The bench-clearing donnybrook got underway in the seventh inning at Dodger Stadium after Arizona pitcher Ian Kennedy plunked his L.A. counterpart, Zack Greinke, with a high-and-tight pitch. The Dodgers’ pitcher, who fractured his collarbone in a brawl with the Padres earlier this season, was the third player hit in the tense NL West tilt. That 92-mph fastball at Greinke’s head proved to be the final straw.
Home plate umpire Clint Fagan immediately ejected Kennedy, who began walking off the mound as Greinke shook off the impact. Before the D-backs pitcher even crossed the first-base line, he was swallowed up by a crowd of players who had come charging out of both dugouts. Prominent among those involved in the chaos was L.A. manager Don Mattingly, who appeared to toss Arizona bench coach Alan Trammell to the ground.
