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Braves announcer: I wish I'd 'thrown a haymaker' at Cubs' Contreras

Jonathan Daniel / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Atlanta Braves announcer and former player Jeff Francoeur wasn't impressed with Chicago Cubs catcher Willson Contreras after his on-field spat with Braves backstop Tyler Flowers on Monday.

During the broadcast, Francoeur said, "I wish I would’ve just thrown a haymaker" when recalling an on-field argument with Contreras in July 2016, according to Jordan Bastian of MLB.com.

Contreras didn't make much of the comments when asked about them postgame.

"This makes me laugh. What can I say about that, man? Poor guy. That's all," Contreras said. "He's just a poor guy, man. It makes me laugh. He should behave as a professional, you know? If he's going to be behind the screen, he should be a professional.

"He was a ballplayer. He played a lot in the big leagues. But now that he's behind the screen, he should have respect for everyone."

As for the initial incident, Contreras said he was irritated by Flowers chiming in when he was speaking to the umpire.

"Those pitches weren't even close to the strike zone. And he got mad because I was talking to the umpire about that," Contreras said. "He jumped into the conversation. So, I just told him to do his job and I'd do mine."

Flowers said postgame that he took offense when Contreras showed up Julio Teheran and talked smack after the home run, according to David O'Brien of The Athletic.

"It was all very unnecessary in my opinion. The guy's a decent hitter, he doesn't need to complain about every call," Flowers told 680 The Fan. "He got plenty of calls for his guys too. Sometimes you need to pick your battles."

The two teams play three more times Tuesday through Thursday to complete a four-game series.

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