Cubs and Brewers benches clear over hit by pitches, a breakdown

Apr 12, 2022 2.7M views 4:59

What Happened

The rivalry between the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers heats up as the two teams exchange hit-by-pitches during their opening weekend series. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Cubs catcher Willson Contreras gets hit by a pitch, angering the Cubs dugout. Brewers outfielder Andrew McCutchen then gets hit, and Cubs pitcher Justin Steele is instructed to retaliate by hitting McCutchen. Steele tries to hit McCutchen, but the first two pitches miss. On the third attempt, Steele hits McCutchen, and the benches clear as both teams gather on the field. McCutchen turns towards Cubs catcher Willson Contreras, who had words for him. Contreras expresses his frustration, saying "Do it the first time, bro. Do it the first time and get it over with. Don't start with a cutter on the first pitch." Cubs outfielder Jason Heyward rushes in, angrily tossing his glove as he approaches the scuffle. The umpires step in to try and calm the situation, and eventually eject Steele from the game. McCutchen later explains Contreras' message, saying "If your plan is to hit me, I kind of know it's coming. We hit one of your best guys, you're gonna try and hit us. He's standing that far away, is that how far away he always stands or is he ready for it? And then to open him up with a secondary pitch in the zone kind of is like signaling 'Hey, we're not hitting you this at-bat. Don't worry about it. You can dig in and get comfy.' Which [Contreras] is upset about because he says 'I'm gonna dig in and get comfy, then I'm gonna get more hurt because you're just tricking me. The only reason to do that is to trick me. And then if you're gonna throw a fastball at me, you get one shot. If you miss, that's your problem.'" The heated exchange reflects the long-standing rivalry between the Cubs and Brewers, with both teams looking to gain the upper hand early in the season. The incident results in a 3-game suspension for Steele, while the Brewers avoid any suspensions for their own hit-by-pitch incidents.

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the Brewers and cubs spent opening

weekend just hitting each other with

pitches just getting hit hitting each

other on accident on purpose all kinds

of hit by pitches this breakdown is