Saturday night was alright for fighting on Sat. May 11, as the Black Sox hosted the Omaha Barnstormers. In the sixth inning, Sox ace Jeff Kiplinger was cruising along with a 7-1 lead, having given up just three hits, when he surrendered a solo home run to youngster John Johnston.
Kiplinger felt that this kid Johnston lingered just a bit too long in the batter's box admiring his dinger. So the pitcher, who everyone knows has a bit of a temper, did a slow burn over Johnston, who puffed out his chest as he circled the bases.
Next up wasLF Michael 'The Carp' Malkowski, who took a ball way, way inside, near his chest. Then, on the second pitch, he was plunked between the shoulder blades. Malkowski promptly charged the mound and threw some punches. The benches cleared and players danced for a while on the infield.
The league later suspended both Kiplinger and Malkowski for seven games. Kiplinger insists the ball got away from him. "I would never try to hurt someone. That's just not my style," he said with a grin. "Never ever."
The fight nearly cost the Black Sox that win. Kiplinger's replacement, Seth Bullock, yielded 4 runs in the top of the seventh and was yanked before getting a single out. Sox held on for the win, though, 8-7. They travel to Omaha on June 10th and the Barnstormers fans may be a bit unruly.
