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The Los Angeles Angels and Atlanta Braves got into a crazy game on Tuesday night.
The incident occurred in the bottom of the fifth inning with one out and a runner on first base. Angels slugger Jorge Soler was at the plate facing Braves pitcher Reynaldo López.
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Los Angeles Angels’ Jorge Soler and Atlanta Braves’ Reynaldo López battle during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Anaheim, Calif., on April 7, 2026. (Ethan Swope/AP)
López threw a pitch high and inside. The ball went over Jonah Heim’s glove, caromed off the backstop, and Heim was able to recover the ball and fire it to second base to try and get the runner to steal second base. The throw was too late, but the fireworks started shortly after the throw.
Soler appeared to take exception to the pitch and charged at López. Soler threw haymakers while López threw punches to fend him off. Soler was tackled to the ground by Braves manager Walt Weiss before any major injuries occurred and López was forced out of the scrum.
The Angels player received a standing ovation as he walked back to the dugout after his immediate ejection.
“I love Soler. We were teammates here,” Weiss said. “But he’s a big man, and so I just felt like I had to get him off him because he’s going to 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.”
Weiss was an assistant coach with the Braves in 2021 when the Braves won the World Series. Soler was the World Series MVP that year. He and López were teammates in 2024.
Los Angeles Angels’ Jorge Soler is tackled to the ground by Atlanta Braves players as a fight breaks out during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Anaheim, California, on April 7, 2026. (Ethan Swope/AP)
“It’s just a shame the situation and how things turned out,” López said through a translator, according to MLB.com. “On my part, there was never any intention to hit him at any point. Then again, it’s just a shame.”
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Soler hit a home run off López in the first inning. He is 14-for-23 with five home runs and three doubles against López all-time.
“Obviously I have good numbers against him,” Soler said. “After the home run and getting hit by a pitch after that, and then he missed way too high and close to my head. At this level, you can’t miss like that.”
Weiss said he understood the frustration.
“I know it didn’t look good because of Soler’s numbers against Lópey and he hit a homer, he hit him. It didn’t look good,” Weiss said. “Lópey doesn’t throw to him. I don’t allow our pitchers to throw to people just because they can’t get them out. Our job is to get them out. But I understand why Soler got angry. And he’s a really mild-mannered guy. So I think the contact fell for him.
A fight breaks out during the fifth inning of a baseball game between the Los Angeles Angels and the Atlanta Braves in Anaheim, California, on April 7, 2026. (Ethan Swope/AP)
“There was no intent there. I just think Lópey is just going over because he’s had a hard time getting him out. But he’s definitely not trying to beat him
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Atlanta won the game on Tuesday 7-2.
