Oakland A’s star charges Houston Astros dugout and sparks mass fight that flouts MLB’s Covid social distancing rules

OAKLAND Athletics’ star charged the Houston Astros dugout and sparked a mass fight that flouted Major League Baseball’s coronavirus social distancing rules.

Video shared on social media shows the moment a crowd of MLB players all swarmed together amid the chaos.

AP:Associated Press

Oakland’s Ramon Laureano was seen charging at Astros coach Alex Cintron during a Sunday game[/caption]

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Astros catcher Dustin Garneau tackled Laureano[/caption]

AP:Associated Press

A massive pile-up ensued as players swarmed the area[/caption]

Oakland’s Ramon Laureano was seen arguing with Astros coach Alex Cintron, after he was hit by a pitch, ESPN reported.

This was the third time in the three-game series Laureano got hit by a pitch, ESPN reported.

Laureano sprinted off first base, and ran toward the Astros coach.

He threw his helmet on the field as he ran toward Cintron.

Astros catcher Dustin Garneau tackled Laureano, and other players from both teams soon swarmed in.

Players piled on top of Laureano and Garneau as others swarmed in – some who tried to break up the fight while others tried to jump in.

A manual outlining guidelines for the MLB games said that players must “avoid any physical interactions.”

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Laureano stormed the Astros dugout after he was hit by a pitch[/caption]

AP:Associated Press

Loreano is seen being tackled to the ground by Astros player Dustin Garneau[/caption]

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Other players soon swarmed in after Garneau tackled Laureano[/caption]

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Players broke social distancing rules put in place amid the coronavirus pandemic[/caption]

Video from the Sunday game, however, showed a massive pile-up of players flouting social distancing as the fight broke out.

Rules were tightened in recent weeks, and players are now required to wear face masks while in the dugout or bullpen, The Washington Post reported.

Upon tightening up rules, teams were warned that if they made repeated or blatant violations, they could be banned for the rest of the season.

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An Oakland staff member held back Laureano during the seventh inning[/caption]

Throughout the season, a number of MLB players have tested positive for COVID-19, causing delays in games.

The Sunday incident came less than a year after Oakland pitcher Mike Fiers raised the red flag on the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal.

It also follows just days after New York Yankees coach Phil Nevin was ejected from a game, after launching a foul-mouthed rant at an umpire.