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Moriarty9 · 02-11-2009, 07:00 PM

Boston beanball battle
Rays, Sox testy once again
April 11, 1999

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — For the third consecutive night, the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Devil Rays have exchanged proverbial blows with one another, furthering an early season feud between the clubs.

Andruw Jones and Jeff Suppan were each ejected from last night's game after Suppan hit Jones with a fastball in the fourth inning and a bench-clearing brawl was ignited. Today it was announced that both players would be suspended for five games.

Tonight, with the previous 48 hours fresh in the players' minds, the Devil Rays jumped out to a 5-2 lead in the first inning and offensively battered Boston, picking up a 15-6 win. Tampa Bay ran the bases aggressively throughout the game, despite their large lead, which was 15-3 at one point. The aggressive baserunning was not well received by some Boston players and coaches, but was locally seen as fair after the Red Sox were criticized for the same thing earlier in the series.

Things escalated in the sixth inning of tonight's contest as Jim Corsi hit Mike Cameron with a first-pitch fastball after surrendering consecutive RBI-doubles after coming on to relieve Ron Mahay. Cameron quickly jogged down to first base and did not look at Corsi at all while the fans and some of his teammates chirped at the Boston reliever.

Pedro Martinez returned the favor in the the top of the seventh inning. After retiring the first two batters, Martinez pelted Carl Everett with a first-pitch fastball. Everett pointed his bat at Martinez and the two exchanged words before teammates and umpires separated the two and avoided additional drama. Both benches were warned and no ejections were made.

Boston manager Cito Gaston was nearly ejected in the ninth inning when he argued Devil Rays reliever Todd Jones should be ejected after Jones hit Nomar Garciaparra with a pitch. The umpires said they did not believe Jones intentionally tried to hit Garciaparra, whose hands often hang very close to the plate. Jones hit Garciaparra with a pitch earlier in the series and was vocal with the media regarding Boston "running up the score" previously.

The two teams will begin a four-game series in Boston on Friday.

02-11-2009, 07:00 PM	#91 (permalink)
Moriarty9 All Star Starter Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 1,855 Thanks: 9 Thanked 3x in 3 posts	Boston beanball battle Rays, Sox testy once again April 11, 1999 ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — For the third consecutive night, the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Devil Rays have exchanged proverbial blows with one another, furthering an early season feud between the clubs. Andruw Jones and Jeff Suppan were each ejected from last night's game after Suppan hit Jones with a fastball in the fourth inning and a bench-clearing brawl was ignited. Today it was announced that both players would be suspended for five games. Tonight, with the previous 48 hours fresh in the players' minds, the Devil Rays jumped out to a 5-2 lead in the first inning and offensively battered Boston, picking up a 15-6 win. Tampa Bay ran the bases aggressively throughout the game, despite their large lead, which was 15-3 at one point. The aggressive baserunning was not well received by some Boston players and coaches, but was locally seen as fair after the Red Sox were criticized for the same thing earlier in the series. Things escalated in the sixth inning of tonight's contest as Jim Corsi hit Mike Cameron with a first-pitch fastball after surrendering consecutive RBI-doubles after coming on to relieve Ron Mahay. Cameron quickly jogged down to first base and did not look at Corsi at all while the fans and some of his teammates chirped at the Boston reliever. Pedro Martinez returned the favor in the the top of the seventh inning. After retiring the first two batters, Martinez pelted Carl Everett with a first-pitch fastball. Everett pointed his bat at Martinez and the two exchanged words before teammates and umpires separated the two and avoided additional drama. Both benches were warned and no ejections were made. Boston manager Cito Gaston was nearly ejected in the ninth inning when he argued Devil Rays reliever Todd Jones should be ejected after Jones hit Nomar Garciaparra with a pitch. The umpires said they did not believe Jones intentionally tried to hit Garciaparra, whose hands often hang very close to the plate. Jones hit Garciaparra with a pitch earlier in the series and was vocal with the media regarding Boston "running up the score" previously. The two teams will begin a four-game series in Boston on Friday.