The Blue Jays and Rangers may not play again this year in the regular season, but they ended their series with something to remember -- a bench-clearing brawl.
The incident occurred during Sunday's game, which was won by the Rangers, 7-6, at Globe Life Park in Texas.
After Jose Bautista slid hard into second base during a double play in the top of the eighth inning, Texas second baseman Rougned Odor got into a shoving match with the Blue Jays slugger and clocked him in the face.
Both benches emptied and some more punches were thrown, leading to the ejections of Bautista, Odor and Blue Jays third baseman and reigning AL MVP Josh Donaldson as well as Rangers bench coach Steve Buechele. Bautista was put on first base after being hit by a pitch from Matt Bush.
The feud between these two teams runs deep ever since Bautista had the bat flip to end all bat flips during the American League Division Series, which was won by Toronto in five games last October.
Odor was kept away from the media after the game, while Bautista addressed the situation.
"I was pretty surprised," Bautista said, according to ESPN. "I mean, obviously, that's the only reason that he got me, and he got me pretty good, so I have to give him that. It takes a little bit bigger man to knock me down. I had a hard slide at second base. I could have injured [Odor, but] I chose not to. I tried to send a message that I didn't appreciate getting hit [by the pitch]."
When the game resumed, Prince Fielder was hit with a pitch, leading to more ejections and another bench-clearing incident, though no punches were thrown.
Odor isn't any stranger to on-field incidents. In 2011, he was at the center of another bench-clearing brawl in the minor leagues due to a late slide of his own:
Clearly, this isn't the first time the Rangers' second baseman has gotten physical on the field. Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman weighed in on his lack of respect for the infielder-turned-fighter:
Zero respect for Odor. Never had respect for him, never will.
— Marcus Stroman (@MStrooo6) May 15, 2016
These teams will not meet again in the regular season, and the Blue Jays took the season series 4-3. Texas (22-16) enters Monday on top of the AL West, while Toronto (19-20) is in the mix in the AL East, so a postseason rematch (or slugfest) remains a possibility.
