Joe Maddon defends Anthony Rizzo over accusations of dirty slide

Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo was at the center of controversy on Monday, and manager Joe Maddon was not having it.

Rizzo slid into Pirates catcher Elias Diaz on a force play at home and appeared to go well out of the baseline to try to prevent the catcher from making an accurate throw to first. It worked — Diaz threw the ball into right field and the Cubs went up 5-0, and though the play was reviewed under MLB’s slide rules, it was upheld.

Here's the Rizzo slide at home #Cubs #Pirates pic.twitter.com/u9HHXmFmNr

— Aldo Soto (@AldoSoto21) May 28, 2018

Maddon defended his first baseman after the game, saying it was silly to have even needed a review.

Maddon was furious that Rizzo's slide was under review, stating it was a clean slide and thought it made Rizzo unfairly subject to boos from fans.

— Mark Gonzales (@MDGonzales) May 28, 2018

Rizzo himself claimed that some Pirates players had told him they had no issue with the slide.

Rizzo said a few Pirates players told him later that his slide was clean. Rizzo said he checked with Diaz to make sure he was OK.

— Mark Gonzales (@MDGonzales) May 28, 2018

The Cubs and Pirates have rather extensive history, so we’ll see what Pittsburgh’s players think. That said, it’s hard to see Maddon’s point here. Rizzo was a long way from home plate and the slide was dangerous at best.