EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsANAHEIM, Calif. -- Atlanta Braves pitcher Reynaldo Lopez and Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Jorge Soler were ejected after a brawl between the two players Tuesday night.Soler charged the mound after Lopez threw a pitch high and inside that tipped off Jonah Heim's glove in the bottom of the fifth inning.At first, Lopez held his hands up as the two glared at each other before both started throwing punches. The benches emptied as players from both teams tried to separate the two. Atlanta manager Walt Weiss was among those who tackled Soler."I love Soler. We were teammates here," Weiss said, referring to Soler's time with the Braves in the 2021 and 2024 seasons. "But that's a big man. I just felt I gotta get him off his feet because he's gonna hurt somebody. And so that was my instinct, just to get in there and get Jorge off his feet, because he was on a warpath."Lopez was holding the baseball when he landed a punch on Soler's batting helmet.Soler had homered off Lopez in his first at-bat, then was hit by a pitch in his second. The Braves led 4-2 when the dustup occurred and went on to win 7-2.Soler said afterward that he thought Lopez's pitch was "intentional." Angels manager Kurt Suzuki defended him."I don't blame Jorge one bit," Suzuki said. "Anytime you get thrown at your head ... it's dangerous. I know it's part of the game. I know it happens. But you ask any hitter, ball gets thrown near their head, especially after hitting a homer, you know, it's not good."Lopez pitched 4 innings, allowing two runs on three hits with seven strikeouts. Soler finished with the one home run and two RBIs.The Associated Press contributed to this report.
