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A bizarre debut, SpongeBob and more: The Ramirez-Anderson fight had some odd elements
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- A bizarre debut, SpongeBob and more: The Ramirez-Anderson fight had some odd elements
CLEVELAND — Tim Anderson swung and missed twice, Jose Ramirez connected with a right hook, and every player and coach in both dugouts were pulled into a fracas . Or perhaps it was a brouhaha . Maybe a kerfuffle.
Either way, a wild scene began with Anderson and Ramirez squaring off like they were about to touch gloves before the main event. Ramirez said afterward if Anderson's reaction is going to be that he wants to fight, then he has to defend himself.
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It ended once the giant shoving match finally subsided after being reignited twice over the course of a 14-minute delay. Three players and three managers/coaches were ejected.
Jose Ramirez, center, lands a punch on Tim Anderson, as the two exchange punches in the sixth inning Saturday.
There were also a number of weird elements to the whole thing. Here's a look at some of them:
Jose Tena makes Major League debut for Guardians immediately after Jose Ramirez-Tim Anderson fight
Imagine you're Jose Tena. You're 22 years old. You just received the incredible phone call that you were coming up to the big leagues. It's your second day in a major league dugout.
And then the star of the team is decking a White Sox infielder, and all of a sudden you're in the middle of a mob of shoving, yelling, gesturing and teammates being held back.
Jose Tena
'Down goes Anderson!': Jose Ramirez explains what happened during Guardians-White Sox fight
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And then, only seconds after that whole affair dies down, you get another milestone message: you're entering the game for the first time in your career. With Ramirez being ejected and the Guardians having no other choice, Tena had to enter as a pinch runner.
It has to be one of the most bizarre circumstances for a major league debut in baseball history, to follow one of the biggest on-field fights in years with your introduction to the highest level of the game.
Tena ended up scoring a run. He also recorded his first two at-bats, but went 0-for-2. The timing of it all, and how it unfolded, was just beyond strange.
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"We didn't have anybody else," Francona said. "I mean, I think he's probably thrilled. You get a chance to get a couple of at-bats and get in the game. I don't think he cares how."
Guardians third baseman Jose Ramírez and White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson square off during the sixth inning Saturday.
Oscar Gonzalez 's walk-up song, the SpongeBob SquarePants theme, played right after it ended
The other incredible coincidence happened to be the audio that played at the end of it.
Both teams returned to the bench, still obviously fuming from the altercation. Both dugouts had players still staring down the other side. The umpires were left to figure out who was ejected and who was left.
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The stadium was buzzing. Fans were chanting "Jose, Jose-Jose-Jose" during most of it, and then gave him a standing ovation as he walked off the field. The energy was electric. Everyone on the field was still angry.
Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez (11) is cheered as he walks off the field following an altercation with White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson in the sixth inning Saturday.
And what's the next sound everyone heard? Amazingly, the SpongeBob SquarePants theme, which happens to be the walk-up song of Oscar Gonzalez .
There could not have been a larger juxtaposition from a fist-fight to SpongeBob. Perhaps it's what everybody needed in the moment, though.
Tim Anderson, right, punches Jose Ramírez, center, in the sixth inning Saturday.
Noah Syndergaard , Kole Calhoun had to join new teammates in the fracas
Not everyone involved in the incident had been with the club long. Saturday was effectively Kole Calhoun's introduction to the team after being acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers .
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Even that day's starting pitcher, Noah Syndergaard, was in only his second game with the Guardians since being traded from the Dodgers in exchange for Amed Rosario .
Noah Syndergaard pitches in the first inning Saturday.
Welcome to the club, now try to hold back teammates in a fight.
"I'll say this much: From the second I set foot into the clubhouse in Chicago, I could tell that these two teams just don't like each other, and I don't think that that's going to be resolved anytime soon," Syndergaard said. "I'm never going to condone physical violence, but I think it's good to see that kind of passion. And this clubhouse is a family. They're going to fight and they're going to be in it."
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Syndergaard jokingly added that perhaps MLB could learn something from hockey.
"Regardless whether it's physical or just the nature of the game, I will suggest that maybe MLB think about going to the NHL approach and just letting the guys duke it out," Syndergaard joked.
Teammates holds back White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson (7) after Anderson and Jose Ramirez (not pictured) got into a fight during the sixth inning Saturday.
Tom Hamilton gives Hall-of-Fame level call for Jose Ramirez-Tim Anderson fight
It should be no surprise that Tom Hamilton delivered an absolutely perfect call, all live and within the moment.
Just as Ramirez's punch connected, and Anderson fell backward to the ground, Hamilton said, "Down goes Anderson! Down goes Anderson!"
After being ejected, Francona walked back into the manager's office and heard the call. Francona was asked about Ramirez's punch, and he referenced Hamilton's call, though he also paused for a while, seemingly choosing his words carefully.
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"It's not funny, but when I came in, I listened to Hammy — hard not to chuckle," Francona said. "But, again, it's not funny. But … boys will be boys."
Players in the clubhouse after the game were having some fun with the line, yelling, "Down goes Frazier! Down goes Frazier!" to echo Howard Cosell's iconic call.
Chicago White Sox major league field coordinator Mike Tosar (37) gets between Chicago White Sox manager Pedro Grifol (5) and Guardians third base coach Mike Sarbaugh, right, in the sixth inning Saturday in Cleveland.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Jose Ramirez-Tim Anderson fight | weird elements of the brawl
