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Removed from the game by his team and later ejected by umpires following a benches-clearing skirmish on the field, Sean Rodriguez of the Pirates took out his frustration on one object that could not fight back.

A Gatorade cooler inside of the Pirates dugout.

Making an infamous impression on the 2015 NL wild-card game, Rodriguez took better cuts against against the cooler than he was able to during the game itself, which Jake Arrieta and the Cubs won 4-0 to advance the NLDS against the Cardinals.

Rodriguez started at first base because of his defense, but he was removed before getting a plate appearance after the Pirates fell behind early and needed offense. Rodriguez would get a chance to make something happen, however.

When tempers flared in the seventh inning after Arrieta was hit by a pitch (following two Pirates batters getting hit), Rodriguez found his way to the middle of a scrum after benches cleared. Rodriguez, as he was being restrained by teammates, appeared to try to get off some punches against Cubs players. Umpires ejected him, and Rodriguez stopped by the dugout cooler before leaving for the clubhouse.

Rodriguez said afterward that another player, David Ross, had grabbed his neck in the melee. Ross said it was happenstance, and not that he was trying to choke Rodriguez.

“I was frustrated. The guy choked me and I couldn’t get to him,” said Rodriguez, the only player ejected. “Our guys held me back out of love as a teammate, and to make sure things didn’t escalate.”

There was nothing left for Rodriguez to do but punch some plastic. In taking on the plastic container from China, Rodriguez appeared to rattle off several good combinations, some right crosses and a left uppercut, before the cooler succumbed and fell off the bench. Cooler heads did not prevail.

The emergence of the cooler did spark some good internet turns:

But this, most of all:

Funny people! Poor cooler.

Sean Rodriguez
'Take it out on the cooler, man!' (USATSI)