Former D-back swings bat at catcher during Venezuelan League game
Jan 9, 2020, 6:57 PM | Updated: Jan 10, 2020, 8:08 am
Insólito. pic.twitter.com/Y5OWQwEtgr
— Daniel Álvarez Montes (@DanielAlvarezEE) January 9, 2020
A former Arizona Diamondbacks player swung his bat at the catcher multiple times after the pitcher threw behind him during a contentious game in the Venezuelan League on Wednesday.
Alex Romero, who played for the D-backs in 2008 and 2009, took offense when the ball was thrown behind him with a 3-0 count in the eighth inning of a 13-1 blowout.
Now playing on the Aguilas del Zulia, Romero struck Caribes de Anzoategui catcher Gabriel Lino multiple times with the bat before darting backward. Lino threw his glove at Romero in retaliation as teammates rushed onto the field.
The benches had cleared earlier in the game too, according to the New York Post. In the seventh inning, the Caribes coach and two Aguilas del Zulia players were ejected, according to the Reno Gazette Journal.
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Six players, including Romero, Lino and pitcher Angel Nesbitt were ejected, as was Cesar Valera, the Caribes player hit by pitch the prior inning that sparked previous ejections.
Caribes won the game 13-2.
As a member of the Diamondbacks, Romero had 280 at-bats over his two seasons in the majors. He hit .239 and had two home runs, 30 RBIs and six stolen bases.
