It was already written on the wall, considering how things unfolded on Tuesday. The Angels-Braves game was marred by players getting physical and benches being cleared. The brawl started after the Angels’ DH Jorge Soler charged at the Braves pitcher Reynaldo Lopez after a high-and-inside fastball and eventually started throwing hands.
MLB was expected to put a hefty penalty for both players, but in reality punishment was more than just a penalty and would affect both teams heavily.
“Jorge Soler and Reynaldo Lopez have each been suspended seven games and received an undisclosed fine following the brawl between the Angels and Braves. Both are appealing,” Talkin’ Baseball shared via X.
It was expected that both Soler and Lopez would attract a huge financial penalty, or they would be suspended for a few games. However, the announced punishment was harsher as both Soler and Lopez were suspended for 7 games and also received a huge penalty! A double punishment indeed. Still, they are appealing against the sentence. Let’s now see if that could reduce the term.
Jorge Soler and Reynaldo Lopez have each been suspended seven games and received an undisclosed fine following the brawl between the Angels and Braves. Both are appealing pic.twitter.com/2EMxKFLkQW
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) April 8, 2026
However, considering how MLB is taking a strict stance towards violence on the field, this punishment was expected.
“MLB has gone to great lengths to deter these sorts of brawls in recent years, and, assuming they are paying attention at all, they are going to see Lopez striking Soler with an actual baseball as going way too far. What exactly that means is less clear. If Lopez were a position player, it feels like he could be forced to take a week off. However, Lopez being a starter probably means that the league is going to want him to miss at least a couple of starts for the infraction,” HTHB’s Eric Cole wrote.
In 2023, White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson and Guardians’ slugger Jose Ramirez got involved in a physical fight. Result? MLB announced a six-game suspension for Anderson and a three-game suspension for Ramirez. So, we expected the same this time also. But with MLB getting stricter about on-field violence, punishment was also stricter this time.
This is a developing story…
