Major League Baseball

Bryce Harper gets hit by pitch, igniting wild Nationals-Giants brawl

Published May. 29, 2017 7:45 p.m. ET

Barry Werner

Bryce Harper kicked off a Memorial Day brawl between his Washington Nationals and the San Francisco Giants.

In the top of the eighth inning of Monday's game, Harper took a pitch from the Giants' Hunter Strickland off the hip, then pointed his bat at the San Francisco pitcher and charged the mound, landing a punch or two in the ensuing fracas.

The benches soon cleared and everyone got involved.

The Nationals were leading the game 3-0 at the time and went on to win by the same score.

Why the tension? It might trace back to the 2014 NL Division Series, believe it or not. Harper hit two home runs off Strickland in the series. After his second, a mammoth shot in Game 4 to tie the game in the seventh inning, he gave Strickland an extended staredown as he rounded the bases.

Strickland, however, gave a different explanation after the game, according to Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area:

https://twitter.com/PavlovicNBCS/status/869335426414239744

https://twitter.com/PavlovicNBCS/status/869335775183228928

Major League Baseball will likely review the incident and determine whether suspensions and/or fines are proper punishment for those involved in the brawl.