Things got heated between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Tampa Bay Rays. When Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos came up to bat with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning and a runner on second with a 9-4 lead, Rays reliever Edwin Uceta threw pitch that was just a bit too inside.

Castellanos was hit near his left hip with a 96 mph sinker and immediately began screaming at Uceta as both the Phillies' and Rays' benches cleared.

While things certainly got tense and some players got in each other's faces, it does not appear that any punches were thrown and things stayed relatively civil between both teams as the benches cleared out.

Uceta was the only ejection. Despite getting ejected, it does not appear that Uceta will have to serve any sort of suspension.

Despite the skirmish, the 9-4 score ended up holding and the Phillies got a key win as they try and clinch the best record in the National League and home field advantage throughout the postseason.

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Growing tensions between pitchers and hitters after Phillies-Rays incident

Atlanta Braves second baseman Whit Merrifield (15) is hit in the head with a pitch against the Colorado Rockies in the seventh inning at Truist Park.
© Brett Davis-Imagn Images

At first glance, Castellanos' hit by pitch did not seem like it would be the cause of a benches-clearing incident. The Phillies had a sizeable lead and have no previous history with the Rays or Uceta. However, this is just the latest of a growing trend of pitchers losing control of their inside pitches.

Atlanta Braves infielder Whit Merrifield made headlines when he was hit in the head with an errant fastball from Colorado Rockies pitcher Jeff Criswell last week. After the game, Merrifield spoke about what he believes to be an increase in hit by pitches and whether or not there should be rule changes that would hold pitchers more accountable.

It is clear that players are getting more and more frustrated with the way pitchers are throwing faster and more inside with less control than ever before. Whether the cause is the crackdown on foreign substances causing pitchers to have less grip on the ball, pitchers chasing velocity more than control or it is just a coincidence, something may need to change in order to rebuild trust in the batters' box.