A hit by pitch led to a benches-clearing melee in a minor league game on Thursday night.
The ugly scene unfolded when Portland Sea Dogs infielder Tyreque Reed took exception to being drilled in the hand by Binghamton Rumble Ponies pitcher Marcel Renteria.
Renteria appeared to dispute the hit by pitch, perhaps arguing that the pitch had hit Reed's bat. Reed didn't seem to appreciate Renteria's fervent disputing of the ruling.
Reed wasn't very far down the line before they came to blows, and Reed appeared to land a wild haymaker on Renteria, sending the pitcher sprawling in front of the mound.
Both teams' benches then rushed the field, with several smaller skirmishes breaking out -- including Renteria tackling a separate Sea Dogs player -- before some degree of calm was restored.
Reed and Binghamton third baseman Brett Baty were ejected, and Renteria's night also came to an end. The pitcher may have suffered an injury in the fracas, as he was tended to by team trainers before leaving the field.
The hit by pitch came in a 1-2 count with the bases loaded, so the plunking drove in a run for Portland.
The Sea Dogs went on to win, 12-5.
The scene came just one day after a head-turning brawl in a junior college game on Wednesday, in which a pitcher tackled a batter who had just hit a home run off him while he was rounding the bases.
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