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BOSTON — When Nationals righty Cade Cavalli struck out Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras looking on a 3-2 sweeper to get the second out of the fourth inning on Tuesday night at Fenway Park, he shouted, “Sit down, boy!”
Contreras, who plays with a burning fire every day but especially of late, appeared to mouth back, “Are you talking to me?”
After that, Contreras moved toward Cavalli and a bench-clearing fracas ensued. Contreras, who never could get to Cavalli, fired his helmet in the direction of the Nats’ ace.
While some pushing and shoving went on, no punches were thrown as the game was delayed nearly 11 minutes.
Meanwhile, Contreras was ejected for the second straight night. This time, he wasn’t alone. Red Sox utility player Nate Eaton, who wasn’t playing in the game, got ejected along with interim manager Chad Tracy.
On the Nationals side, righty Miles Mikolas, who started on Monday night, was the only player ejected. All four ejections were from crew chief and second-base umpire Vic Carapazza.
It has been a whirlwind few days for Contreras, who has been vocal about how unsettled he’s been by the earthquakes that took place in his native Venezuela six days ago.
Then came the events of Monday night. When Contreras unloaded for a three-run homer in the bottom of the first inning, he let out every emotion in his body.
He flipped his bat high in the air and shouted “Venezuela!” to the dugout as he started his trot around the bases. Contreras then cried for several minutes once he got back to the bench and was consoled by coaches and teammates.
An inning later, after he was called out for not checking his swing, he tapped his helmet sarcastically as if calling for an ABS challenge. He was ejected by first-base umpire Nic Lentz.
After Monday’s game, Contreras acknowledged there isn’t much of an off switch right now when thinking about the devastation in Venezuela. He also acknowledged guilt for not being able to be there to help relief efforts.
“The thoughts [for Venezuela] are not going anywhere,” Contreras said. “But at the same time, I know that I have the responsibility here, and it’s my job to perform. To be there for my team. To be there for my teammates and do the best I can to help. So that’s something I have clear in my mind. But again, it’s my country, so it hurts.”
Contreras has been ejected 11 times in his career. He was replaced at first base by Andruw Monasterio for the second straight night.
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