Penalties have come down from MLB for Tuesday’s benches-clearing incident at Fenway Park: Nats pitcher Cade Cavalli and Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras have each received seven-game suspensions, while Washington RHP Miles Mikolas receives a five-game suspension, and Boston OF Nate Eaton got a three-game ban.
All four players were fined undisclosed amounts as well, and if not appealed, their suspensions would begin Friday.
The discipline stems from a dust-up that was simmered when Contreras appeared to cut in front of Cavalli leaving the mound after the first inning and brushed him, and escalated when Cavalli struck out Contreras in the fourth inning and two exchanged words.
“I strike him out, words were said,” Cavalli told MLB.com after the game. “We don't want that to happen. We're just competitive, and I'm thankful that my teammates have my back and we were able to move on from it and go focus on the game. So it's really not a big deal.”
Contreras, Mikolas, Eaton, and Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy were ejected from the game, but Cavalli was not and ended up striking out 13 Red Sox over seven innings.
However, his use of some unsavory language that seemed to spark the event led to a discussion Wednesday with manager Blake Butera and POBO Paul Toboni, with Cavalli apologizing and expressing remorse.
“I'm extremely torn up about the way that things were perceived,” Cavalli said Wednesday. “Obviously, there was no ill intention behind that. My teammates know me, my family knows me, this organization knows me. I couldn't sleep because of it. It hurt my heart knowing if there’s a 13-year-old Black kid in D.C. that sees that, that looked up to me and thinks that, he perceived it in a way that wasn’t intended the way that it came out, and then he’s not looking up to me anymore, that hurts my heart."
The Nats do not plan to discipline Cavalli further.
