Major League Baseball

Quentin, Greinke share guilt in brawl

Published Apr. 14, 2013 1:00 a.m. ET

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Ken Rosenthal

Few seem to believe Carlos Quentin’s contention that he was justified to charge Dodgers right-hander Zack Greinke — least of all Major League Baseball, which suspended Quentin but not Greinke for Friday’s bench-clearing brawl.

Well, Quentin might have a better argument than most of us initially perceived. Not an argument that excuses his reaction and breaking of Greinke’s collarbone after getting hit by a pitch, but one that adds nuance to a debate that largely has been one-sided.

Quentin dropped his appeal Sunday and began serving his eight-game suspension immediately, ensuring that he would miss the Padres’ three-game series against the Dodgers that begins Monday in Los Angeles.

But a number of players and former players I spoke with over the weekend — hitters and pitchers both — said that the brawl could have been avoided if Greinke had used more conciliatory body language and refrained from a verbal response to Quentin’s initial anger.

What’s more, the history between the two is not confined simply to the two previous times that Greinke had hit Quentin with pitches. Greinke, during his tenure with the Royals from 2004 to ’10, had frequent disputes with the White Sox, for whom Quentin played from '08 to '11 — disputes that stemmed from the number of times Greinke threw at White Sox hitters and hit them.

White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko told the Chicago Tribune that Greinke, in addition to hitting Quentin twice, probably threw more than five pitches over his head, and that “at some point it’s going to be the last straw.”

Yes, even on a 3-2 pitch in the sixth inning of a game that the Dodgers led by one run.

Greinke has hit White Sox batters nine times in 156 1/3 innings, by far his highest rate against an AL Central club, according to STATS LLC. He has hit Twins batters four times in 118 innings, Indians batters three times in 139 2/3 innings and Tigers batters not once in 148 innings.

As if the numbers aren’t telling enough, Greinke seemed to boast about hitting A.J. Pierzynski, then with the White Sox, in an interview with a Kansas City radio station in 2008. Greinke mentioned that he had hit Pierzynski with a slider a few years before, and that blood had to be drained from the catcher’s toe, “so that was one of my better hit batters.”

It is not known whether Greinke was joking during the interview. The White Sox, though, were not amused. A source close to the team alerted me to Greinke’s interview over the weekend, saying, “Not trying to defend Carlos, but I think this had been boiling for years and is a combination of not only getting hit by Greinke and watching him plunk teammates over the years and brag about it.”

The Chicago Tribune reported that Pierzynski and former White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen once yelled at Greinke from the dugout for allegedly throwing at hitters. A player familiar with the history between the team and Greinke added, “Let’s just say that the White Sox didn’t love him.”

Yet, the Padres-Dodgers brawl still could have been avoided, if only Greinke had acted to defuse the situation. Quentin said he charged the mound only after Greinke cursed him. The slugger noted that he had been hit by 115 previous pitches, but never had reacted in such fashion.

“As a pitcher, your posture on the mound can go a long way to provoking or calming a situation,” said one major-league reliever who never has been a teammate of Greinke’s or Quentin’s.

One former major-league hitter, who also has no connection to either player, said that regardless of the game situation, when a pitcher responds as aggressively Greinke did, “it’s game on.”

A Dodgers source took exception to that version, saying Greinke essentially asked Quentin, “Are you kidding me? Like I’m trying to hit you?” The source also said that several Padres players apologized to the Dodgers for Quentin’s reaction.

I’m not trying to defend Quentin. In fact, I think his response was not only inappropriate but also selfish, considering that the Padres already are missing two middle-of-the-order hitters — third baseman Chase Headley, who is recovering from a broken left thumb, and catcher Yasmani Grandal, who is serving a 50-game suspension for testing positive for elevated testosterone levels.

Yet, like most of us, I’m observing all of this from the outside, not in the heat of the moment. Quentin reacted — or over-reacted — to his memories of earlier confrontations with Greinke, and to the pitcher’s provocative words and body language.

I don’t like what Quentin did. I don’t agree with it. But I’ll say this — the issue was not black and white. These things never are.

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