Still smarting from his war of words Wednesday night with Devil Rays manager Joe Maddon and being freshly plunked by a Jamie Shields pitch, Boston Red Sox outfielder Coco Crisp charged the mound Thursday night at Fenway park.

Crisp ducked a roundhouse from Shields before landing a punch of his own.  He was immediately wrestled to the ground by Rays catcher Dioner Navvaro.  Rays DH Johny Gomes and left fielder Carl Crawford helped by throwing in some cheap shots at the bottom of the pile.  Both benches of course emptied and it took twenty minutes before order and play could be restored.

Baseball players pretty much fight like girls, lacking the intensity and accuracy of NHL players.  The fights pretty much turn into piles and a lot of guys milling around either talking and laughing or just hanging out.  They are a waste of the player's time and the fan's time and lead to lengthening an all ready lengthy game.

If I ruled MLB, here's what the rule would be: Any player who left the bullpen or dugout and entered the field of play during a fight would be suspended for ten games.  If you want to charge the mound and think you can go Billy Jack on a pitcher and eight of his friends, go for it.  If not, the deterrent of knowing you are an island ought to be enough to make you head on down to first base.  Then at least it would be interesting.