The stuff that goes on now isn't a patch on the kind of jockeying that used to be the norm in the early to mid-twentieth century.
Vicious, abusive, and racist slurs were considered to be part of the game, as were runners spiking fielders as they rounded bases, fielders bumping runners, in extreme cases holding belts or jerseys. While this has always been some part of the game, from 1890 to about 1915 baseball was in danger of becoming a contact sport.
