Boston Red Sox

"Clueless" star Stacey Dash says Curt Schilling has the truth on his side, and ESPN was way outta line when it benched him for his controversial Muslim/Nazi tweet.

H/T BSO for pointing out Dash jumping to Schilling's defense. She tweeted that the worldwide leader actually owes the ex Red Sox ace an apology. As Dash put it ... "So, now we can't tweet things that are true?"

You'll recall Schilling posted a meme comparing today's radical Muslims to Nazis in the 1940s. ESPN immediately pulled him from its Little League World Series coverage.

Schilling hasn't had this kinda rotation support since Randy Johnson.

Boston Red Sox star Pablo Sandoval broke the CARDINAL RULE when it comes to dropping a deuce during a MLB game ... so claims David Price who says Pablo needs to be smarter on the crapper.

As you've probably heard ... Sandoval was benched by the team after he got caught liking sexy photos on Instagram while the Sox were playing the Braves earlier this week.

Pablo later said he was using his phone while taking care of biz in the clubhouse bathroom ... and "f**ked up" by violating the team's no social media during games policy.

Which brings us to Price -- a 4-time All Star and Cy Young winner -- who tells us EVERYONE in the MLB uses their phones when nature calls, but ya GOTTA be able to show restraint and not leave a digital trail.

Two things ...

1) Tom Brady took some batting practice off Red Sox legend Pedro Martinez today.

2) He bats lefty?!

The New England Patriots QB was a pretty good baseball player back in the day -- in fact, he was drafted by the Expos in the 18th round of the 1995 MLB Draft (as a catcher, not a pitcher).

But at Fenway Park on Monday, #12 proved he's handy with the wood as well ... from a lefty stance ... even though he throws with his right hand on the football field.

Red Sox outfielder Rusney Castillo only came over from Cuba a few months ago, but he's already BALLIN' OUT like an American ... dropping $85,000 to trick out his $84,000 Porsche!!!

Castillo took his 2014 Avorza Porsche 911 Turbo to Alex Vega and the guys at the Auto Firm in Miami with the following marching orders -- MAKE IT AWESOME!

So what do you get for all that money? Vega says he and his crew took the entire car apart piece by piece to paint it "Snow White" ... then added detailing in red and black, Castillo's favorite colors.

Vega gutted the interior as well to put in red and black leather seats. Watch the video though for the highlight ... a custom grill with Castillo's #38 in lights. There's even a #38 light that shines on the road when he opens the doors.

Castillo signed with the Sox last year for $72.5 million ... so he's not struggling to make payments.

Boston Red Sox owner John Henry tells TMZ Sports ... he's got NO GRUDGE against Johnny Damon for leaving the team for the Yanks back in 2005 ... despite Johnny suggesting there was lingering beef between the two.

As we previously reported, Damon told Donald Trump he didn't hit up Henry for a donation during a fundraising task on this week's "Celebrity Apprentice" because they weren't exactly on speaking terms after the whole contract situation from '05.

But Henry tells us he has absolutely NO ill will toward Damon -- saying, "I have nothing but respect personally for Johnny."

Henry continued, "He accomplished a great deal in Boston and will always be welcome at Fenway."

So, seems Trump was right ... maybe Johnny shoulda hit Henry up for a donation after all.

It's been nearly a decade since the break-up, but it seems like still some bad blood between Johnny Damon and Boston Red Sox owner John Henry ... with Johnny saying they're still not on speaking terms.

Damon shed some light on the situation on last night's "Celebrity Apprentice" -- when Donald Trump asked why Damon didn't try to ask Henry for money during a fundraising competition.

Long story short ... Damon says he's not sure they still "love" him out in Beantown and says he hasn't spoken with Henry in a while.

Then there was this exchange ...

Trump: "I think you'd be able to call John Henry. He'd give you whatever you want."
Damon: "He did not do that back in 2005. So ..."

And here it is ... yet another tribute to #2 ... courtesy of Red Sox superfan Ben Affleck.

Ben was out at a "Project Greenlight" event on Sunset last night when we asked if he's GLAD the NY Yankees superstar finally called it quits this season.

And that's when Ben got mushy -- "I like Derek Jeter a lot. I have a lot of respect for Derek Jeter."

He added, "It's nice that we're not playing against him."

The wife of Boston Red Sox star Clay Buchholz says she's the latest victim in the nude photo hacking scandal -- and tells TMZ Sports the racy photos were ONLY meant to be seen by her husband.

We spoke with Lindsay Clubine -- a former "Deal or No Deal" briefcase model -- who tells us she was devastated when she found out someone had hacked into her husband's phone.

"This is a terrible crime," Clubine said ... "I have my attorneys removing the pictures. This is very upsetting to my family and I."

Clubine says she doesn't blame her husband at all for keeping the pics on his phone ... saying, "Clay and I are good. I send him pictures on the road."

However, Clubine says she IS upset that she's been wrongly identified in some of the more hardcore pics that were hacked from her husband's phone.

"There are pics on his phone that [a teammate] sent some of the guys that are NOT me."

Pitchers are gonna think twice before throwing inside on Shane Victorino next season ... 'cause TMZ Sports has learned, the Red Sox star is on a HARDCORE mixed martial arts training binge.

"The Flyin' Hawaiin" is getting into fighting shape with "UFC Fit" -- same MMA workout routine that helped UFC super stars like Johnny Hendricks and Thiago Alves get JACKED before fights.

Shane tells us, "As an athlete, I’ve taken part in a lot of training programs ... and UFC Fit takes things to a whole new level.”

Don Gold -- one of the honchos at the program -- tells us women's UFC star Ronda Rousey uses the system too ... "Mike Dolce and the UFC Fit team just recently trained Ronda for her UFC title defense and got her in the absolute best shape of her career."

Bottom line ... watch out for Shane when the benches clear next year.

David Ortiz wasn't chugging cheap champagne during his crazy World Series celebration last night -- the stuff Big Papi was pounding runs $100,000 per bottle ... TMZ has learned.

You've seen the pics -- Ortiz hoisting a giant gold bottle of bubbly, while the rest of his Boston Red Sox teammates celebrated their victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.

Now, we've learned ... the booze was a 15 litre bottle of Armand de Brignac Nebuchadnezzar Champagne, also known as "Ace of Spades" ... and it runs between $100k and $150k in the club scene.

These bottles are SUPER rare -- a Russian billionaire once splurged on a bottle for Zac Efron and Heather Graham when he spotted the actors at a bar in Chicago.

The Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Cardinals are facing off on the field tonight for Game 1 of the 2013 World Series -- but the real battle is between two bearded baseballers.

With beards like this, both teams are clear winners.

Famed rivals the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox will set aside their differences tonight before kicking off a 3-game series -- honoring the victims of 9/11 with an emotional tribute before Game 1 at Fenway.

A rep for the Red Sox tells TMZ, the home team has planned a special 9/11 remembrance ceremony that will occur before the game, including a moment of silence.

The rep says families who lost loved ones on 9/11 will be on the field for the ceremony.

The Boston Fire Department will act as color guard for the National Anthem -- performed by the Boston Fire Acapella Quartet (badass) -- and the flag will be presented by reps from the Boston PD, the Boston FD, and the Boston EMT.

Meanwhile, New York's other team (the Mets, in case you forgot) will be wearing special commemorative hats at tonight's game against the Nationals -- honoring the NYPD, FDNY, EMTs, and Port Authority Police Department.

Former Boston Red Sox stud Johnny Damon says his former teammate Jonathan Papelbon earned himself the right to party in New Orleans last weekend ... despite the fact the Sox had just skidded their way out of the playoffs.

Damon -- who played for Tampa Bay last season -- was leaving Boa in Hollywood last night ... when we asked about the photos of the Red Sox closer firing off beads on Bourbon street.

Damon replied, "[losing is] never easy and Jonathan Papelbon has had a great career so far ... so he can do whatever he wants."

He added, "I'm glad he's enjoying himself, I wish he was on my team."

It doesn't matter that his team was eliminated from the MLB playoffs in one of the most epic September slides in baseball history -- Boston Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon went out this weekend and partied his face off anyway!!!

Papelbon -- who reportedly made $12 mil in 2011 -- hit up Bourbon Street in New Orleans with some buddies Friday night.

In case you missed it, Pap's Sox blew 18 of their final 24 games ... and were shockingly eliminated from the playoffs two weeks ago when they lost the last game of the regular season.

Who needs the World Series when you've got a fistful of beads?

Manny Ramirez -- former star of the L.A. Dodgers and Boston Red Sox -- has been formally charged by the Broward State Attorney's Office with misdemeanor domestic violence and battery.

Boston Red Sox pitcher John Lackey has filed to divorce his wife, Krista ... who is in the middle of battling breast cancer.

Lackey filed on August 30, according to court docs in Texas, claiming "the marriage has become insupportable because of discord or conflict of personalities." Krista and John got married in November, 2008.

Sources close to the family tell TMZ ... Krista underwent a double mastectomy back in March and underwent chemo as recently as June.

The divorce petition says John and Krista had a prenup. It also says Lackey has "separate property" he wants to keep for himself.

Lackey filed the divorce papers using only his and Krista's initials -- a tactic Tony Parker and Eva Longoria ... and Sandra Bullock and Jesse James also used in their Texas divorces.

It's unclear why Lackey -- who's struggled on the field all season long -- didn't wait til the off-season, about a month from now, to start divorce proceedings.

4:33 PM: The Red Sox just released a statement on Lackey's behalf -- telling us, "John Lackey is dealing with a deeply personal family issue, and it is one the Red Sox do not feel is appropriate for public debate. The Red Sox request that John and Krista’s privacy be respected."