Nothing like watching 50 or so guys clear the benches in baseball, yell at each other and then... do absolutely nothing. The Royals and Indians aren't exactly known for a rivalry that boils over into violence, but fans at Kauffman Stadium yesterday got to see two bench-clearing incidents (can't call them brawl) in the Indians win over the Royals.
The first incident happened in the second inning when Royals starter Jonathan Sanchez hit Shin-Soo Choo with a pitch. It's the same pitcher-batter match-up from last June when Sanchez, as a member of the San Francisco Giants, hit Choo with a pitch on the hand that cost him significant time on the DL. When Sanchez hit him again, it led to this exchange:
In the very next inning, the Indians left it to their pitcher to get even (only baseball has this weird reciprocity going on). That's exactly what Jeanmar Gomez did, hitting Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas. Check that below:
The only players ejected were all on the Indians' side. Gomez was tossed immediately, as was Manny Acta. Somehow, Jack Hannahan believed it appropriate to get involved, which you can see in the second vid. He was tossed as well. The final game of the series is this afternoon at 1:10pm CT.
For more on this game Royals fans should check out Royals Review and Indians fans should visit Let's Go Tribe. For more news and notes from around Major League Baseball head over to Baseball Nation.