Texas Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor rocked Jose Bautista with a punch to the face Sunday after Bautista took a hard slide into second base, sparking a massive bench-clearing brawl in the eighth inning. Bautista admitted after the game that he was trying to “send a message” with his late slide, but called Odor and the Rangers “cowardly.”
It wasn’t the first time Odor’s thrown a punch in a game. In a 2011 game between the Spokane Indians and the Vancouver Canadians, Odor was forced out at second and took a very late slide, then appeared to make slight contact with Candians shortstop Shane Opitz as he walked toward the dugout.
Odor, wearing the red batting helmet, confronts Opitz and throws a punch, then punches a second Canadians player who rushes over.
Odor was suspended four games for his involvement in the altercation, according to the Spokesman-Review.