Because baseball is baseball, there'd been a lot of talk entering the Indians-Rangers series about whether Jonathan Lucroy would be beaned. Why? Because, if you'll remember back to late July, Lucroy spurred the Indians by exercising his no-trade clause.
Fortunately, no projectile have been tossed at Lucroy's body. Yet a Lucroy at-bat did inspire memories of another instance where baseball players behaved poorly:
For those wanting play-by-play: Francisco Lindor began a smooth double play by flipping the ball to Jason Kipnis, who was able to complete the transaction despite a charging Rougned Odor.
Odor's inclusion in this sequence is crucial, since it inspired what came next.
Kipnis, apparently having flashbacks to Odor's brawl with Jose Bautista, retreated from Odor almost immediately -- as if he were scared. Predictably, Kipnis' acting drew laugh from the Rangers' bench and, yes, Odor himself.
Here's hoping the levity keeps everyone's egos and tempers in check -- and that this is the closest these teams come to a basebrawl.
