New York Yankees pitcher C.C. Sabathia and Tampa Bay Rays right fielder Avisail Garcia caused the benches to clear during Tuesday night's game in the Bronx.
It happened in the middle of the sixth inning just as Sabathia had caught Garcia looking with a called third strike (although the umpire was generous with the call as the pitch did seem to be a bit out of the strike zone). As Sabathia walked off the mound, Garcia stayed at home plate to adjust his shinguard. They began staring at each other, with both players putting their hands up in the air as if to say they didn't want anything to happen. However, things began to escalate quickly with finger pointing, and Sabathia began walking towards Garcia, with Didi Gregorius stepping in to keep him walking towards the dugout.
Based on our lip-reading of the close-up video, Garcia seemed to be saying "I'm relaxed. You're always talking", while Sabathia seemed to be saying "If I was talking to you, I'd be talking to you."
In the end, the Yankees and Rays teammates and coaches stepped in pretty quickly to keep Sabathia and Garcia separated. Overall, the incident was pretty tame as there was no real danger of things escalating into a brawl.
Garcia was the last batter that Sabathia would pitch to, as the Yankees went to the bullpen in the 7th inning. Sabathia did not get the win, but the Yankees came from behind to beat the Rays 8-3.
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Moonlighting as a blogger to pursue my interest and enjoyment of sports. Former high school and Division I athlete (now a "retired" family man) that loves watching and discussing all sports. Follow me on Twitter (@HoldoutSports) and like Holdout Sports on Facebook.
