Baseball

You think Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez can go 9 innings without a selfie? Hell no!

The power couple (along with J Lo's mom) hit up Yankees Stadium on Thursday night to watch NY take on the Boston Red Sox .... and you know they had to post the proof on social media.

Of course, A-Rod used to play for the Yankees ... but last night, he was bad luck -- the Yankees lost to the Sox 5-4, snapping the 8-game winning streak.

The good news ... Jenny's mom, Guadalupe, seemed to be having a blast at the game ... until the end.

J Lo and A-Rod's one-of-a-kind matching Met Gala outfits are going from the red (and white) carpet to an auction to raise money for (RED)'s fight to end AIDS.

The couple slayed Monday night in custom-designed Balmain looks from the creative director ,Olivier Rousteing. The theme was "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination," hence the cross on J Lo's chest.

Her dress took over a month to make ... the jewels on the feathers were sewn on by hand, which explains the $5k starting bid. A-Rod's tux starts at $1,500.

The auction is a cool concept ... if you can rationalize spending that much on clothes, and also considering there's zero chance they would re-wear this stuff. Rousteing's other designs from the night for 'Daily Show' host Trevor Noah, Juliette Binoche and more are also up for auction.

He's 3 years older than the AARP minimum age, but 53-year-old Rafael Palmeiro is still playing pro baseball -- signing a new deal with an independent league team in Texas!

The 4-time MLB All-Star has agreed to play for the Cleburne Railroaders of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball.

What's really cool ... he'll be teammates with his 28-year-old son, Patrick!

Palmeiro REALLY wanted to get a shot with an MLB team, but since that didn't happen ... he signed with the Railroaders.

"Nobody gave me a chance to go to spring training," Palmiero said in a text message to the Dallas Morning News ... "so I will just take this path."

How awesome is this?!

We just got Yankees manager Aaron Boone rushing to Yankees Stadium for Tuesday night's big game against the Boston Red Sox -- and he was cool enough to talk to our guy!!!

The big talk -- the rivalry ... which has gotten more intense this season for two reasons -- the Yanks and Sox have the best records in baseball PLUS the teams got into a brawl the last time they faced off in April.

So, with pride and 1st place on the line ... how does Boone feel about the situation?

"It's always big when these two teams get together," Boone said.

"They're a great team. We think we have a good team ... so it's fun to be a part of."

As for concerns that tonight could get violent?

"Nah, all good ... hopefully we'll just see a lot of good baseball."

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Roberto Osuna was arrested for assaulting a woman Tuesday morning ... law enforcement sources tell TMZ Sports.

Our sources say cops got an emergency call during the alleged attack and raced to the scene.

Once they got there, Osuna was arrested for assault -- we're told the alleged victim is in a relationship with the MLB star.

Osuna has since been released from custody -- he's due back in court on June 18.

The 23-year-old was an All-Star in 2017 and was a prodigy as a child.

He signed with the Blue Jays when he was only 16 years old and became the youngest pitcher in team history to appear in an MLB game.

Pete Rose owes more than $1 MILLION to the IRS ... but you wouldn't know it by looking at his car -- 'cause the ex-MLB star is still pushing a very expensive Rolls-Royce!

TMZ Sports has obtained pics of Rose's Rolls-Royce Wraith -- a car that usually costs about $300,000!

And to make sure people know it's HIS car, Pete got a custom license plate bearing his nickname, "Hit King."

Remember, Rose has admitted in court docs he fell WAY behind in federal taxes and is working to repay Uncle Sam the 7-figure debt he's racked up over the years.

But even debtors gotta BALL OUT IN VEGAS, right?!

A Louisville Slugger bat used in an MLB game by Babe Ruth just sold at Goldin Auctions for just under $200,000!!!

Experts have determined the bat was used during Ruth's 1929 and 1930 seasons ... but the exact game (or games) in which it was used is unclear.

Authenticators were able to confirm the details on the bat (weight, length, style) sync up to the bats Ruth ordered from Louisville Slugger during that time period, Goldin says.

The Hillerich & Bradsby hickory bat weighs 37.8 ounces and is 35.25 inches long.

To compare, Aaron Judge's bat is 35 inches long but only weighs 33 ounces.

Goldin says the final price on the Ruth bat was $196,400. The identity of the buyer has not been made public.

There's more ... an authentic contract Ruth signed with the Yankees in 1934 (his final contract with the Yankees) also sold for $282,325!

He signed the contract with his name, "George H. Ruth."

Pete Rose admits he is more than a MILLION DOLLARS in debt -- but the baseball legend is adamant it has nothing to do with a high stakes gambling problem.

The 77-year-old also claims he has a heart condition and has undergone 3 procedures in the last 5 years.

It's all part of the new docs Rose filed in his nasty divorce war with his estranged wife, Carol Rose ... who recently claimed Pete still makes $100,000 per month, yet still owes massive gambling debts.

"I have NO gambling debts," Rose writes in the new court filing obtained by TMZ Sports.

Pete also claims the $100k number is just wrong ... he only makes $54k per month and sends $20k to Carol as part of his monthly support obligation.

As for his IRS debt, Rose says he owes Uncle Sam more than $1,000,000 -- but notes he's been paying $20k per month to make things right.

Pete says he's been trying to officially end his marriage to Carol since 2008, but Carol keeps dragging things out.

Three shocking pieces of information about Pete Rose in new court docs ...

1) He's still technically married to his 2nd wife, Carol, despite filing for divorce in 2011 and gallivanting around for years with a much younger girlfriend.

2) Rose allegedly makes more than $1 MILLION per year in income from autograph signings.

3) He blows most of his cash in high stakes gambling sessions and has significant debts with casinos and the IRS.

The allegations are all part of new divorce docs filed by his estranged wife, Carol Rose, who married Pete back in 1984.

Pete initially filed divorce docs of his own to end the marriage back in '11, but things have dragged and they're still technically married.

Now, Carol claims Pete is jerking her around in the divorce -- and she wants what she believes is her rightful cut of the community property.

Carol claims Pete is making a minimum $100,000 per month -- primarily from daily signing appearances. That's $1.2 mil annually for all you mathematicians out there.

She's asking the judge to order Pete to lay out his financial situation to the court so they can hash out a proper settlement and finally end their marriage once and for all.

Challenge: Forget how you feel about Curt Schilling and judge this post purely on art. Good?

The ex-MLB star-turned-political firebrand got a brand new tattoo -- Jesus on the cross -- and he's essentially sharing an arm with JC.

The tat is inspired by Mark 15:33 -- "At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon."

But, the artist designed the tattoo to make it look like Jesus' left arm becomes one with Curt's arm -- and the illusion is actually pretty cool.

Matt Mantei allegedly pushed his wife and threw her to the ground during a fight over a cell phone -- before being arrested for domestic violence ... according to an incident report obtained by TMZ Sports.

We broke the story ... Mantei was arrested for assault and battery in Michigan on Tuesday night. According to the report, Mantei and his wife of 3 months were at home when they began arguing.

In the report, Mantei's wife claims he "grabbed her forearms and threw her to the floor" after trying to grab her phone. Once on the ground, Mantei allegedly got on top of his wife to prevent her from moving ... and squeezed her hands, causing minor injuries to her fingers.

Once Mantei let his wife go, the report says he began "throwing items around the house and tearing things off the wall."

Mantei's wife called 911 and waited for cops to arrive. The report says she had "visible cuts and bruises to her right hand ... and both hands were somewhat swollen."

M.M. appeared in court this afternoon and pled not guilty to misdemeanor domestic violence ... before being released from jail.

He's due back in court next month.

12:21 PM PT -- Mantei appeared in front of a judge (over a livestream) in Berrien County, Michigan ... and plead not guilty to misdemeanor domestic violence.

MM was given a personal recognizance bond ... meaning he will be discharged from county jail without paying any money.

He is due back in court May 2.

Flame-throwing ex-MLB pitcher Matt Mantei was arrested and thrown in jail for assault and battery Tuesday night in Michigan ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Mantei -- a closer with a 100 MPH heater -- played 10 seasons in the big leagues for the Marlins, Diamondbacks and Red Sox. He had a career ERA of 4.07, and racked up 93 saves ... before retiring in 2005.

According to officials, Mantei -- 44 years old -- was booked into the Berrien County Jail Tuesday night on the charge of assault and battery.

It's unclear exactly what led up to the arrest.

Mantei is still in custody.

Alex Rodriguez ain't no dumb jock -- he's a legit business mogul who should be a ROLE MODEL for pro athletes who wanna STAY rich after their playing days are over ... so says Kevin O'Leary.

The "Shark Tank" star says he was REALLY impressed with A-Rod when he appeared on the show last season ... saying, "The guy is, for an ex-athlete, very savvy on business."

In fact, Mr. Wonderful heaped all sorts of praise on the guy for figuring out how to invest and run a company while he was still playing ball ... so the transition was easy.

"He's kind of a model of what should happen to athletes," O'Leary says ... "Learn something while you're in the game, you've got your cash to reinvest it."

Yankees fans can boo Giancarlo Stanton all they want ... ain't NOTHIN' gonna stop him from having another huge season -- so says Baseball Hall of Famer Dave Winfield.

We got the Yankee legend at LAX ... and asked if we should be sweatin' the horrific start from the Pinstripers' $300 MILLION man.

Winfield's response -- hell no!

"It's early in the season ... he's gonna have an extraordinary year," Dave told TMZ Sports.

Ex-MLB star Milton Bradley was ordered into custody at his domestic violence arraignment in L.A. on Tuesday ... and TMZ Sports has the video.

We broke the story ... the 39-year-old former All-Star was charged with spousal battery stemming from a January incident at his L.A. home.

At the time of the incident, Bradley's wife told police he roughed her up during a heated argument and then fled from the scene before help arrived.

Bradley's wife was inside the courtroom on Tuesday for the arraignment and sat next to Milton in an apparent show of support ... along with his attorney, Nareg Gourjian.

But, Milton got no special treatment -- the judge ordered L.A. County Sheriff's Deputies to handcuff Bradley and take him into custody. Bail was at $175k -- higher than normal due to a prior domestic violence conviction.

FYI -- Bradley spent 15 months behind bars after he was convicted of beating up his previous wife.

Luke Terry -- the 15-year-old catcher who only has one arm -- CAN HIT ... and TMZ Sports has the incredible video!!!

Video of Terry playing catcher went viral this week ... showing the athlete catching the ball with his mitt and then flipping it to himself to throw back to the pitcher.

The footage inspired millions of people, including Deion Sanders who reached out to Terry to send him new, high-quality baseball gear.

We spoke with Terry who says his baseball dreams include playing at the college level and then GOING PRO, BABY!!!

"I'd like to play in the MLB, too," Terry says ... noting he's always had a passion for the sport.

But, the best part of this story is listening to Terry's approach on life -- and how he HATES the word "can't."

In fact, Terry says he feels like a superhero when he goes out on the field and competes -- because he knows other kids look up to him and he's all about being a positive role model.