Major League Baseball will have plenty of punishments to hand out after the Houston Astros and Oakland Athletics engaged in a bench-clearing brawl on Sunday.

The action started when Astros reliever Humberto Castellanos hit Athletics outfielder Ramon Laureano in the back, prompting some words from Laureano.

However, it seemed things were subsiding once Laureano reached first base. That is, until someone in Houston's dugout appeared to goad Laureano into a physical confrontation. Laureano obliged, and the fight was on with the Astros.

This is an ugly look for MLB, on multiple levels. For starters baseball has already had multiple outbreaks of COVID-19 within its ranks, and the St. Louis Cardinals have not played since July as a result of numerous positive tests.

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The brawl and total lack of social distancing is a clear violation of MLB's health and safety protocols. Moreover, this is the second bench-clearing incident for the Astros following a testy exchange with Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Joe Kelly in July.

There will likely be multiple suspensions and fines levied against players and coaches of both the Astros and A's. Regardless, the league has its hands full.

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