Angels’ Soler, Braves’ López Throw Haymakers in Wild MLB Brawl

It was not a happy reunion between Angels outfielder Jorge Soler and his former team, the Braves, on Tuesday night.
During the fifth inning, Soler, who had already homered in the game, was up at the plate against Reynaldo López. The right-hander was struggling to find the zone, and a pair of pitches got away from him during the at-bat. After a 97 mph fastball sailed over Soler’s head and into the backstop, Soler suddenly charged the mound and began swinging at López.
The broadcast was focusing on Nolan Schanuel, who advanced to second base on López’s wild pitch, when seemingly out of nowhere Soler took off towards the mound. The broadcast cut back into Soler throwing haymakers at his former teammate as the benches cleared and players poured onto the infield grass.
CHAOS AT ANGEL STADIUM pic.twitter.com/yPbzghzanQ
— Dillard Barnhart (@BarnHasSpoken2) April 8, 2026
Soler was swinging his arms wildly at López, who was backpedalling off the mound until their teammates arrived and things escalated further. Even Braves manger Walt Weiss was in the mix, and it appeared as if he contributed rather significantly to bringing Soler to the ground amid his rampage.
Here’s what just took place in Anaheim: pic.twitter.com/hL1myd5PJd
— BravesVision (@BravesVisionTV) April 8, 2026
While Soler was being subdued by a plethora of people from both clubs, Angels star Mike Trout and Braves first base coach Antoan Richardson were holding López back nearby the dugout.
And, as is tradition in all MLB brawls, relief pitchers from both teams came trotting out of the bullpen and arrived at the scene just as it was beginning to deescalate.
In the end, both Soler and López were ejected from the game, and it’s likely that further discipline will be handed down by the league office.
Soler had two brief stints in Atlanta in his career, in 2021 and 2024. In the ‘21 season, he helped the Braves win a World Series and was named MVP after he belted three home runs in the Fall Classic. He was re-acquired at the trade deadline in ‘24 and appeared in 49 games in the second half of the season while logging a .849 OPS.
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Karl Rasmussen is a staff writer for Sports Illustrated. A University of Oregon alum who joined SI in February 2023, his work has appeared on 12up and ClutchPoints. Rasmussen is a loyal Tottenham, Jets, Yankees and Ducks fan.