Atlanta Braves manager Walt Weiss has spoken out after tackling former player Jorge Soler during a wild on-field brawl in Tuesday night's Major League Baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels.
The altercation began in the fifth inning when Braves pitcher Reynaldo López threw a high-and-inside wild pitch that narrowly missed Soler's head. Soler, who had earlier hit a home run off López and was later hit by a 96 mph fastball, charged the mound. Both players exchanged punches as benches and bullpens emptied.
Weiss, who was a teammate of Soler's with the Braves, intervened by tackling the Angels designated hitter to de-escalate the situation. “I love Soler. We were teammates here,” Weiss said. “But that’s a big man, and so I just felt I've 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, yeah, because he was on a warpath.”
López and Soler were both ejected from the game. Soler explained his actions through a translator: “I asked him if everything was OK and the answer he gave me, I didn’t like it. That’s why I went out there.”
