Manny Machado was a highly touted shortstop of Dominican descent, and he was a first-round pick out of a high-school powerhouse in Miami. By law, you had to mention Alex Rodriguez's name in conjunction with his.

That was unfair, of course, as A-Rod is one of the greatest ballplayers to ever live, and that's an enormous burden to put on a teenager. It's somewhat ironic, then, that Machado homered in a game that also features Alex Rodriguez playing like he's encased in carbonite and hanging in Hank Steinbrenner's study. It's like a PBS Nova documentary on the cycle of life.

The home run came off Hiroki Kuroda, and it put the O's up 2-1.

Machado is the second-youngest player to homer in a postseason game, behind Andruw Jones, who also did his business against the Yankees. And now Jones is on the Yankees. Circle of life! Gather around children, this is what happens!