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Kratz, Votto downplay dispute: 'We were discussing the Canadian dollar'

Andy Lyons / Getty Images Sport / Getty

There's no better time to discuss North American political systems than in the middle of a baseball game.

Tempers briefly flared in Cincinnati on Thursday night when Reds star Joey Votto and Milwaukee Brewers catcher Erik Kratz started jawing during Votto's at-bat in the third inning, causing both benches to clear. Order was very quickly restored, however, and no punches were thrown.

(Video courtesy: MLB.com)

The brief brouhaha's true cause is now lost to history, as both men went to great lengths to downplay it following Milwaukee's 6-4 win.

"Completely blown out of proportion, that's all. We were discussing the Canadian dollar and flawed systems in our two governments," Kratz joked, according to Brian Scott Rippee of MLB.com. "He was coming from a different side of it, and we were just discussing those kinds of things."

Votto didn't confirm or deny the economic nature of his discussions with Kratz, but he did concur with the catcher about not reading much into Thursday's tiff. The 34-year-old first baseman, who was visibly upset by a strike call moments before the incident, told Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer that the entire thing was "a little bit of a misunderstanding" and "there was really nothing to it."

The two players appeared to clear the air when they had a brief chat at first base following the catcher's walk in the seventh inning. Whether they used that moment to amicably discuss the ongoing trade dispute between Canada and the U.S. is not known.

"(Votto's) a great player," Kratz added. "He's doing what he does, and we're just competing. It wasn't anything. It looked bigger than it really was."

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