Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays Brawl Once Again
By David Hill
Tempers flared when the Toronto Blue Jays and the Texas Rangers met in the American League Division Series last year. It seems those hard feelings have not gone away.
We all remember Game Five of the American League Division Series between the Texas Rangers and the Toronto Blue Jays last year. Elvis Andrus made several errors, and Jose Bautista had his infamous bat flip when he hit his go ahead home run.
Those tensions have boiled over again this year. After being hit by a pitch in the eighth inning, Bautista slid late, taking out Rougned Odor. Even though the slide was ruled as illegal and the double play granted, Odor still took exception to the slide. He shoved Bautista, and when the Blue Jays outfielder came back and attempted to grab him, Odor slugged Bautista in the jaw, sending his sunglasses and batting helmet flying.
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That’s where the fun began. The benches cleared, and Kevin Pillar attempted to fight Odor, with several ejections to follow. Things would not end there, as Prince Fielder was hit by Jesse Chavez, touching off another brawl. By the time everything calmed down, eight players and coaches were ejected in the Rangers eventual 7-6 victory, and will likely be facing suspensions.
Obviously, the hard feelings from last year have not passed with the offseason. Given the tempers and the actions from today, that rivalry is still as strong as ever. Unfortunately, given the focus on divisional play, these two teams will not be facing one another again this season, unless they have another matchup in the postseason. Should that happen, it would certainly become must watch television.
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There were quite a few fireworks between the Texas Rangers and the Toronto Blue Jays. If nothing else, we have learned that Rougned Odor has one hell of a punch.