TMZ Sports - Page 22

They won't be the Oakland A's anymore, and they won't be the Sacramento A's either -- no, the team tells TMZ Sports they'll be called simply the "Athletics" until they get their permanent home in Vegas.

A spokesperson confirmed the plan to us on Thursday afternoon, shortly after it was announced the MLB org. will move out of the Bay Area and spend at least the 2025, 2026 and 2027 seasons in California's capital.

When they do finally make the move into their $1.5 billion Sin City stadium ... the spokesperson said they will add "Las Vegas" to their team name.

It's not yet known when exactly they'll get their new Nevada address -- the team is hoping for 2028, but org. officials acknowledged Thursday they might have to spend a fourth season in Sac Town in order to allow time to put all the finishing touches on their new crib.

As we reported, the A's are set to shove off to Sutter Health Park after this season ... and play in front of capacity crowds of around 14,000.

Team owner John Fisher said in a news conference Thursday he was "excited" for it all -- even if his team's diehards weren't ... to say the least.

Rashee Rice has admitted to being behind the wheel of the Lamborghini that was involved in the massive car crash in Texas last weekend.

The Chiefs star's attorney, Royce West, just told media members at a news conference on Thursday afternoon that Rice made the admission while talking with Dallas Police Dept. investigators this week.

West said Rice is taking full responsibility for his actions ... vowing to make whole anyone who was injured in the accident or had property damaged in the wreck.

Logan Paul and KSI continue to take a proverbial Louisville Slugger bat to the beverage market ... with PRIME inking a sponsorship deal with one of the biggest stars in baseball (in many ways), Aaron Judge!

The 31-year-old NY Yankees slugger now joins K.C. Chiefs superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes as a Prime ambassador ... meaning the energy and hydration drink company, which only launched in 2022, now counts arguably the world's best baseball and football player as part of their roster of athletes.

Add to #99 and #15, combat sports stars Terence Crawford, Alex Volkanovski, and Israel Adesanya, and international soccer superstar Erling Haaland ... and that's not too shabby!

Prime and KSI made the big announcement Thursday morning on social media, writing, "All Rise for the newest member of the Prime Team ⚾️ @thejudge44 x @drinkprime," along with a dugout photo of the trio.

“It’s such an honor to team up with legends like Logan Paul and KSI,” Aaron Judge said of the partnership.

“PRIME has been my go-to for both fuel and recovery since it was first released and it’s a pleasure to officially sign on as a PRIME Hydration athlete. This collaboration comes just in time as we kick off our next season and with PRIME by my side, it's slated to be one of the best ones yet.”

FWIW, this checks out. The Yanks are off to a blazing fast start, going 6-1, including a road sweep of the rival Houston Astros, and a series win in Arizona. In fact, Judge came up big on the eve of the Prime announcement, blasting a 2 run home run on Wednesday, and driving in a critical run in extra innings.

As you'd expect, Prime's pumped, too.

“Aaron Judge is nothing short of a professional baseball icon and legend. Watching his career grow into what it is today has been inspirational and these are the types of athletes we can only hope to partner with,” co-founders Logan and KSI said.

“Aaron and team, welcome to the PRIME family and good luck this season! We will all be cheering you on.”

Jake Paul has moved on from punching bags -- the Problem Child just used a Soundcloud rapper to hone his boxing skills ... hitting Lil Pump with a vicious body shot!!

The internet star and fighter welcomed the "Gucci Gang" musician on his "BS with Jake Paul" podcast this week ... and about halfway through the episode, Pump asked if Paul was willing to punch him in the stomach as hard as he could -- just so he could experience what it feels like.

Pump was fully committed to the stunt ... even telling Paul he was down to end up in the hospital over it.

Stevie J posted a video that is Diddy's biggest PR offensive to date ... and the message is clear -- check out who parties with Diddy, because it's virtually every big celeb in Hollywood.

The video is a highlight reel of Diddy's 50th birthday bash back in 2019 in Bev Hills, and the guest list is the Oscars meets the Grammys meets the ESPY awards.

Among the guests ... Kobe Bryant, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z, Mary J. Blige, Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Kylie Jenner, Post Malone, Naomi Campbell, Cardi B, Big Sean, Travis Scott, The Weeknd, Kanye West, Jaden Smith, Snoop Dogg, Queen Latifah, Kevin Hart, MGK, and on and on.

The Oakland Athletics just confirmed the 2024 season will be their last in the Bay Area -- the organization will play at least three seasons in Sacramento before officially setting up shop in Las Vegas.

The A's announced Thursday they struck a deal to host home games at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento while their new stadium is constructed in Sin City ... bringing the franchise's 57-season run in Oakland to an end.

A statement on the move said an option is in place to play a fourth season in West Sacramento ... depending on when the new crib is completed in Nevada.

It'll be a pretty interesting experience for MLB fans -- Sutter Health Park's capacity is 10,624 seated spectators ... and 14,014 total including standing room only/grass. It's the current home of the Sacramento River Cats -- the San Francisco Giants' AAA affiliate.

The A's have been used to playing in front of smaller crowds lately -- as fans have been boycotting games over team owner John Fisher's decision to leave town.

Speaking of, Fisher addressed the news on Thursday ... saying the team tried to keep the A's at the Oakland Coliseum before moving, but "the conditions to achieve an agreement seemed out of reach."

Sean O'Malley's proving it pays to be one of the UFC's biggest stars ... especially when you've got friends like Adin Ross, who just hooked the MMA champ up with a custom "Suga" candy paint low rider!

The streamer surprised the bantamweight title holder weeks after Sean defended his belt against 'Chito' Vera at UFC 299, his 18th win as a professional.

When it came time to gift O'Malley the whip, he was in pure shock when he removed the blindfold, revealing the hot pink 1975 Chevy Caprice, and he (justifiedly) went crazy!

"No way!" O'Malley yelled. "What?! Bro! Haha! That's crazy!"

O'Malley took the car for a spin straight away ... moments after he secured the keys and got a tutorial on how to raise and lower the ride with the hydraulic suspension.

The car's sick ... from the deep, rich, metallic paint to the chromed-out suspension.

Of course, the low rider -- from the High Class Car Club in Glendale -- fits O'Malley's personality perfectly ... as he's known for his vibrant hair color and style.

Ross -- who went forward with the gift despite receiving an ass whoopin' in the cage during a sparring sesh earlier in the day -- also said he has an Audemars Piguet luxury watch for Sean.

Travis Scott had the LSU campus LIT Wednesday night ... making his way to Baton Rouge and hanging with superstar athletes Angel Reese and Jayden Daniels -- and all the students in attendance went nuts!!

La Flame is dropping his new "Jack Goes Back to College" clothing and headwear capsule this week ... and in honor of teaming up with 28 universities throughout the country, he is popping up at several schools to promote the collab.

Scott and Fanatics honcho Michael Rubin arrived at LSU's bookstore around midnight ... and according to the former 76ers owner, there were thousands of fans lined up almost half the day in preparation for the launch party.

One diehard was even waited 12 hours ... and Scott showed him love by autographing his arm!!

Joe Rogan crapped on "The View" after his latest guest came on and recounted what he felt was a bad experience on the show -- and he had some choice words for the ladies there.

The comedian/podcaster hosted Coleman Hughes on 'JRE' Wednesday, and they were recapping his appearance on "The View" from last week ... in which Coleman got into a testy exchange with Sunny Hostin over the topic of race and color blindness.

CH -- who has a book that argues that society needs to focus less on race and more so on class and socioeconomic status -- says he believes Sunny unfairly attacked him.

No sex is being had at Tiger Woods' house -- at least, not recently -- 'cause a friend says the golfing legend has given up intercourse in order to make sure he's completely focused on getting ready for the Masters.

One of the golfing legend's buddies made the revelation to the New York Post this week ... telling the outlet The Big Cat is training for Augusta National this year like a madman.

"He's working really hard in the gym," the unidentified friend said, according to the Post. "He's eating right. He's even eliminated sex."

Sorry, Big3 fans ... WNBA coach Stephanie White believes you will NOT see Caitlin Clark in the 3-on-3 league this year -- this despite the obvious temptation of Ice Cube's $5 MILLION offer.

The Connecticut Sun head coach told Harvey and Charles on "TMZ Live" on Wednesday she feels the legacy Clark can build in the WNBA will ultimately trump the Big3's cash when it comes time to make a decision.

Of course, Clark has yet to mull everything -- she said last week she wants to wait until Iowa's run in the NCAA tournament comes to an end before she chooses her next move.

Celebrate hump day with some hot takes brought to you by the TMZ team.

Let's kick things off with "TMZ Live," where Harvey and Charles break down the rumors surrounding Diddy and Ciroc ... and the belief 50 Cent is being brought in to replace the Bad Boy Records founder.

Ex-NFL star Vernon Davis says it's still a mystery as to how exactly his brother, Vontae Davis, died earlier this week ... although he said Monday he believes the former Colts cornerback passed away following a session in a sauna.

The ex-San Francisco 49ers tight end broke his silence on his little bro's death during an interview with The Daily Mail on Wednesday ... just two days after Vontae was found deceased inside a gym at his Southwest Ranches, Fla. home.

Vernon says he believes his brother either collapsed or slipped after spending time soaking in steam -- but outside of that, he really is unsure of how the former NFLer passed at just 35 years old.

WWE Superstar Chelsea Green has found herself in a bit of a "hot mess" -- the former Women's Tag Team Champion claims she was booted from an NYC hotel this week ... and she believes it's because staffers thought she was an escort.

Green -- who was in town for "Monday Night Raw" -- laid out the shocking allegations on social media on Wednesday ... saying she was trying to have a nice night out in the Big Apple, but her plans were derailed when hotel security singled her out over her appearance.

TMZ Sports spoke to Green ... and she further explained what went down in detail.

Travis Kelce's tackling his offseason dad bod head-on ... by taking some solo time away from Taylor Swift, and getting back into the gym with his personal trainer.

TMZ has learned Trav is back training with Laurence Ng -- his longtime trainer and owner of Legendary Performance in Bev Hills -- and if the workout guru's latest Instagram video of TK in action is any indication, it's clear he's already got his head back in the fitness game.

In the vid you can see Travis in an intense training session with Laurence and they ain't skipping leg day! Whether it's on a treadmill, or sprinting up a parking structure ramp ... he's all about running drills to stay fit for the next NFL season.

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry is still fuming over college basketball teams being MIA for the national anthem ... doubling down on his belief athletes should either attend the pregame ceremony -- or don't play at all.

Landry called for drastic change after LSU remained in the locker room prior to Monday's Elite Eight matchup against Iowa ... saying college boards should implement new policies that would yank players' scholarships if they are not present for the "Star-Spangled Banner."

Despite LSU coach Kim Mulkey and the entire Tigers athletic department claiming it was standard pregame procedure and it wasn't an act of protest, Landry appeared on Fox News on Wednesday to further explain his stance.

Landry -- an LSU fan -- claimed he supports the players and Mulkey and wasn't calling them out specifically ... but he thinks college athletics has a real "problem" on its hands.

Landry wants universities in Louisiana to put guidelines in place to ensure teams respect the anthem as a sign of unity ... and made it clear he wants players to stand.

"That's what the universities should put in place," Landry said. "They should [stand]. Everybody should respect the flag. If you don't like it, well guess what -- you don't have to play the sport."