Baseball

Bryce Harper, Christian Yelich and Nolan Arenado ... you are NOT better than Cody Bellinger, so says Jerry Hairston Jr., who tells TMZ Sports the Dodgers star is the 2nd best player in the MLB!!

"Outside of Mike Trout, he's the best player in baseball," the former World Series champ says ... "I think he will be the MVP."

Of course, Belli is in the middle of an EPIC season ... dude has 25 home runs, 62 RBIs and is batting .353 -- but most baseball experts still have him outside of the MLB's ultra-elite.

But, Hairston tells us Bellinger not only deserves to be in the top 5 ... he's No. 2 just behind Trout, saying, "I really believe it."

"He does everything well. He's right there with Mike. Cody is awesome."

We also spoke with the former Dodgers stud about Walker Buehler ... and Hairston says he's a true ace now -- but he tells us why the 24-year-old still ain't better than Clayton Kershaw yet!

Yankees legend Ron Guidry says CC Sabathia deserves a place right next to Derek Jeter in Monument Park ... telling TMZ Sports straight-up, "Why not?!"

CC has been pitching in pinstripes since 2009 ... logging 133 wins, a 3.75 ERA and 1,650 strikeouts -- and Guidry says those numbers should get him a place in center field at Yankees Stadium.

Of course, Guidry knows a thing or two about the honor -- his number is one of only a handful to ever be retired in Monument Park -- and he tells us CC "should be" in there right alongside him.

In fact, the former Cy Young winner -- who's also a 2-time World Series champ and 4-time All-Star -- is so high on Sabathia, he tells us the 38-year-old also belongs in Pro Baseball's Hall of Fame!!!

"Why not?!" Guidry says ... "He should be [in]."

FYI ... CC is a 6-time All-Star with one Cy Young on his resume. He's got 250 career wins and 3,043 total strikeouts.

Florida senator Rick Scott HATES the idea of the Tampa Bay Rays splitting time between Montreal and Florida, telling TMZ Sports, "I hope they can come to an agreement and stay [in FL] full-time."

The Rays have already got permission from MLB officials to explore becoming a two-city team -- the plan would be to play half their home games in Canada and the other half in Tampa Bay.

So, when we spoke with Scott in NYC after his appearance on "Squawk Box," he made it clear he wants the ball club in Florida FULL-TIME!!!

"I just wish them all to stay in Tampa," Scott says.

"Look, Montreal is a beautiful city. I've enjoyed the times I've had the opportunity to visit there. But, I hope Tampa spends all their time in Florida."

Scott says he's sat down with the Rays management team and says they made it clear they want a better stadium and a new location ... but making that a reality is super challenging.

As for the proposed two-city split, Scott says he understands WHY Montreal is pushing for the move -- they've wanted an MLB team in town ever since losing the Expos back in 2004.

"I'm sure they're anxious to get a team just like we're anxious to make sure [the Rays] don't leave."

Of course, the whole reason the Rays are reportedly pondering the move is because their stadium is ancient and fan attendance is alarmingly low.

The Edwin Encarnacion trade was a STEAL for the Yankees ... so says NY legend Tino Martinez, who tells TMZ Sports, "It's a great move!"

"He's a home run hitter," Tino says ... "He's the best!"

Encarnacion was just traded from the Mariners to the Yankees in a move that only cost the Bronx Bombers a low-level prospect and some cash.

And, Tino -- who was also famously dealt from the Mariners to the Yankees before NY's 1996 World Series-winning season -- is fired up for the move.

As for Clint Frazier -- the stud outfielder who was demoted back to the minors in order to make room for Edwin -- Martinez says he's confident the 24-year-old will be just fine.

"Clint Frazier is an awesome player, man," Tino says ... "He'll be back!"

Justin Verlander is giving props to Max Scherzer for coming back strong from a gnarly broken nose injury ... telling TMZ Sports, "I appreciate him working through the pain."

Of course, Mad Max took a baseball straight to the face during a bunting drill in Nationals' batting practice Tuesday ... and suffered a nasty broken nose and a black eye as a result.

But, Scherzer toughed it out and pitched for Washington just 24 hours later ... and DOMINATED -- throwing 7 innings with no earned runs and 10 strikeouts against the Phillies.

Verlander -- who played with Max for a few years in Detroit -- says he saw his ex-teammate put in the work ... and he was impressed!!!

By the way ... we also asked Verlander if he thinks he's done enough in his own career to deserve a spot in the Hall of Fame -- and he tells us he ain't so sure.

The Colorado youth baseball brawl just took a disturbing twist -- we've now obtained footage showing a very pregnant woman brandishing a bat as a weapon and telling other parents, "I don't give a f*ck!"

The new footage shows heated parents from both youth baseball teams on the field at Westgate Elementary School arguing with the 13-year-old umpire about rules involving the number of players on each team.

You can hear people from the stands screaming for the parents to back down ... saying, "He's a kid!"

As the situation grows more intense, the pregnant woman runs on the field and grabs a metal baseball bat and begins to wave it around screaming, "F*ck you b*tch. I don't give a f*ck!"

One of the male parents tries to pry the bat away from the woman -- and that's when other men on the field attack him ... throwing him down to the ground and firing off punches.

The pregnant woman is forced back into the dugout -- where the fighting continues right in front of her.

It doesn't appear she was harmed in the melee ... but wow, it's close.

Other parents continue to brawl ... including a group of women throwing haymakers at each other down the 1st baseline.

All the while, the 7-year-old players are watching the violence in shock.

As we previously reported, cops eventually arrived and handed out citations for disorderly conduct and fighting in public.

Cops are still looking for at least one of the combatants who knocked a man out with a sucker punch.

Zion Williamson's incredible athletic feats don't end on the hardwood ... 'cause the hoops phenom smashed a 400 foot home run and threw a football 70 yards -- as a 16-year-old high school student!!!

Lee Sartor -- Zion's basketball coach of 4 years at the Spartanburg Day School in South Carolina -- told TMZ Sports about some of the ridiculously amazing stuff he's personally witnessed.

First up, football.

Remember that video where Zion airs out the pigskin ... launching it into the air?

Well, Coach Sartor -- now the head coach at Erskine College in S.C. -- was there ... and saw it go down with his own eyes.

"I actually witnessed that and it was about 70 yards in the air."

There's more.

"I also witnessed him hit a baseball over 400 feet," Sartor says ... "He was just messing around on the baseball field and he said, 'let me hit one.' And he hit the thing over the fence about 400 feet."

FYI -- a ball launched 400 feet would clear the fence in any Major League ballpark.

What makes it even more impressive?

Coach says this all happened after Zion completed his junior year of high school.

That ain't all ... Sartor also cleared up a big mystery -- where the hell are Zion's exploded Nike sneakers.

Remember, the PG 2.5's had seemingly gone missing ... Zion told us to ask Coach K, Duke told us they had no idea where the shoe was, and Nike said they had no "information" on the shoe location.

So, where is it? At the house of Zion's parents ... according to Coach Sartor.

"I don't think they got it in the trophy case or anything like that, but I do know they have the shoe."

TMZ Sports has obtained the full, unedited video of that terrifying brawl at a youth baseball game in Colorado ... and it's even worse than we thought.

The person who shot the June 15 footage at Westgate Elementary School in Lakewood tells us the violence began when a woman walked onto the field brandishing a baseball bat as a weapon ... and a male parent tried to take it away from her.

During the struggle over the bat (captured on video), some parents began attacking the man, beating him down to the ground.

The violence continued for several minutes while little kids -- terrified -- tried to run off the field for safety.

The parents continued to attack each other ... while scared parents in the stands begged the combatants to stand down.

At one point, the woman recording the brawl begins to pray to Jesus to send angels down from the heavens to stop the violence.

Eventually, the fighting stops -- but the arguing continues -- with parents from both teams screaming at each other to leave the field.

Other parents are shouting that the police have been called ... but it doesn't seem to scare anyone.

You can see other parents pacing around the field holding bats while they wait for cops to arrive.

Eventually, police did show up and issue citations to multiple people. They're still on the hunt for the man who threw a violent sucker punch to an unsuspecting parent, sending him down to the ground.

We're told from witnesses that the whole thing exploded from a dispute over the rules.

Long story short, one team showed up with 13 players -- the other with 8 ... and parents were unhappy with how the game was playing out.

Arguments broke out in the stands and, eventually, parents asked the 13-year-old umpire to put a stop to foul language being thrown around. It was NOT over a bad call by the ump.

But, things only got more heated from there ... and we're told when the woman walked onto the field with the bat, all hell broke loose.

Cops say between 15 and 20 adults were involved in the incident.

The Lakewood Police Dept. is especially upset at the dude in the white shirt and teal shorts who blindsided a man with a pretty violent shot to the head.

Cops say several people have already been cited in this fight for disorderly conduct and fighting in public -- but they're clearly not done yet.

Officials also say at least one of the injuries is being classified as "serious."

So far, it doesn't appear any children were injured in the fight.

4:10 PM PT -- Scherzer wasn't kiddin' when he said he was gonna try to pitch just ONE DAY after breaking his schnoz. He just took the mound against the Phillies on Wednesday.

Oh yeah ... and he's got a nice shiner to go with it.

Here's how you DON'T bunt a baseball ...

Max Scherzer -- arguably the best pitcher in the MLB -- was working on his bunting game in Nationals' batting practice Tuesday ... when he popped a pitch straight into his face!!

The ball flew into his nose and right eye ... and the 3-time Cy Young winner had to leave the field as a bloody mess.

Bad news for Washington ... x-Rays revealed he broke his nose -- and he even needed a CT scan to determine if his brain was okay.

Good news for Washington? Scherzer is reportedly doing much better Wednesday ... and wants to make his scheduled start Wednesday night against the Phillies!!!

Who said hockey players were the only tough guys left in sports?!?

Good news about David Ortiz ... the Boston Red Sox say his condition has been upgraded from "serious" to "good" just 9 days after he was shot in the Dominican Republic.

"This morning, David's condition was upgraded to 'good' by his doctors and he continues to make progress with his recovery in the Intensive Care Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital," the team said in a statement.

"We remain grateful to everyone who has helped David through this ordeal, both in the Dominican Republic and here in Boston."

"David's journey to good health has been bolstered by the many expressions of love that have come to us from across the globe. Your support has lifted his spirits tremendously during this challenging time."

As we previously reported, Big Papi was shot in the back on June 9 while hanging out with friends outside of a hotspot in Santo Domingo.

Ortiz was initially treated in the D.R. -- but was flown to Boston in an air ambulance on June 10 to receive care in the U.S., where his family and personal doctors live.

DR police released the mug shot for the man they say shot Ortiz -- 25-year-old Rolfi Ferreira Cruz -- and at least 9 others have been arrested in connection to the shooting.

A minor league baseball team in Kentucky celebrated Father's Day with some INCREDIBLE "Dad Bod" jerseys ... complete with back hair, man nipples and a tramp stamp tattoo!

The Florence Freedom -- which plays in the Frontier League in Northern Kentucky -- busted out the jersey promotion while hosting the Lake Erie Crushers at UC Health Stadium on Sunday night.

Yes, the players ACTUALLY wore the jerseys during the game ... until it was suspended in the 7th inning due to a lightning and rain storm in the area. The game was tied 7-7 when the game was stopped. Play will resume on July 5 -- and they'll pick right up from the top of the 7th.

But, before lightning struck, fans in attendance were able to BID on the jerseys worn by the players. Unclear if the players will still wear the special uniforms when play resumes next month.

The hairy unis weren't the only promotion that night -- the team also dropped hot dog prices to $1 and certain beers were only $3 (for dads only!).

Not a bad way to celebrate!

In St. Louis and thinking of booing Albert Pujols in his return to Busch Stadium this week??

Don't do it ... so says Cardinals star Matt Carpenter, who tells TMZ Sports Pujols deserves to be treated like a king in his first game back in STL.

"Like a hero coming back to town," Carpenter says.

Of course, The Machine famously put together a Hall of Fame career for the Cards from 2001 to 2011 ... but he didn't leave for the Angels on the best of terms following the '11 season.

Some have thought he might be welcomed with a bunch of boos because of that when he comes to town with the Halos this week ... but Carpenter says fans should stand up and cheer nonetheless.

"That guy had arguably one of the 10 best seasons that have ever been played in St. Louis," Matt says.

First pitch Friday is at 5:15 PM PT ... Pujols is expected to step into the batter's box in either the first or second innings.

MLB legend Jim Edmonds says he and his wife are on the road to repairing their marriage after he admitted to texting nude selfies to another woman ... telling TMZ Sports, "I made a mistake."

Here's the backstory ... Edmonds has been under fire this week after a woman put their text message exchange online -- claiming Jim sent her explicit messages and videos last year while his wife Meghan King Edmonds was about to give birth to their twins.

Edmonds has DENIED having a physical relationship with the other woman -- despite her claims -- but seems to be fessing up to the text message part telling us, "It was just a weak moment."

As for the state of his marriage to the 'Real Housewives of Orange County' star -- Jim says he and his wife are "doing good" and definitely still on speaking terms.

When asked how they plan to get through the situation, Jim told us, "We're just gonna have to work through it."

Jim added, "It's pretty crazy in this world. People can make up stories about you and hide behind being anonymous. It sucks."

The man who shot MLB legend David Ortiz issued a desperate statement from his jail cell Thursday -- admitting he pulled the trigger ... but claiming Big Papi was NOT the man he was trying to kill.

25-year-old Rolfi Ferreira Cruz peeked his face out through bars in the Dominican Republic to address the hoards of reporters crowded outside the jail ... and made the shocking comments.

"It wasn't supposed to be David," Rolfi said in Spanish from behind a barred window ... explaining it was the color of David's clothing that confused him.

You can also hear another man in the cell -- presumably another suspect in the case -- telling Rolfi in Spanish, "Tell them it wasn't meant for David."

Cruz did NOT reveal who the intended target was -- only suggesting he was sent to the Dial Bar on Sunday to kill another man who was dressed like Ortiz that night.

So far, at least 6 people have been arrested in the attempted murder plot -- and cops are still searching for other suspects ... including Luis Alfredo Rivas-Clase, who is also a suspect in a 2018 shooting in Pennsylvania.

Officials still have not revealed a possible motive for the attack.

Surveillance footage of the incident show 2 men -- including Cruz -- rolling up to the bar on a motorcycle. Cruz walks right up to Ortiz and shoots him in the back before trying to make a getaway.

The motorcycle crashed and the suspects tried to flee -- but one man was stopped and beaten by bystanders.

David Ortiz's wife is shouting out the man who raced the MLB star to the hospital -- crashing his own car in the process -- in the wake of Sunday's assassination attempt in the Dominican Republic.

"I want to take this opportunity to offer our heartfelt thanks and gratitude to Eliezer Salvador, owner of Presidente Sports, for your quick thinking and swift action on Sunday night," Tiffany Ortiz said in a statement.

"Your heroism and selflessness were the first steps to ensuring David could get the urgent care he required. For that we are eternally grateful."

Salvador runs a sports betting firm in the D.R. and was at the scene when Big Papi was shot Sunday night. When Ortiz went down, Salvador quickly put the legend in his own car and raced to the hospital because he didn't want to wait for an ambulance.

Salvador says he raced at speeds of over 100 MPH and made the trip in under 7 minutes. He later made a social media video showing that he had David's jewelry so the family wouldn't worry.

Tiffany says the quick-thinking decision may have saved David's life.

Ortiz's wife also gave props to the doctors who worked on David.

"To the amazing surgeons, medical team, and staff at the Abel Gonzalez Clinic in the Dominican Republic, there are no words to express our gratitude for the amazing care you provided."

'Without you, our story could have had a tragic ending. You will forever be our guardian angels."

As for David's condition ...

"David remains in guarded condition in the surgical intensive care following his second surgery. He continues to heal and make progress."

Here's an insanely human moment from a dude who's about to become a god ... MLB great Edgar Martinez says he's been thinking about his HOF speech, and he's freakin' nervous.

Martinez was a 7-time All-Star, a 2-time batting champ (he had 2,247 hits and 309 HR's), and never saw a pitch he feared during his career, but when we got him out in NYC he admitted he's shook when it comes to public speaking.

"For some reason, public speaking is not that easy. It's not something you do constantly every day."

Edgar says the dread hasn't quite set in yet but told our guy the fear gets a little more real the closer he gets to Hall of Fame induction day next month.

We gotta say ... EM talked with our guy for a while and did a fantastic job -- and seeing as our cameras reach millions of people, this was really kinda like a dry run that he nailed.

Induction day is July 21 ... which is right around the corner, Edgar. We know you got this.