Boston Red Sox
Wilson Contreras charged on the mound after Nationals right-hander Cade Cavalli yelled something at him after the hit.
Wilson Contreras went after Washington right-winger Kid Cavalli on Tuesday. Daniel Parhizkaran/The Boston Globe
It was fight night at Fenway Park on Tuesday.
Tempers ran high between the Red Sox and Nationals in the fourth inning, with Boston first baseman Wilson Contreras at the center of the brawl.
With Boston leading 1-0 in the fourth, Contreras was called out for sweeping hits fielded by Washington starter Cade Cavalli. Cavalli then shouted something in Contreras’ direction after the hit, which the veteran quickly picked up.
As he was returning to the dugout, Contreras stopped and appeared to ask Cavalli if he was yelling at him. As the temperature began to rise as Contreras and Cavalli exchanged words, both dugouts emptied.
Things escalated after Contreras broke free from Washington catcher Kebert Ruiz and ran toward a crowd of Red Sox and Nationals players gathered in the middle of the diamond.
Contreras was unable to reach his intended target on Cavalli, but he attempted to lift his helmet toward the Nationals’ right side — only for it to instead hit Washington first baseman Andres Chaparro.
In all, three players were ejected — Contreras, Myles Mikolas, and Red Sox outfielder Nate Eaton, who was not in the game Tuesday night. Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy was also ejected following an argument with umpires after the buzz began to dissipate.
It has been an eventful couple of days for Contreras, who admitted Monday that he is experiencing a lot of emotions in the wake of the devastating earthquakes that have affected his native Venezuela.
On Monday, cameras caught Contreras crying in the Red Sox dugout after hitting a three-run homer against the Nationals — with the veteran later ejected in the second inning for mocking a swing ruling from first baseman Nick Lantz by tapping his helmet as a signal to challenge the ABS.
“It’s not easy to hide. It’s not easy to just show up and play with everything that’s going on in my country,” Contreras said after Monday’s win. “I didn’t feel good all day. I was kind of sad and depressed. And I bumped into Homer. Of course, I tried to help.” [spark] My hideout. But the first thing I said was “Venezuela.” “That was the first thing out of my mouth.”
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