When former Mets catcher Mike Piazza's frustrations against Guillermo Mota boiled over in bench-clearing brawl

Colorado Rockies v New York Mets — Mike Piazza talks with the media before the start of a game between the Colorado Rockies and New York Mets at Citi Field on July 30, 2016 (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)

On March 12, 2003, former New York Mets catcher Mike Piazza and former Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Guillermo Mota engaged in a wild bench-clearing brawl in the bottom of the sixth inning.

It appears that the argument started long ago in March 2002 when Mota hit Piazza in the hip. However, the first scuffle wrapped up with jostles and a heated argument.

A year after the first incident, Mota struck Mike again -- this time on the left shoulder. Piazza was so angry that he raced to the mound to fight Mota. He was quickly stopped by three LA Dodgers players, who enabled Mota to get away to the safety of the Dodgers dugout.

Mike Piazza was so angry that he barged into the Dodgers' clubhouse. However, Mota had already been taken away from the stadium by the time Mike arrived there.

"Maybe he felt like he had to show off his testosterone," former Boston Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez said speaking about Piazza's nasty gesture towards Mota.

Later, MLB put up a five-game ban on both Mike Piazza and Guillermo Mota for inciting a wild on-field melee.

Mike Piazza was hit by Roger Clemens in the head with a fastball

Interestingly, former New York Mets catcher Mike Piazza's frustrations against Dodgers' Guillermo Mota boiled over into an ugly scuffle after getting hit by pitches.

However, despite being hit in the head by a fastball thrown by former Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens in 2000 and suffering a concussion, Piazza had no reaction to it.

The differential treatment of Mike to two contrasting events raised many eyebrows among MLB fans.

The head injury also led to Mike missing the 2000 MLB All-Star Game.