Revenge is a dish best served cold

The showdown for the NL Central turned into an all out brawl on Tuesday night. Brandon Phillips made a few disparaging remarks about the Cardinals and it was only a matter of time until the two teams came to blows. [I want to make sure I get this quote right because it is truly priceless.]

"I hate the Cardinals. All they do is bitch and moan about everything, all of them, they're little bitches, all of 'em," Phillips said.

The highlight of the Reds-Cardinals fight, in my opinion, was when Johnny Cueto got pinned against the backstop and responded by going kung fu on anyone within kicking distance. One of the kicks landed Jason LaRue on the DL.

This fight got me thinking about the best way for the Brewers to retaliate for all the bean balls. I keep telling my husband that Prince just needs to punch one pitcher and that will solve that problem but, upon review of ESPN's top ten fights, I realize that it might not be that simple. If the hit batsman does not take the proper approach, he will be unable to reach his target, much less land a solid punch.

Immediately after being plunked, the batter must make a decision. He can charge the mound immediately and try to outrun the catcher and the umpire. This is a solid approach but might not be the best one for Prince. I question his speed to the mound. I could see Weeks using this successfully. Another approach would be to do the fake toward first base and after taking a few steps toward first, sprint toward the mound. This will allow the bench to get to at least the top step and also may allow for a clear path to the pitcher. The third approach would be to stare down the pitcher, allow your bench to get onto the field, and then take off toward the mound. The key is to get as clear a path to the pitcher as possible, so as to not be intercepted by Mo Vaughn, for example, before reaching the mound.  If Prince has it in him, I think this approach by Izzy Alantara is top notch. Boom! Catcher down. Boom! Pitcher down. Another thought is to utilize the headlock--think Nolan Ryan and Robin Ventura.

After these initial decisions, it will probably come down to reacting to the opposition. Do you want to be held back?  Do you want to throw your batting helmet at the someone? It's best to think about these things ahead of time so you can just react in the moment.

Without Hart and Braun in the line-up, the Brewer managed one measly run. ONE. Come on, Crew, show a little fight.

Diamondbacks 2, Brewers 1
Game played 8-10-10