Puig suspended 2 games for role in fracas
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Yasiel Puig received a two-game suspension and an undisclosed fine for fighting and inciting a benches-clearing incident Tuesday at Dodger Stadium, Major League Baseball announced Thursday. Giants catcher Nick Hundley received an undisclosed fine for his role in the incident.
In the seventh inning of the Dodgers' 2-1 loss to San Francisco, Puig expressed frustration after fouling off a Tony Watson pitch, and he and Hundley proceeded to exchange heated words. The situation escalated quickly as Puig pushed Hundley, who shoved him back, prompting members of both teams to spill out of the dugouts and sprint toward home plate.
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Both players were ejected from the game.
"When I missed the pitch, I knew that was the best pitch Watson was going to throw me, so I was a little upset," Puig said after the game through a Dodgers interpreter. "[Hundley] told me to stop complaining and get back into the box, and when I got into his face, he told me to also get out of his face, so that's when I got upset.
"I didn't like that he was telling me what to do, and then he said some words to me in English that I really can't repeat. That's why I was upset."
Hundley downplayed the incident, chalking it up to the emotions of a tense division rivalry.
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"We're competing on the field against a team we're chasing," he said. "They've been scuffling a little bit, and we're trying to catch them. It's obviously a nice rivalry. We had some words, pushed a couple of times and you saw what happened. There's really nothing more to it than that."
Barring appeal, Puig's suspension begins Friday in Seattle. Tuesday's incident marked the fourth career ejection for both players, and neither had been tossed since 2015.