election.
Padres superstar Manny Machado repping a “Let’s Go Brandon” shirt at Spring Training. pic.twitter.com/9l451zRBy0
— KUSI News (@KUSINews) March 24, 2022
Two letter writers offered their opinion on Machado’s wardrobe choice to The San Diego Union Tribune and while one supported him and appreciated his courage for standing up for what he believes in despite potential retribution from those who run the Padres, another seemed furious at what he saw as “the last straw”. He went so far as to cancel his 20 game package and parking out of frustration due to what many have perceived as disrespect towards President Biden.
Social media also had its share of reactions – some supported Machado while others expressed their hatred toward him which ultimately sealed his fate as “the most hated player” according to BetOnline’s software which looks for phrases like “this player sucks” or negative emojis among other things when searching through tweets about players.
