Machado robbed of HR at Petco, and it looked eerily familiar

SAN DIEGO -- Stuart Fairchild is making a habit of jaw-dropping catches. His first victim of the season was Willy Adames. The second was his college buddy. His latest? Padres star Manny Machado, and this robbery snatched away a home run that looked eerily similar to a famous one you might recall from seven years ago.

Machado sent a deep drive to right-center field in the first inning of Cincinnati's 6-2 loss on Wednesday afternoon, one that looked destined for the other side of the short wall in that part of Petco Park. But Fairchild had other ideas.

The Reds center fielder covered 94 feet, tracking the ball all the way to the warning track.

“I was already over in that direction, which helped," Fairchild said. "When he hit it, I knew he hit it good and hit it high. I timed it to get back and took one peek at the fence to gauge where I was and space."

Then Fairchild took a leap of faith.

With his glove clear over the fence, Fairchild reeled it in and hung on while slamming hard into the wall, just beside an advertisement for the San Diego Zoo.

“That’s got to be my best catch ever," Fairchild said. “The one I robbed off Adames earlier in the year, that was cool to get my first one in the big leagues. But the situation with two runners on and taking away what would have been a three-run homer, that’s just a bigger moment and a more difficult play, too, I would say.”

With a point to Fairchild, Reds starting pitcher Graham Ashcraft was among teammates who appreciated the stunning grab.

“That’s two that he’s got for me now," said Ashcraft, who was on the mound for the catch to rob Adames. "That’s big time. That’s a big momentum shifter for us.”

It was something of a familiar sight for Machado, who was on the wrong end of one of the more iconic robberies in baseball history at the World Baseball Classic in 2017 ... in this very same park ... in an almost identical spot. That homer was robbed by Adam Jones -- an Orioles teammate of Machado at the time -- and helped spark Team USA to a tournament title.

“I remember seeing that one," Fairchild said. "He just can’t get any help out there.”

Sure, the stakes were slightly higher in that one, but the outcome's the same for Machado -- a long walk back to the dugout in disbelief. He may want to find a new part of Petco Park to pepper with potential homers.

"It's not frustrating, man. It's baseball. It's fun to watch. It was a hell of a play," Machado said.

According to Sports Info Solutions, it was the ninth time in Machado's career that he's been robbed of a homer. Since SIS began tracking in 2004, only Chris Davis has more, with 10.

"It sucks," Machado said with a smile. "I guess it's my fault for robbing so many people at third base."

After Fairchild robbed his good friend Gavin Sheets on April 17, he joked that Sheets was not too pleased and that it was "circulating in our group chat."

Now there's another highlight for the chat. And another unsatisfied customer in Machado.