Jose Urena incited a benches-clearing brawl against the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night, but that's not who the Miami Marlins are, according to manager Don Mattingly.
"What we said with Jose is, 'I don't want to see this kid get hit,'" Mattingly said after the game, per Joe Frisaro of MLB.com, distancing himself and his organization from the decision of his starter. "He's a great player. He's going to be great for a long time. For us, he's beat us up, but this is not the way (we) want to handle that situation."
"Obviously, this is not something that we represent or believe in as an organization, or myself too," Mattingly added. "I would never want that kid getting hit and cause that kind of problem."
Despite Acuna staying in the game to run the bases, the Braves rookie did not return to left field for the following inning. While X-rays were negative, the severity of the injury is unknown, with CT scans still being evaluated.
Urena became the fourth pitcher since 1920 to hit the only batter he faced, according to ESPN Stats & Info, being promptly tossed by home-plate umpire Chad Fairchild after his only pitch of the game. Elieser Hernandez took over out of the bullpen in the losing effort, as the Braves went on to complete the four-game sweep.
