Yankees Comes to Alex Rodriguez's Defense After He Was Hit By a Pitch

Whenever rivals like the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox take the field you know things are going to be a little tense. Add in the hatred that many harbor for Alex Rodriguez due the Biogenisis mess and the tension get so thick you can cut it with a knife.

So when it appeared that Red Sox pitcher Ryan Dempster was trying to hit A-Rod (much to the crowd's approval)--and then did--there was certainly going to be some trouble.

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The above gif shows the first and fourth pitch. The second and third cut it awful close inside. When A-rod was hit with the fourth pitch the benches cleared--yes, in spite of all the crap the players still have A-rod's back--but no punches were thrown and the game eventually continued.

Had the ump ejected Dempster at this point no one would have thought twice about it--he deserved it. Instead he just warned both benches and moved on.

Yankees manager could not though. He thought Dempster should have been tossed and let the ump know it--so he tossed Girardi.

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In the end A-rod got the last laugh. He crushed a home run off Dempster in the top of the sixth, stared him down as he ran the bases,  and did a little pose on home plate.

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Of course the best revenge came at the end when the Yankees won 9-6.