The Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals have gotten a bit testy during Thursday night's series finale in D.C., becoming involved in two separate on-field incidents involving bench clearing. Cubs catcher Steve Clevenger and Cubs coach Jamie Quirk have already been ejected from the game.
As Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune notes, things began when Quirk got into an argument with Nationals coach Bo Porter:
A bench clearing dispute ignited by Quirk and Nats coach Bo Porter. No punches thrown but Porter came to dugout to pontificate.
— Paul Sullivan (@PWSullivan) September 7, 2012
Porter wasn't ejected, but things would again get heated minutes later. After Lendy Castillo threw at Bryce Harper, another bench-clearing incident ensued involving Clevenger and other Nationals players, during which Clevenger threw punches:
Another brouhaha with punches thrown this time after Castillo threw at Harper. Werth, Rizzo and many others involved.
— Paul Sullivan (@PWSullivan) September 7, 2012
The Cubs have brought in Welington Castillo to take over at catcher for Clevenger. The Nationals are leading 9-2 in the seventh inning as they look for a sweep.
For more on this series, check out Cubs blog Bleed Cubbie Blue and Washington Nationals blog Federal Baseball. Follow Baseball Nation for all your up-to-date MLB news and analysis.
