Rays rumble in dugout spat
Tampa Bay starting pitcher Matt Garza and catcher Dioner Navarro had to be separated after arguing in the dugout during Sunday’s game at Arlington, Texas.
Television cameras caught the pitcher and catcher face-to-face in the dugout and in an apparent scuffle that spilled into the tunnel leading to the clubhouse after the fourth inning.
Manager Joe Maddon, pitching coach Jim Hickey and others could be seen rushing to break up the fracas. It wasn’t clear if any punches were thrown.
When Hickey visited the mound during the fourth, when No. 9 hitter German Duran hit a two-run homer to put Texas up 3-0, Garza and Navarro had an obviously heated discussion with the coach in the middle of them.
Jason Hammel took over on the mound to start the fifth inning, while Navarro remained in the game.
Star Cuban defects
One of Cuba’s top baseball prospects has defected and settled in South Florida in hopes of playing in the major leagues.
Dayan Viciedo arrived in the United States at the end of May and is now living with friends and family, his agent, Jaime Torres, said Sunday.
The 18-year-old Viciedo is from the central province of Villa Clara. He was a third baseman with the Villa Clara team, one of Cuba’s major league teams.
He started playing baseball in the Cuban majors when he was 15 and was included on the roster for the 2006 World Baseball Classic.
Around the league
Braves third baseman Chipper Jones was held out of a 6-3 loss to Philadelphia at Atlanta due to a small tear in his right quadriceps, and he said he may miss one or two more games. … Oakland’s Mike Sweeney will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his troublesome left knee Wednesday and is expected to miss four to six weeks. … Umpire Jerry Layne was back at Yankee Stadium one day after he sustained a mild concussion taking a foul bunt off his mask working the plate in New York’s game against the Kansas City Royals. … New York reserve catcher Ramon Castro arrived after the start of the Mets’ game against the San Diego and will be fined, manager Willie Randolph said. Castro said he thought the game was at 4 p.m. local time instead of 1 p.m.