Baseball's most memorable bench-clearing brawls
Jose Bautista's bat flip last October served as one of the greatest moments in Toronto Blue Jays playoff history. It also left a bitter taste in the mouths of the Texas Rangers, and eventually led to Sunday's punch from Rougned Odor that triggered a wild bench-clearing brawl.
Seeing benches clear in baseball is nothing new. A full-scale brawl, though, is a rare breed nowadays. That's a good thing, of course, since nobody wants to see one of these donnybrooks result in an injury. When they do happen, though, almost nobody can look away.
Blue Jays-Rangers was the first real baseball brouhaha since the Dodgers and Diamondbacks danced in 2013, so this is a good chance to revisit some other unforgettable rumbles in the infield. Here are some of the most memorable bench-clearing brawls.
Pedro charges the mound
A brawl instigated by two pitchers is indeed a rare breed. This one features Pedro Martinez, then a brash young Expo, charging the mound after Phillies hurler Mike Williams buzzed him with a pair of retaliatory inside pitches. Of course Pedro held his own, since he was no stranger to brawls over his career. He was usually facing down guys charging him, though.
White Sox, Tigers lose it
Jim Parque drilled Dean Palmer in the sixth inning with tensions boiling, and oh was it on. The White Sox and Tigers brawled twice in three innings on April 22, 2000, and both fights went the distance. Coaches threw punches, ejected players came back to scrap, faces were bloodied, and White Sox fans showered the Tigers bullpen in beer. Sixteen uniformed persons were suspended between the two teams.
Braves-Padres, Part 3
There were four brawls in this game. This is video of the third one. The Padres threw at Braves pitcher Pascual Perez in every one of his at-bats, leading to each of the melees. In this video, you can see Atlanta fans rush the field to help their players, as well as injured Braves slugger Bob Horner - wearing a cast on his broken arm - attempt to join the fray. There were 14 ejections, yet somehow Perez wasn't one of them until after this eighth-inning brawl.
Marichal swings at Roseboro
Giants-Dodgers was never more heated than on this day in 1965. With Juan Marichal at the plate, Dodgers catcher Johnny Roseboro threw the ball back to Sandy Koufax inches from Marichal's head. Marichal didn't like it and swung his bat at Roseboro, starting a prolonged brawl and creating an iconic baseball image. Roseboro eventually forgave Marichal, and the two became good friends.
Fight night in Chicago
White Sox-Cubs is always a war with emotions running high across Chicago. In this memorable dust-up, Cubs catcher Michael Barrett was run over by White Sox backstop A.J. Pierzynski. Barrett didn't take kindly to this so he cocked Pierzynski with a cold right, and the fight was on. If you think this was intense, imagine if these teams meet in the 2016 World Series.
Yankees chase Armando Benitez
This is one of the more intense brawls in history. Armando Benitez drilled Tino Martinez in the shoulder blades at Yankee Stadium, then invited the Yankees to come dance. The brawl eventually spilled into the Baltimore dugout with almost the entire New York team chasing Benitez. Check out Darryl Strawberry's eyes - he wants blood.
Canada-Mexico throw down at WBC
Who says players don't care about the World Baseball Classic? Canada bunted up six to try and increase its run differential. Mexico was insulted and threw at Canada. The result was an 11-minute slug-fest with national pride on the line. It wasn't the first time Canada and Mexico threw down, either: An ugly 1991 dust-up at the Pan-Am Games sent a Canadian coach to the hospital.
Ryan schools Robin
Until Sunday, this was the most famous punch in Texas baseball history. Robin Ventura, then a wide-eyed 25-year-old, thought he could take down 46-year-old Nolan Ryan. Ventura was taught to respect his elders that day when Ryan wrapped him in a headlock and pummeled him until his teammates arrived. Ventura was tossed, while Ryan remained in the game.