The Chicago White Sox’s biggest star, amid his worst season, suffered further embarrassment Saturday night.
Tim Anderson, White Sox infielder and pride of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, got laid out in a confrontation with Cleveland Guardians star José Ramírez during a game at Progressive Field.
The confrontation occurred in the 6th inning when Ramírez hit a double to drive in the Guardians’ first run of the game. As Ramírez slid into second base, Anderson applied a tag with his glove to his body. The two exchanged words before Ramírez got up and pointed his finger in Anderson’s face.
That’s when Anderson dropped his baseball glove and got in a boxing stance, with Ramírez following suit. The two exchanged punches, with Anderson swinging and missing on two right hooks. Then, as White Sox player Michael Kopech attempted to intervene, Ramírez took a wild swing that connected with Anderson’s jaw, sending him tumbling to the ground.
Jose Ramirez with a MEAN right hand right to Tim Anderson’s jaw pic.twitter.com/5hZBF8gvJy
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) August 6, 2023
The fight sparked a brawl between the two teams as the benches cleared, and White Sox relievers came running out from the bullpen to join the melee. Anderson had to be forcibly removed from the fracas by his teammates, even as he appeared dazed and wobbly from Ramírez’s blow. For what it’s worth, Anderson did appear to land a punch against Ramírez’s side.
Tim Anderson strugglin hard after that José punch. pic.twitter.com/LcAmEMFEVR
— Browns Rally Possum (@Browns_Possum) August 6, 2023
Speaking this through a translator, Ramírez said of Anderson: “I think he’s been disrespecting the game for a while.”
“I even had the chance to tell him [earlier] during the game, ‘Don’t do this stuff. That’s disrespectful. Don’t start tagging people like that because, in reality, we’re here trying to find ways to provide for our families.’ And when he does things he does on the bases, he can get somebody out of the game,” Ramírez added.
Anderson was not available for comment after the game.
Ramírez and Anderson will likely be suspended, along with other White Sox and Guardians players who participated in the brawl. Overshadowed in all of this is that the White Sox won that game and took two out of three against the Guardians this weekend. But that feat was not enough to erase this latest indignity against Anderson, who is statistically having his worst season as a Major League Baseball player.
Anderson, seemingly one of the few African-American baseball stars playing today, has been an ambassador for a league looking to market the game to Black youth. As expected, Anderson’s “defeat” invited social media ridicule.
Tim Anderson might become the 1st player in MLB History to have the same amount of Home Runs and times being KO’d on a baseball field in the same season
— Addison (@YankeeWRLD) August 6, 2023
https://twitter.com/roywoodjr/status/1687999060907573248?s=20
According to FanGraphs, the White Sox are 13.5 games back in their division with a zero percent chance of making the MLB playoffs. Yet, Saturday’s melee made the White Sox-Guardians the premier fight on a night when Jake Paul fought Nate Diaz and the WWE held its annual SummerSlam event.
José Ramírez vs Tim Anderson was better than anything so far at SummerSlam
pic.twitter.com/MV7qvpwQbb— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 6, 2023
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