Baseball

Tyler Skaggs will be laid to rest at a private funeral service on Monday ... with his family, L.A. Angels teammates and MLB friends expected to attend.

Per their schedule, the Angels do not have a game on Monday which means players and other personnel are available to attend the service for the 27-year-old.

Milwaukee Brewers star Ryan Braun -- who was very close with Skaggs -- is reportedly missing his team's Monday night game against the Reds to attend the funeral. The two grew up in Southern California together.

Skaggs died in his team hotel room in the Dallas area on July 1 during a road trip to Texas to play the Rangers. A cause of death has not been released.

Sources who had spent time with Skaggs the day before his death told us they didn't notice anything unusual about Tyler's behavior in the hours before he died ... explaining, "He seemed completely normal."

When the team returned to Anaheim for their first home game following Tyler's death, they combined for a no-hitter ... which they dedicated to Skaggs.

In fact, Tyler's mother threw out the ceremonial first pitch that night ... and Angels players credited her with setting the tone. The entire team had worn Skaggs' #45 jersey to honor the pitcher.

A few days before the no-hitter, teammate Mike Trout, wore Tyler's #45 during the MLB All-Star Game.

Luke Voit taking a 91 MPH fastball to the face and STAYING IN THE GAME impressed even the guys he was playing against ... so says Colorado Rockies superstar Trevor Story.

"He's tough, man," Story tells TMZ Sports.

If ya missed it ... the Yankees first baseman took a heater straight to the chin in Saturday's game against the Rockies -- but he shrugged it off and kept on playing.

Story says that feat was pretty unreal ... telling us, "That was impressive, man."

Of course, the Yanks ended up winning the series over the Rockies 2-1 ... and, despite the sore jaw, Voit took all four of his ABs in Sunday's game.

BEAST!!!

Cleveland Indians legend Kenny Lofton says he belongs in the Hall of Fame ... telling TMZ Sports he was better than Tim Raines!!!

"Look at my WAR and how that turns out," Lofton says.

Of course, Kenny's been a Cooperstown snub for years ... and now needs a special nomination from the Veteran's Committee if he ever wants to get an HoF plaque some day.

Lofton told us out at LAX he thinks that's a shame ... saying his career was just as good as new HoFer Harold Baines' -- and better than 2017 inductee Raines'.

"The guy I look at is Tim Raines," Lofton says. "He got in, and my numbers are just comparable to his, but look at my WAR and how that turns out."

Here's how the two stack up in the major categories:

-Lofton -- .299 batting average, 2,428 hits, 130 home runs, 622 steals and a 68.3 WAR.

-Raines -- .294 batting average, 2,605 hits, 170 home runs, 808 steals and a 69.4 WAR.

Lofton tells us the way he played center field should also factor in ... saying, "I did what I did at my position."

Luke Voit is one tough SOB -- he took a baseball to the face this weekend, but temporarily stayed in the game and even ran the bases right afterward.

The Yankees slugger was up to bat Saturday against the Rockies at the bottom of the 4th -- with the Yanks up 6-0 -- and on a 0-2 fastball from pitcher Chad Bettis, which got away from him ... the ball made contact with the front of Voit's face ... grazing his lip and chin.

It looked a lot worse than it ended up being, but geez ... talk about freaky. Miraculously, Voit avoided a serious injury and took his place at first ... no big pause or anything either.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone rushed out right away to check on his first baseman, and as Voit worked out some kinks in his jaw and wiped off his lip, he seemed to signal that he was okay. A short while later, he got to third on another hit ... and appeared fine doing it.

Still, the ball definitely connected with Voit's face and it's quite a sight to behold in slow-motion. You can see his face jiggle and vibrate as the ball slides across his mug.

It's been 8 days since the Angels honored Tyler Skaggs by throwing a no-hitter ... but Tampa Bay Rays star Austin Meadows STILL can't believe it, telling TMZ Sports, "It was pretty surreal."

Skaggs tragically died at the team's hotel during a road trip to Texas earlier this month ... and in the Angels' first game back in L.A. without the pitcher, they threw a combined no-hitter.

The moment was amazing ... especially afterward, when players took off their jerseys and placed them on the mound as a tribute to the pitcher.

When we got Meadows out in NYC this week ... he said he's still having a hard time imagining the Angels were able to do all that, telling us, "It was unbelievable."

"It was just definitely jaw-dropping. It was amazing."

Meadows was able to hang out with the most famous Angel -- Mike Trout -- during the All-Star Game shortly after Skaggs' death ... and he told us being with Mike at that time was an incredible experience.

"That was awesome, man. Just being around him, just being in his presence, it was pretty special."

Hall of Fame voters ... listen up, Atlanta Braves legend Andruw Jones says Derek Jeter better be a unanimous selection next year -- OR HE'S GOING TO BE PISSED!!!

"If Jeter don't get 100 percent," Jones tells TMZ Sports ... "we got a problem then."

Of course, there's only been one player EVER to receive that honor -- Yanks legend Mariano Rivera just earned the first unanimous vote in baseball history earlier this year.

Count Jones in as one of the people who think Jeter -- a 14-time All-Star, 5-time World Series Champ and a 5-time Silver Slugger winner -- should be next.

As for Andruw's own HoF candidacy, he didn't issue any warnings to the Cooperstown committee there ... telling us, "We'll see what happens with that."

By the way, we also asked Andruw about Aaron Boone's epic tirade against an ump earlier this week ... and Jones wasn't a fan.

"Baseball's getting too crazy now!!"

MLB All-Star Game MVP Shane Bieber is on one helluva hot streak right now -- not only is he one of the best pitchers in all of baseball ... his girlfriend is insanely attractive!!

The Cleveland Indians ace wished his lady, Kara Kavajecz, a happy birthday on Thursday ... saying "Man ain’t she somethin?! Cheers to this beautiful birthday girl. I love you!"

Biebs and Kara celebrated the big day with a cute little pizza-making date (take note, fellas).

The couple -- who are both UC Santa Barbara alums -- took their romance to social media in December 2017 ... and they've been going strong ever since.

24-year-old Bieber has been crushing it in the league since making his debut with the Tribe in 2018 ... posting a 19-8 record and 4.01 ERA.

As for Kara ... she just turned 21, just graduated college and is dating one of the best players in baseball. So yeah, things are going well for both.

HBD!!

Tim Tebow strikes again ... as in, he just bought up even MORE real estate in Jacksonville, Florida -- and this new place is awesome.

The New York Mets prospect plunked down $3 mil to scoop up an 8,100 square foot mansion in an exclusive private community in South Jacksonville, according to Jax Daily Record.

Tebow, who recently got engaged to longtime girlfriend Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters (the 2017 Miss Universe winner), had previously bought a smaller home nearby for $1.4 mil in 2014 ... but clearly he felt he was due for an upgrade.

And, man, this place is cool ... it's got a personal gym, fire pit, beautiful pool, a massive wine room, home theater, 5-car garage ... and PRIVACY.

The home also overlooks a golf course and a nearby lake.

Tebow can definitely afford it -- he made roughly $10 mil during his short NFL career ... but has racked up a fortune in endorsements, broadcasting and TV hosting gigs.

He's also getting paid by the NY Mets -- though his exact salary is unclear.

The tributes to Tyler Skaggs are still pouring in ... the Angels pitcher who tragically died this month was just immortalized with an insanely realistic mural outside of his old H.S. in Santa Monica.

Jonas Never -- the street artist legend who's painted famous murals of Conor McGregor and LeBron James in L.A. this past year -- did the art, and it's beautiful.

The piece is on the side of a teahouse just yards away from Santa Monica High School where Skaggs grew up pitching ... and it's about 10 feet wide and 10 feet tall.

27-year-old Skaggs graduated from SaMoHi in 2009 -- he was selected in the 1st round of the MLB Draft later that year.

Jonas says he was "proud" to be the one who did the honor ... and says Skaggs' mom, Debbie, and his wife, Carli, both stopped by to see the work.

As we previously reported, Skaggs died at the Angels' team hotel when they were on a road trip to play the Texas Rangers on July 1.

Here's New York Mets superstar rookie Pete Alonso SLAUGHTERING a baseball so hard ... IT NEARLY LEFT TARGET FIELD!!!

The incredible home run came in the top of the 8th inning Wednesday when Alonso stepped up to bat against Twins reliever Matt Magill.

Pete took the first 3 pitches ... but then when he got a slider that hung over the heart of the plate -- he absolutely destroyed it, parking it into the 10th row of the THIRD DECK!!!

Seriously, watch the ball fly ... it lands only a few feet from the highest seat in the park!!!

MLB's Statcast says the baseball traveled 474 feet overall ... and is now officially the longest home run hit by a Met since Statcast began keeping track back in 2015.

Oh, by the way, the Mets won 14-4 ... and Alonso now has 31 home runs in his first 94 big-league games.

Tampa Bay Rays catcher Travis d'Arnaud is going to bat for the guys he shares space with behind the dish ... telling TMZ Sports the MLB needs to keep human umpires!!!

Of course, the league is flirting with the idea of ditching humans for robot umps -- ones that'll call balls and strikes based on an electronic strike zone.

In fact, the MLB is reportedly keeping a close eye on the independent Atlantic League, which just implemented the automated ump system.

But, when we got d'Arnaud out in NYC on Wednesday ... he told us he hates the whole idea, saying, "It takes the human element out of the game."

d'Arnaud also says it'd affect the way he catches games ... and says point-blank he wouldn't like it at all.

Leo Durocher, EAT YOUR HEART OUT!!!

A 6-year-old "coach" for a college summer league baseball team got his ass EJECTED on Saturday after kicking dirt on the umpire ... and the video is AMAZING!!

The kid is Coach Drake of the Kalamazoo Growlers -- which competes in the Northwoods League -- and when the umpire blew an obvious call, Drake WENT HAM ON THE BUM! 

He stomped around. He wagged his finger. He kicked dirt and he got all up in the ump's grill -- so he got tossed. 

But, that's just the beginning ... 

Coach Drake stormed back into his dugout and started throwing bats onto the field. 

The best part is when he grabs a 5 gallon bucket of balls and tries to spill 'em onto the diamond ... and the struggle with the bucket is epic. 

Roy Halladay -- nearly two years after his tragic death -- is STILL having an impact on the Phillies' locker room, so says stud pitcher Zach Eflin.

"We're always thinking about him," Eflin tells TMZ Sports ... "There's a lot of things I take away from him."

Halladay died after the plane he was piloting in the Gulf of Mexico crashed into the water on November 7, 2017.

It was a horrific moment for baseball -- losing such a legend at just 34 years old -- but Eflin says his legacy is still carrying on strong in Philadelphia.

In fact, Eflin tells us he's still to this day using tips Halladay taught him during their offseason together ... and says, "He's awesome, man. He was an amazing person."

MLB legend Dwight Gooden was arrested for cocaine possession last month in New Jersey, officials say ... the latest in a sad drug-riddled saga for the ex-Mets pitcher. 

Police in Holmdel pulled Gooden over in a routine traffic stop on June 7 -- and found 2 small ziplock-style baggies containing cocaine during a search of Doc's vehicle, according to documents filed by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and obtained by the NY Post. 

Gooden was charged with 3rd-degree possession, possession of drug paraphernalia and being under the influence. 

The 54-year-old has a storied past with drug use ... he tested positive for coke back in 1987, months after he won the World Series with the Mets. 

Then, in 1995 ... MLB suspended Gooden for the entire season for failing another drug test. 

In 2006, Gooden did an 8-month stint in jail after showing up to a probation hearing high on cocaine. 

In 2010, Gooden crashed his car in Jersey while under the influence of drugs -- he was driving his 5-year-old son to school at the time of the crash. 

In 2016, Gooden said he was clean and sober and had been getting involved with the church. 

David Ortiz suffered a setback in his recovery from gunshot wounds -- and required a third surgery to fix complications earlier this week ... the Red Sox announced Thursday.

Big Papi was shot in the back in the Dominican Republic last month ... but after two surgeries shortly after, his wife and the Red Sox said he was recovering well.

But, the Sox just announced Ortiz suffered complications from the injuries recently ... and needed a third procedure to fix the issues this week.

Good news for Big Papi, the team says he is now "recovering well and is in good spirits."

As we previously reported, Ortiz was shot in the back at point-blank range while he was sitting outside of a nightclub on June 9 ... with the bullet striking his liver and his small and large intestines. 

Ortiz underwent emergency surgery immediately after in the D.R. -- and doctors said they were forced to remove his gall bladder at the time.

Ortiz was flown to Boston just hours later to have a second surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital.

David's wife, Tiffany Ortiz, has previously said David was able to sit up and take steps ... and added, "he remains in good condition and continues to recover under the care of Drs. David King and Larry Ronan."

Andrew McCutchen's wife threw him an All-Star party Tuesday since an injury wiped away his chances at a real ASG invite ... and the MLB stud's reaction to the gesture will make ya cry.

The Philadelphia Phillies outfielder tore his ACL back on June 3 ... immediately killing any chances the 32-year-old former MVP had of making Tuesday night's All-Star Game in Cleveland.

But, McCutchen's wife wasn't going to let that stop him from feeling special ... 'cause she threw him an AMAZING All-Star party of his own instead!!!

The bash had it all ... there was a custom "Cutch" sign, baseball-themed snacks, balloons, pizza and even a cake with a mini-McCutchen topper on it!!

The best part of the party ... McCutchen's reaction afterward -- 'cause the dude clearly wanted to shed a few tears after his wife went all-out for him.

"She took the time out of her life to do something like this for me. And, it means a lot. It means so much because you work so hard, you know?"

"And, to have an injury like this to where it gets wiped away -- all your work, everything you prepared for -- the year's just wiped away. And, for her to do this for me, it means the world to me. Honestly."