Tensions Boil Over Between the Blue Jays and Rangers

When Bryce Harper said “make baseball fun again”, I don’t think this is what he quite had in mind.

The Toronto Blue Jays and Texas Rangers transformed the baseball diamond into a battlefield after tensions boiled over between the two clubs on Sunday. It was complete pandemonium to say the least, and the furthest thing from a cordial baseball game that anyone would ever witness.

Neither side was completely innocent in this entire affair. Matt Bush threw at Jose Bautista, Jose Bautista slid hard into Rougned Odor, Rougned Odor swung at Jose Bautista, and then both benches complete erupted onto the field.

Players and coaches will be suspended on both sides, as members of the Jays and Rangers were both heavily involved in the fracas; including members of the Blue Jays training staff.

While it was as entertaining as a baseball game could possibly get, admittedly it was somewhat embarrassing to witness Major League Baseball players act like that on the field. It was no longer an “eye for an eye” and it suddenly escalated into all-out war.

Frankly, I’m surprised nobody on either team was wheeled out on a stretcher or lost a set of teeth. Things got that heated between the Blue Jays and Rangers, which is something that isn’t supposed to happen in a baseball game. In many ways, it resembled a WWE pay-per-view.

In many ways, this brawl was a long time coming. Many believe the Texas Rangers have been harbouring anger towards Jose Bautista and the Blue Jays since last October; when Bautista’s home run and bat flip propelled the Blue Jays into the ALCS.

The funny thing is, if the Rangers were waiting for an opportunity to go after Jose Bautista, why didn’t they do it last week? The Jays and Rangers played four games at the Rogers Centre last week. Instead, the Rangers waited until the very last game of the series and Jose Bautista’s very last at bat to get retribution.

As much as Matt Bush and the Rangers will say they weren’t trying to throw at Jose Bautista, they absolutely were. There’s no question the intention of that pitch thrown by Matt Bush, even though Bautista represented the game-tying run. It was a stupid thing to do, regardless of the game situation … although that apparently didn’t matter whatsoever to the Texas Rangers.

Jose Bautista made a very hard slide into second base, I will grant him that. It wasn’t egregious, but it was pretty hard. Did it warrant him being shoved, punched and then hit on the head with a baseball glove? Absolutely not … those actions by Rougned Odor were deplorable and I hope he serves a long suspension because of it.

Perhaps this all points towards the battle between baseball purists and the “new crop” of players like Jose Bautista, Bryce Harper, Josh Donaldson and others. These guys wear their emotions on their sleeve, they’re very outwardly passionate about the game, but that seems to rub some people the wrong way.

Maybe Rougned Odor deemed it necessary to stand up to Jose Bautista and clock him in the face as a representation of his displeasure with the way the game of baseball is being played today.

I will say this … if Rougned Odor doesn’t like the way Joey Bats or Josh Donaldson acts on the field, then you’re in the totally wrong sport.