Detroit Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera and New York Yankees catcher Austin Romine were involved in a fight that led to a bench-clearing brawl on Thursday at Comerica Park.
Both players were ejected.
Cabrera had words with Romine before shoving and tackling him to the ground in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Cabrera was upset after Yankees pitcher Tommy Kahnle threw behind him. Kahnle was ejected. Yankees manager Joe Girardi was tossed when he came out of the dugout to argue with home plate umpire Carlos Torres after the ejection.
Kahnle apparently threw at Cabrera after Tigers pitcher Michael Fulmer plunked Gary Sanchez in the fifth inning. Sanchez had slugged his fourth home run in the series in the fourth inning.
The fun continued in the seventh inning when Yankees pitcher Dellin Betances hit James McCann in the head. The benches cleared again, but no punches were thrown. Betances was ejected -- even as he pleaded his case that he didn't hit McCann on purpose -- as did Yankees bench coach Rob Thompson, who came out to argue Bestances getting tossed.
The fireworks didn't end. Tigers reliever Alex Wilson hit Yankees third baseman Todd Frazier in the eighth inning, causing the benches to clear a third time. Wilson and Tigers manager Brad Ausmus were automatically ejected.
While the Yankees are playing for a postseason spot, the Tigers are not.
Benches clear, punches thrown in Yankees-Tigers game with Miguel Cabrera and Austin Romine at the center of it. https://t.co/g32ygLF1cz pic.twitter.com/QMsJ5fEDQO
— MLB (@MLB) August 24, 2017
