There was a pitching duel at Dodgers Stadium in Tuesday's 5-3 victory, but the battle on the mound was not enough as the Dodgers and Diamondbacks cleared benches twice and a brawl ensued in the seventh inning.
Editor's Note: Scroll down for brawl video.
It all began in the fifth inning when Cody Ross was put on base with an arguable hit-by-pitch. It was quickly followed up by a Jason Kubel two-run homer.
Then in the sixth inning it got ugly as Ian Kennedy hit Yasiel Puig in the face. Puig attempted to avoid the 92 mph fastball, but it glanced off his nose, sending him to the ground where he stayed for several minutes before getting up and heading to first base, recieving an ovation from fans.
Andre Ethier who has not had a home run since May 20th, hit a two-run game-tying retaliation homer.
Hitting rookie sensation, Yasiel Puig, would not go unpunished, as Zach Greinke plunked Miguel Montero in the back. The hit-by-pitch caused the benches and bullpens to clear, words were definitely exchanged, but there was no fight.
Tempers were rising quickly, and boiled over in the bottom of the seventh as Ian Kennedy threw at Zach Greinke's head, hitting right under the helmet. This time the benches cleared and a fight broke out quickly.
In the mass of 50 players and coaches, Ronald Belisario, Yasiel Puig, J.P. Howell, and Mark McGwire were heavily involved, throwing blows towards the Diamondbacks. Even Don Mattingly got in on the action, throwing down Alan Trammell of Arizona.
In the aftermath, Arizona's pitcher, Ian Kennedy, hitting coach, Turner Ward, manager, Kirk Gibson and the Dodgers' Mark McGwire and Yasiel Puig were ejected from the game. Suspensions should definitely be expected in the coming days.
The hot tempers and fighting kept the stadium electric, but Tim Federowicz's three-RBI double in the bottom of the eighth completely set the crowd off, putting the Dodgers in the lead 3-5. It was his first RBI hit since June 4th in Colorado.
With Tim Federowicz as the hero of the night, the Dodgers' newly crowned closer, Kenley Jansen, was given a two-run lead to hold onto. He sat down the Diamonbacks in order with two strikeouts to earn the save, giving the Dodgers the 5-3 victory.
Suspensions are expected, so who knows who will be playing for either team, but the Dodgers will be sending Hyun-Jin Ryu out to face Patrick Corbin in the series finale on Wednesday against Arizona.
