Piazza Fined for ‘Conduct’

New York Met catcher Mike Piazza was fined $3,000 by the commissioner’s office Wednesday for confronting Dodger reliever Guillermo Mota during a spring training game last Thursday.

Bob Watson, baseball’s new disciplinarian, cited Piazza for “aggressive conduct.”

The players’ association can appeal. Piazza said he did not think he would appeal.

Mota hit Piazza in the backside with a 3-0 pitch, the fourth time during spring training the catcher was hit by a pitch.

Piazza glared at Mota and was replaced by a pinch runner. When Mota passed the Mets’ bench on his way to the clubhouse in the middle of the eighth inning, Piazza grabbed him by the shirt. There was shoving between the two and the benches cleared.

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The Mets traded outfielder Gary Matthews Jr. to the Baltimore Orioles for left-hander John Bale.... The San Diego Padres acquired left-handed reliever Juan Moreno from the Texas Rangers for minor league shortstop Jason Moore.

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The percentage of major league players born outside the 50 states rose to 26.1% this season from 25.3% last year.

Of the 849 players on opening-day rosters and disabled lists, 222 were born among 15 foreign countries, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the commissioner’s office said.

Seventy-four players were born in the Dominican Republic, and 38 each in Puerto Rico and Venezuela. Mexico had 18, followed by Cuba and Japan (11 each), Canada (10), Panama (7), Australia and Colombia (3 each), Aruba, the Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua and South Korea (2 each) and the U.S. Virgin Islands (1).