Here is one shot of it that's been posted in the Lounge already.

That link just wasn't fair.

Youkilis said something to Manny, and Manny backhanded him. Then, restraining ensued. I bet they patch things up.

I'm struggling to think of what you can say to a seemingly mild mannered guy like Ramirez that would inspire a backhand.

Youk: Hey Manny, what took you so long?

Manny: What?

Youk: What took you so long?

Manny: What are you talking about?

Youk: We were out there defending Coco, and you show up after Bartolo. The guys in the bullpen got here before you. What took you so long?

Manny: I was in the clubhouse. They were working on my hamstring.

Youk: You should've known there'd be something, with Coco up. You should've been out here with us.

Manny: C'mon, man, fighting doesn't solve anything. It just makes the game a lot longer. And I've got Lakers-Celtics tickets, man.

Youks: The Celtics? We're fighting for first place, and you're thinking about the Celtics?

Manny: The Lakers, actually.

Youk: What?! You're rooting for the Lakers? Will you get your head out of your ass?

Manny: Hey, nobody talks about my ass like that! (takes a swing)

As much as I would like to think otherwise in this instance, I would only worry about a team that fights when it's losing.

Ramírez was a bit tardy getting to the bench-clearing brawl, not entering the fray until the bullpen residents had reached the mound, jogging out late with Bartolo Colon a few steps ahead of him.

I seem to remember a Red Sox game from the late-80s when a bench-clearing brawl erupted... but Mike Greenwell and Mike Smithson were the only ones to show up at the brawl for the Red Sox.

Am I totally off base? I recall Mike Greenwell calling his teammates "fairies."

Close Ray. It was "wimps and fairies" for not joining him in protecting Smithson. But I had to look it up, since I only vaguely remembered it.

FWIW, on NESN postgame last night Dave McCarty said things like the dugout dustup usually happen over the course of a long season, but it's rare that it's in the public eye (or caught on camera while the public eye is focused elsewhere). And he indicated that these things usually amount to nothing.

I've been Madrolled!

Manny was DHing last night and may well have been in the clubhouse watching film when the Coco-Shields fracas broke out (as Ortiz always used to go to the clubhouse to watch film between ABs). That's just a guess, though.

Apparently Manny had no interest in participating in the silly brawl. Can't say I blame him. Memo to Coco Crisp: nobody intelligent cares about your stupid grievances.

Was anybody surprised by Crisp getting hit? Let's examine.

A.) Crisp is a punk... and well, that's about it.

As much as I think Coco was being a punk... Its like when your friends are being stupid. If they get into a fight, you gotta have their backs anyways.

As much as I think Coco was being a punk... Its like when your friends are being stupid. If they get into a fight, you gotta have their backs anyways.

I don't know. Sometimes the best thing for your friends is to get their ass kicked a little bit, so they learn not to be stupid in the future.

George Foster was cut by the '86 Mets about one week after he failed to join the team in some pointless brawl. Of course, he sucked that season and had already been ostracized by his teammates for no good reason, but apparently declining to pretend to "defend" the people who ostracized him and considered him useless was the last straw.

I put up the video... hope that helps.

Fight on the field, fight in the dugout. All that was missing to complete the trifecta was a fight in the bullpen.

You know that this fight - right out where everyone can see it means that Barry Bonds and Ron Guidry are ##########, tright?

tright? Trite!