hammersavage
03-12-2003, 09:29 PM
Piazza, Mota involved in shoving match last spring
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Associated Press
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Mike Piazza charged the mound and started a bench-clearing brawl Wednesday night after he was hit by a pitch from Guillermo Mota during the Los Angeles Dodgers' 13-6 win over the New York Mets in a split-squad game.
Piazza
Piazza and Mota had a shoving match last year in spring training after he hit the star catcher with a pitch.
This time, Mota's first pitch to Piazza in the sixth inning was inside, and his second hit him in the back of the left shoulder.
Piazza immediately charged the mound, with his right fist cocked for a punch, and Mota threw his glove at him and began backpedaling away.
"If he wants to hit somebody he needs to stand there and fight," Mets manager Art Howe said. "He backpedaled faster than I can run forward."
Both benches emptied, with Mets outfielder Jeromy Burnitz leading the chase after Mota while Piazza was restrained on the mound by several Dodgers. Mota made it to the dugout without being caught.
An irate Piazza, red-faced and glaring with rage, yelled at Mota while being restrained by coaches and umpires. Twice he tried to charge the first-base dugout, but was held back both times.
"It was intentional, and they knew it, too," Howe said. "It was a setup."
After Mota hit Piazza in the hip with a pitch last March, he waited until the pitcher was coming off the field in the eighth inning and grabbed him by the jersey, but no punches were thrown.
"Obviously, he remembers the fact that the guy reached up and tried to choke him a year ago," Dodgers manager Jim Tracy said. "I'm sure major league baseball will sort this out, we'll sort this out and we'll move on."
Both Mota and Piazza were ejected. No punches appeared to land during the fight.
"This boils down to nothing more than history between the two guys that started at Holman Stadium last year and carried itself over," Tracy said. "I think the thing that needs to be done in a case like this is for both sides to work very hard to get it resolved and get it over with.
"The last thing you want in the case of the Dodgers and the Mets is work as hard as we do and then feel like a season is going to start and you're going to be without players."
Piazza left the ballpark while the game was still going without speaking to reporters.
Mota also left the stadium during the game and did not comment. The pitcher hit a three-run homer in the top of the sixth off Mets closer Armando Benitez.
Mota was once a shortstop in the Mets organization.
The Mets and Dodgers are scheduled to play two exhibition games against each other this weekend in Mexico City. They play once more in Florida during spring training, on March 25.
"I knew after the first pitch, it looked like intent out there," Burnitz said. "Bottom line, I thought it was wrong. You saw how I reacted."
Finally he snaps. It took a lot. Mota was such a puss. How much of a coward can one man be. Spread the word, Mike ain't a fag.
<IMG SRC="http://www.craigsavage.com/Hammer(Christina).jpg">
eat me
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Associated Press
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Mike Piazza charged the mound and started a bench-clearing brawl Wednesday night after he was hit by a pitch from Guillermo Mota during the Los Angeles Dodgers' 13-6 win over the New York Mets in a split-squad game.
Piazza
Piazza and Mota had a shoving match last year in spring training after he hit the star catcher with a pitch.
This time, Mota's first pitch to Piazza in the sixth inning was inside, and his second hit him in the back of the left shoulder.
Piazza immediately charged the mound, with his right fist cocked for a punch, and Mota threw his glove at him and began backpedaling away.
"If he wants to hit somebody he needs to stand there and fight," Mets manager Art Howe said. "He backpedaled faster than I can run forward."
Both benches emptied, with Mets outfielder Jeromy Burnitz leading the chase after Mota while Piazza was restrained on the mound by several Dodgers. Mota made it to the dugout without being caught.
An irate Piazza, red-faced and glaring with rage, yelled at Mota while being restrained by coaches and umpires. Twice he tried to charge the first-base dugout, but was held back both times.
"It was intentional, and they knew it, too," Howe said. "It was a setup."
After Mota hit Piazza in the hip with a pitch last March, he waited until the pitcher was coming off the field in the eighth inning and grabbed him by the jersey, but no punches were thrown.
"Obviously, he remembers the fact that the guy reached up and tried to choke him a year ago," Dodgers manager Jim Tracy said. "I'm sure major league baseball will sort this out, we'll sort this out and we'll move on."
Both Mota and Piazza were ejected. No punches appeared to land during the fight.
"This boils down to nothing more than history between the two guys that started at Holman Stadium last year and carried itself over," Tracy said. "I think the thing that needs to be done in a case like this is for both sides to work very hard to get it resolved and get it over with.
"The last thing you want in the case of the Dodgers and the Mets is work as hard as we do and then feel like a season is going to start and you're going to be without players."
Piazza left the ballpark while the game was still going without speaking to reporters.
Mota also left the stadium during the game and did not comment. The pitcher hit a three-run homer in the top of the sixth off Mets closer Armando Benitez.
Mota was once a shortstop in the Mets organization.
The Mets and Dodgers are scheduled to play two exhibition games against each other this weekend in Mexico City. They play once more in Florida during spring training, on March 25.
"I knew after the first pitch, it looked like intent out there," Burnitz said. "Bottom line, I thought it was wrong. You saw how I reacted."
Finally he snaps. It took a lot. Mota was such a puss. How much of a coward can one man be. Spread the word, Mike ain't a fag.
<IMG SRC="http://www.craigsavage.com/Hammer(Christina).jpg">
eat me