Boston Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras collided with Minnesota Twins catcher Victor Caratini during a play at the plate Saturday.
Contreras was called out in the fourth inning after attempting to score on Ceddanne Rafaela's double. Caratini held on to the ball, but the incident caused the benches to clear.
A collision at the plate between Willson Contreras and Victor Caratini and the benches clear in Boston pic.twitter.com/BqGtyKq5Ug
— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) May 23, 2026
"No, it wasn't anything malicious or anything at all, it was not bad intention," Contreras said following the 4-2 loss, according to Ian Browne of MLB.com. "I played with Caratini with (the Cubs for a) long time, so there weren't any bad intentions behind that.
"When I was getting to home plate, when I thought it was going to be out, I tried to stop myself, but at the end of the day, if I dive, I might have hit him harder."
He added: "For him to get that mad at that, it was kind of surprising. For the benches to empty, that was surprising as well."
Caratini stayed in the game, and nobody was ejected on the play.
The 32-year-old declined to comment on the collision but also acknowledged the two are friends.
MLB banned egregious collisions at home prior to the 2014 season.
