What the rule seemed to say and the interpretation applied by home plate umpire Bill Welke on Tuesday seemed at odds.
The Padres were certainly confused, both during and after their 8-5 loss to the Diamondbacks.
Manny Machado clearly had no idea he had been called out for batter’s interference on a pop foul that Diamondbacks catcher John Ryan Murphy dropped in the sixth inning. At least not until Padres manager Andy Green had been ejected.
That is when Machado joined the argument Green was beginning to wind down. Quickly, bench coach Rod Barajas went onto the field to pull Machado away from Green, Welke and crew chief Mike Everitt.