MLB

Former St. Louis Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog -- who won one World Series title and three pennants during his illustrious career -- has died at 92 years old.

His family announced the sad news in a statement on Tuesday ... explaining Herzog had been recently battling an illness. They added he spent his final days surrounded by his family members.

"Although it is hard for us to say goodbye," Herzog's loved ones wrote, "his peaceful passing was a blessing for him."

Herzog began his managerial career in 1973 with the Texas Rangers ... but he really made his mark in the Major Leagues when he took over the Cardinals in 1980.

Playing a style of baseball that MLB aficionados dubbed "Whiteyball," Herzog used unique bullpen management as well as players who could run and defend to win games.

He earned the World Series crown with the Cards in 1982 ... and added two more NL Pennant victories in 1985 and 1987.

Herzog -- who also coached the California Angels and the Kansas City Royals in his 18 years as a manager -- ultimately retired in 1990 ... with a record of 1,281 and 1,125.

St. Louis went on to retire his uniform No. 24 ... just after he was inducted into the Hall of Fame.

"On behalf of Major League Baseball," Commissioner Rob Manfred said, "I extend my deepest condolences to Whitey's family, his friends across the game, and the fans of the Cardinals and the Royals."

Added Cardinals honcho Bill DeWitt Jr., "Whitey loved the Cardinals, their fans, and St. Louis. He will be sorely missed."

Tyler O'Neill was forced to leave Boston's Patriots' Day game early on Monday ... after he suffered a bloody head wound in a collision with his teammate.

The scary moment happened in the seventh inning of the Red Sox's tilt with the Guardians at Fenway Park ... when Estevan Florial hit a popup to shallow left field that O'Neill and third baseman Rafael Devers both tried to catch.

You can see in footage from the game's broadcast, as they were looking toward the sky to haul in the ball, they didn't see each other -- and they ended up running into one another.

Replays showed the guys' heads collided first ... sending both dudes flying to the turf in a world of pain.

O'Neill seemed to suffer the worst of it -- as he looked to be bleeding from a few parts of his forehead. Devers, though, stayed on the ground for a while too ... and appeared woozy when he got up.

Trainers raced out to tend to both players, and, eventually, they each made their way to the dugout under their own power.

O'Neill was not able to return to the contest ... though Devers did remain in the lineup.

Rob Gronkowski got Red Sox fans fired up for their Patriots' Day game in the most Gronk way possible -- by spiking the ceremonial first pitch straight into the ground!

The New England Patriots legend took the mound at Fenway Park just before Boston took on the Guardians in the annual holiday tilt ... and instead of firing a fastball to his catcher, he decided to bring out his touchdown celebration instead.

Check out the footage, Gronk hurled the baseball into the dirt so hard, it made a loud thud -- and the crowd couldn't have loved it more!!

Even some of the Sox players were spotted cheering it on!!

Gronk then gave his catcher a leaping side bump ... before he settled in to watch the game.

It might not be long before another Vaughn is circling the basepaths in the MLB ... 'cause Mo Vaughn tells TMZ Sports his 11-year-old son is showing signs of being a serious baller on the diamond!!

The former AL MVP said this week Lee Vaughn has impressed him so far when he's gotten in between the white lines at ballparks ... telling us, "I honestly think he has a lot better tools than I ever had."

Mo said his offspring bats left, throws right ... and he can run, too!

The former Red Sox star, though, isn't rushing anything with his son right now ... explaining to us he knows how much can change in the baseball world in just a matter of years.

"There's such a marathon of life and game and mindset and many things mentally you have to go through," Mo said. "So, let's just see."

Of course, it wouldn't be unprecedented if Lee were to make it to the Big Leagues. MLB rosters are currently littered with sons of former stars -- including Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Fernando Tatis Jr. and, most recently, Jackson Holliday.

If Lee does want to take the baseball route seriously ... he will have some great training from Dad, as Mo has been a helluva coach already for prospects through his Vaughn Sports Academy and Perfect Game program.

But, again, Mo stressed he's going to be super patient with this whole process.

2:22 PM PT -- Ippei Mizuhara showed up to his court appearance with shackles around his ankles ... although the chains were ultimately removed as the hearing got underway.

During the proceedings, Mizuhara -- wearing a dark-colored suit -- learned he will be released on $25,000 bond ... but he will have to abide by a myriad of conditions in order to stay out of custody -- including no gambling whatsoever.

Mizuhara will also have to enroll in a gamblers addiction treatment program ... as well as, among other stipulations, have no communication with Shohei Ohtani.

Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter Ippei Mizuhara has just been charged with a felony ... after federal prosecutors say they discovered he stole nearly $20 million from the MLB superstar to, in part, pay off his massive gambling debts.

The United States Department of Justice just announced the filing ... saying at a news conference in Los Angeles on Thursday they were formally hitting Mizuhara with one count of bank fraud.

Prosecutors say he faces a maximum of up to 30 years in prison if convicted.

According to the DOJ, an investigation into allegations that Mizuhara had stolen from Ohtani revealed Ippei snatched some of the Dodgers star's funds via an account he had helped the two-way player set up back in 2018.

Authorities say Mizuhara illegally accessed the account after amassing a gambling debt. They said he then wired transfers from it totaling around $16 million to bookmakers. They added that from January 2024 to March 2024, he also used the account to buy roughly $325,000 worth of baseball cards.

The DOJ said during its investigation, they found Ohtani had no knowledge of what was going on.

"In an interview last week with law enforcement," the feds said in a statement, "Ohtani denied authorizing Mizuhara’s wire transfers. Ohtani provided his cellphone to law enforcement, who determined that there was no evidence to suggest that Ohtani was aware of, or involved in, Mizuhara’s illegal gambling activity or payment of those debts."

Prosecutors said they believe Mizuhara never made any bets on baseball.

For Ohtani's part, he's been adamant throughout this entire process that he committed no wrongdoing ... saying in a press conference last month, "I'm very saddened and shocked that someone who I trusted has done this."

Mo Vaughn says don't blame the pitch clock for the recent rash of arm injuries around the MLB -- he says the real culprit is none other than ... computers!!

The former American League MVP made it clear to TMZ Sports this week he thinks it's analytics -- not adjustments to timing pitchers -- that's creating elbow woes.

He explained he thinks the obsession with velocity and spin rates has caused pitchers to stop, you know, pitching ... and focus solely on unloading the gas tank on every throw instead.

Shohei Ohtani had no idea his translator was gambling millions of dollars, and the feds have concluded not only was the Dodger star NOT involved in the scheme, he was a victim of fraud ... law enforcement sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ Sports.

The feds have been investigating Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani's longtime translator, close friend, and functionally his manager. Mizuhara gambled away millions, reportedly at least $4.5 million, and after the story broke he said Ohtani had covered the debt.

Our sources say the feds, who launched an investigation last month, have concluded Mizuhara was lying -- that Ohtani was completely in the dark over the gambling debt, and Mizuhara embezzled from one of Ohtani's accounts without the pitcher's knowledge.

A super-rare Shohei Ohtani jersey, worn by the (then) Angels superstar on Jackie Robinson Day in 2023, signed and inscribed by the slugger/ace, is on the auction block where it's expected to rake in six figures!

Shohei, before signing his historic, $700 million contract with the Dodgers this offseason, rocked the jersey on April 15, 2023 for the Angels vs. Red Sox game at Fenway Park ... the day all MLB players honored the achievements of the great Jackie Robinson by wearing his number 42.

Of course, all Major League Baseball retired the number across the entire sport ... so that's the only day anyone wears 42.

The Angels lost the game, 9-7 ... but to no one's surprise, Ohtani, who served as designated hitter, went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored.

As if just being worn by Shohei wasn't cool enough, in February, months after the game, he also signed the jersey ... writing "GU 4.15.23" and "2023 AL MVP".

It's also the only game-worn jersey from the entire '23 season (that's hot the open market) ... making it even more special.

Now, the jersey is up for grabs at SCP Auctions ... where it's expected to sell for around $100k!

The item already has 7 bids -- $39k being the biggest. But, with 3 days remaining, you can bet that number will rise faster than Ohtani's home run total.

It's not the only Ohtani item on the SCP block. They're also offering Shohei's 200th home run ball (combining his NPB and MLB stats) ... which he blasted on June 23, 2023, at Coors Field against the Rockies.

The ball, launched 423 feet in the 5th inning, is, like the jersey, expected to bring in a pretty penny.

Julio Urias has been hit with multiple criminal charges over allegations he roughed up his wife during a soccer match last year ... TMZ Sports has learned.

A spokesperson for the L.A. City Attorney's office tells us ... prosecutors formally hit Urias with five misdemeanors on Monday.

The ex-Dodgers star is facing one count of spousal battery, two counts of domestic battery involving dating relationship, one count of false imprisonment and one count of assault. His arraignment is scheduled for early May.

Cleveland Guardians pitcher Shane Bieber isn't making the MLB's pitch clock his sworn enemy just yet ... the Cy Young winner believes his season-ending UCL injury is the result of a "combination of a number of factors."

The devastating news broke over the weekend ... Bieber -- who was untouchable in his first two starts this season -- will sit out the rest of the 2024 campaign after it was revealed he'd undergo Tommy John surgery to fix damage to his elbow.

Tony Clark of the MLB Players Association singled out the league's recent pitch clock adjustments as the reason behind the uptick in pitcher injuries recently ... but the MLB fired back, citing research that found no evidence that tied injuries to the new tweaks.

Bieber was asked about the narrative behind the trend ... and while he acknowledged the chatter, he isn't ready to pick a side.

"Obviously, the conversations are happening," Bieber said. "They're continuing to grow louder and they're happening quite a bit more often. So, we'll see what's to come of it."

"For me, I'm not ready to say what it is. I guarantee it's a combination of a number of factors. And also, all of that on top of logging a lot of innings from now all the way back into college and high school."

Bieber added he started to feel irritation in his arm during the middle innings of his outing against the Oakland A's ... but admitted he thought it was due to Opening Day soreness and the cold temps.

The ace was emotional as he spoke with reporters ... saying it's especially tough, as he just fell back in love with pitching again after hitting a rough patch in his career.

Regardless, Bieber said he will be there for his guys every step of the way ... just in a different capacity.

The Ravens and the Orioles are coming together for the city of Baltimore ... donating a combined $10 million to the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse emergency relief fund.

The two professional sports organizations announced the amazing gesture on Friday ... 10 days after a cargo ship crashed into the bridge over the Patapsco River and outer Baltimore port.

Two of the six victims were found dead in a pickup truck recovered in the water. The four others are presumed dead.

More evidence to support the Johnny Manziel and Josie Canseco dating rumors -- the former college football superstar made another appearance on the model's social media on Thursday ... and once again, the proof is in the hand tats.

Manziel and Canseco were both in NYC this week ... and as we previously reported, it appeared the two took the flight to the Big Apple together, as the former MLB star's daughter shared a pic that showed the quarterback in the background.

If the couple(?) was trying to keep a low profile, that's all out the window now ... 'cause Canseco posted a short video at dinner -- and it's clear Manziel was right by her side.

The Dodgers fan who caught Shohei Ohtani's home run on Wednesday night is now upset with her favorite team ... claiming officials from the org pressured her into giving it up for a low-ball offer.

Ambar Roman scooped up the memento in the seventh inning of LA's tilt with the Giants at Dodger Stadium -- after Ohtani blasted it some 430 feet from home plate into her seat in the right field bleachers.

It was Shohei's first-ever dinger as a Dodger ... and, initially, Roman was fired up to score the treasure. She was seen on the game's broadcast going crazy -- but just minutes later, she said things turned very stressful.

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.