Tim Anderson on Saturday dropped his glove. Jose Ramirez dropped Chicago’s shortstop.
Ramirez landed a looping right hook to Anderson’s jaw when the infield stars squared off and started throwing punches at second base in the sixth inning, triggering a wild brawl before the White Sox beat the Cleveland Guardians 7-4.
Anderson and Ramirez are likely facing suspensions for their roles in a lengthy bench-clearing melee that led to six ejections and heightened bad blood between the American League Central rivals.
Photo: AFP
“From the second I set foot in the clubhouse, I could tell these teams don’t like each other,” said Cleveland starter Noah Syndergaard, who was acquired in a trade last week. “And I don’t think it’s going to be resolved anytime soon.”
After Anderson and Ramirez squared off, both benches and bullpens poured onto the field, leading to some chaotic moments in one of the nastiest fights in the majors in recent years.
“It’s not funny, but boys will be boys,” said Guardians manager Terry Francona, who was ejected following the fracas, which began after Ramirez slid headfirst into second base between Anderson’s legs.
Anderson kept his tag on Ramirez’s back as he stood over and straddled him. Ramirez seemed irritated. After getting up, he pointed his finger in Anderson’s face and yelled.
The two then squared off like boxers in a ring.
Anderson took off his glove and threw the first punch and then another that missed before Ramirez countered with his haymaker to the Chicago star’s jaw, dazing him and knocking him on his rear end on the infield dirt.
“I felt I was able to land one,” Ramirez said through a translator.
“He’s been disrespecting the game for a while,” Ramirez added. “When he does something like that on the bases, he can get somebody out of the game. So I was telling him to stop doing that. After he tapped me really hard, more than needed, he said he wanted to fight and I had to defend myself.”
Anderson was not available for comment afterward.
Francona said he was not exactly sure what prompted the Anderson-Ramirez bout, but before the brawl, Anderson had been told by one of the umpires to stop jawing at Guardians rookie Gabriel Arias.
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