Baseball

Drew Gilbert's afternoon at the ballpark ended very early Wednesday ... and it's all 'cause he got nailed in the junk by a wayward breaking ball.

The painful pitch happened just after the New York Mets top prospect stepped up to the dish in the first inning of Syracuse's minor league tilt with Rochester.

Check out footage from the game's broadcast ... on the fourth pitch of the at-bat, Thaddeus Ward's sweeper got away from him, and beelined toward Gilbert's family jewels.

Toronto Blue Jays star George Springer went berserk during his team's win over the Los Angeles Angels ... and it all stemmed from what he felt was a blown call.

The scene played out when the Jays were up 5-0 in the top of the seventh inning ... after Springer appeared to take a pitch off the right foot, but the ump didn't notice. Springer signaled to his dugout to challenge the call ... but even after another look, it wasn't ruled in his favor.

Springer was furious with the decision ... which led to him exchanging words with the man behind the plate -- Manny Gonzalez. A few seconds later, Springer found himself tossed from the game -- which set him off even further.

Some players kick dirt on the mound, others play with the rosin bag ... meanwhile, Reds pitcher Hunter Greene's starting his very own pre-pitch ritual -- puking on the mound!!!

Yes, it happened ... again.

25-year-old Greene was on the bump in the 5th inning in a game against the Cardinals ... when the young star turned his back to the mound, and put his glove up to his face before vomit started spraying out between the webbing.

Red Sox All-Star Jarren Duran has been suspended two games ... after he was caught on a hot mic hurling a homophobic slur at a fan during a game on Sunday.

Boston just announced the unpaid ban ... saying it consulted with the MLB before doling out the punishment.

The team added the salary that was owed to Duran for the two contests will now be donated to the Federation of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays.

The battle of Chicago wasn't only fought between the White Sox and Cubs baseball teams ... fans got into a massive brawl during the game, and all the action was caught on video!

The melee went down over the weekend during the Sox and Cubbies two-game series at Guaranteed Rate Field ... which the Cubs swept.

Frustrations must've boiled over amongst the White Sox faithful ... 'cause video shows two women in the team's black and white jerseys going at it, hair pulling and all, in front of Beggars Pizza Pub.

MLB star Jarren Duran was caught on a hot mic calling a heckler an anti-gay slur on Sunday ... and after receiving backlash for hours, the outfielder issued a mea culpa, apologizing for his "truly horrific" language.

The 27-year-old Red Sox player let the f-word fly when he stepped into the batter's box during the sixth inning of Boston's blowout loss to Houston.

You can hear in audio from the game's broadcast ... as a man in the Fenway Park stands chirped him about needing "a tennis racket" while at the dish -- he fired back by calling the guy a "f***ing f****t."

The fan who caught Shohei Ohtani's historic 176th home run is about to be a whole lot richer ... TMZ Sports has learned the man's putting the ball up for auction -- and it's expected to net him a small fortune!!

The guys over at Heritage Auctions tell us ... Jason Patino -- who snagged the record-setting baseball after Ohtani blasted it toward him in an April 21 victory over the Mets -- is selling the memento on their block, and they're figuring it'll eventually go for around $200,000.

The ball, of course, holds a ton of value ... as it marked the official breaking of Hideki Matsui's MLB record for dingers by a Japanese-born slugger.

The Chicago White Sox are on track to have one of the worst seasons in the history of Major League Baseball ... but the club made a move in an attempt to right the ship in the future, announcing they've canned their manager, Pedro Grifol.

The team made the announcement after squandering a 2-0 lead to the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday ... as the team just ended their 21-game losing streak earlier in the week. It tied the longest streak in American League history.

"As we all recognize, our team's performance this season has been disappointing on so many levels." White Sox GM Chris Getz said.

Former MLB player Billy Bean has died at the age of 60 ... Major League Baseball announced Tuesday.

Bean -- who served as the league's senior VP for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Special Assistant to the Commissioner -- passed away after a year-long battle with Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

Bean -- one of the first openly gay players in MLB -- was first diagnosed with the disease in September 2023 ... but only went public with the news during the MLB Winter Meetings in December. At the meetings, Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo got emotional when talking about his long-time friend ... saying it was time to help "take care of you."

2:38 PM PT -- More good news for Dodger fans -- it's being reported Freddie Freeman will return to the team's lineup when the they welcome the Philadelphia Phillies for a three-game series on Monday.

The squad will show their support for 3-year-old Maximus with shirts that read "#MaxStrong" across the chest during pregame activities.

While Max starts his road to recovery, Freddie will also look to help his team continue their push to the MLB postseason -- and with the kind gesture, it's clear the Dodgers will be there for their star first baseman.

Dodgers star Freddie Freeman and his wife just shared good news about the health of their three-year-old son ... he's been released from the pediatric ICU, but the couple says the young boy still faces many challenges.

The Freemans took to Instagram via a joint post to let fans know that after eight days in an intensive care unit, Maximus is finally home ... as he walks the road to recovery after being diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome.

"Max still has a long road ahead of him to regain his strength and relearn how to walk. But we are so thankful to have our family back together," the post said.

Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Cy Young, and Honus Wagner were enshrined in Cooperstown in 1939 at the first-ever Hall of Fame induction ceremony for America's Pastime ... and while the legendary players were together, all 11 signed a baseball!

85 years later, that ball is on the auction block at SCP Auctions ... where it's expected to sell for over $300k!

Here's the history behind the signed ball.

Dodgers star Freddie Freeman and his wife just revealed the test results for their 3-year-old son who was rushed to the emergency room last week -- he's battling Guillain-Barré syndrome.

The couple provided an update on Thursday ... after Maximus was rushed to the ER late last week after he stopped eating and drinking, and his health declined. His body went into full paralysis.

After several tests, Freeman and Chelsea were informed of his diagnosis.

The Philadelphia Police Dept. tells TMZ Sports ... it is aware of the incident and has launched an investigation.

"We are asking the victim and anyone who may have knowledge of the incident to come forward," the PPD added.

A New York Yankees fan got so upset with a guy outside of the Pinstripes' game in Philadelphia on Tuesday night ... he unleashed a violent smack that appeared to do some serious damage.

The heated interaction all went down at some point either during or after the Yanks' 7-6 extra-innings win over the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.

It's unclear exactly how the altercation started, but you can see in video from just outside the stadium, an Aaron Judge supporter got right in the face of a man who was wearing a black shirt and red shorts.

Baltimore Orioles catcher James McCann was drilled in the nose by a 95 MPH fastball on Monday ... but incredibly, the guy shook it off and stayed in the game!!

The scary scene went down just minutes ago in the Orioles' tilt with the Blue Jays at Camden Yards ... as McCann was facing off with Toronto pitcher Yariel Rodriguez.

Check out footage from the game's broadcast ... on a 2-2 count, Rodriguez let a heater fly, but it got away from him -- and beelined right toward McCann's noggin.

The battle of New York spilled into the stands at a Yankees vs. Mets game earlier this week ... as several of the teams' fans got into a wild brawl at Yankee Stadium -- and the chaos was all caught on video!

The skirmish happened on Tuesday night ... after the Mets beat the Pinstripes in Game One of their two-game Subway Series.

You can see in video filmed by a bystander ... roughly six people were involved in the melee -- including two women.

Rockies pitcher Cal Quantrill got so pissed at Reese McGuire during their game Wednesday, he shaded the Red Sox catcher for his past public masturbation arrest -- and his heated words nearly incited an all-out brawl.

The incident went down after McGuire hit a pop-up in the fourth inning of the two teams' tilt at Coors Field in Denver.

As Cal was walking back toward the Rockies' dugout ... he for some reason decided to go after McGuire -- reminding him colorfully of when he was arrested in 2020 for allegedly pleasuring himself in a car in front of a store in Florida.