CINCINNATI — A couple hours before first pitch here Friday, players from the Giants and Reds met in the outfield. These were not your typical pregame greetings: Joc Pederson and Tommy Pham had an apparent beef to settle.
While the Reds were taking batting practice and Giants players were stretching in left field, approximately 30 players and staff members were involved in an altercation near center field. It lasted mere moments, and no blows were exchanged.
The incident took place while most Giants players were in the clubhouse, but Pederson was accompanied by about 10 others in San Francisco gear; there were about 20 Reds involved. Pederson and Pham had to be separated, according to reporters who witnessed the altercation.
Giants manager Gabe Kapler said the team was still investigating and was not prepared to comment further.
“We’re looking into it. Taking it very seriously. And learning as much as I and we can as quickly as we can,” Kapler said.
A photo showed reliever Jarlín García appearing to be escorted away by assistant pitching coach J.P. Martinez, while another Giants player led Pederson away. Cincinnati’s Mike Moustakas greeted Pederson with a handshake as he left the field.
Asked about his role in the incident, García declined comment through Spanish language translator Erwin Higueros.
“The best person that can tell you what happened out there is the person involved in it,” García said.
Pederson, however, twice declined reporters’ interview requests in the clubhouse, saying, “I’ve got to go hit.”
Pham told reporters in the Cincinnati clubhouse that Pederson was the instigator.
Pederson, who put on a majestic display of power with four home runs over the Giants’ final two games of their homestand, did not accompany the team on its charter flight to Cincinnati after Wednesday’s game.
Pederson, a Palo Alto, Calif., native, stayed back in the Bay Area to attend Game 5 of the Warriors’ Western Conference finals series against the Dallas Mavericks at Chase Center. He rung the cable car bell that has become a tradition before Warriors games at Chase Center before flying to Cincinnati on Friday.
“We were joking that may have been a hologram,” Kapler said. “We celebrate that. We believe that the way guys want to spend their off days, especially in this case, supporting the local team, is a great way to blow off steam. It’s a great way to get away from the game for a little while. We’re really happy that Joc got to experience that.”
