Baseball

Tragic news ... the Tampa Bay Rays announced Tuesday bullpen catcher Jean Ramirez died unexpectedly this week. He was just 28 years old.

No further details surrounding his passing were provided.

"He brought so much passion and energy each day to our clubhouse and bullpen, and his love for the Rays and baseball was evident to all who interacted with him," Rays manager Kevin Cash said.

"Jean will be deeply missed."

Added former Rays superstar pitcher Blake Snell, who won a Cy Young in Tampa, "Man this one hurts."

Ramirez was picked by the Rays out of Illinois State Univ. in the 28th round of the 2016 MLB draft ... and he went on to play catcher in the team's minor league system for 3 seasons.

Ramirez then joined the big league club as its bullpen catcher in 2019 -- and had said his ultimate goal was to move up in the ranks and one day manage a roster in The Show.

"He exuded so much joy in all he did, and his kind heart was truly a gift to all," Rays' president of baseball operations Erik Neander said.

"As we process this unexpected and difficult loss, we are grateful for the times we shared with Jean."

Is there anything Mookie Betts can't do?

The Dodgers star showed he's still both an elite baseball player AND bowler ... rolling yet another perfect game on Sunday.

The 29-year-old posted footage of the incredible feat over the weekend -- showing off video of the last one of his 12 strikes in a row.

Check out the clip, Mookie hit all of the pins with ease -- and he's such a good bowler, he hardly even celebrated the absurdly difficult accomplishment.

"Just call me Mr. 300," he said smoothly in the caption on the clip.

Of course, Mookie acted like had been there before because, well, he has ... back in 2017, while still a member of the Red Sox, he bowled a perfect 300 too.

Mookie has never been shy about showing off his skills in the alleys ... in 2019, he competed in Chris Paul's PBA Celebrity Invitational with his partner, professional bowler Tommy Jones, and beat Terrell Owens and Pete Weber for the tournament title.

The New York Yankees are on the verge of making an incredibly historic move ... with the franchise reportedly set to hire Rachel Balkovec as the first female manager in Minor League Baseball history.

The 34-year-old former college softball catcher -- who first joined the Yanks in 2019 -- will be promoted as skipper of the Low A Tampa Tarpons, according to the AP.

Balkovec has been working in pro baseball since 2012, when she became the strength and conditioning coach in the St. Louis Cardinals' farm system.

She later joined the Houston Astros organization in 2016 ... eventually holding the same position for their Double-A Corpus Christi affiliate.

Balkovec is a trailblazer in the sport -- she already made history when she was hired as a minor league hitting coach for the Yanks 3 years ago, the first woman to be named to that position.

Balkovec also participated in last season's Futures Game as a coach, becoming the first woman to do so.

A 100-year-old contract, hand-written by Babe Ruth, is available for auction ... and is expected to rake in a FORTUNE -- up to a million bucks.

The document -- an endorsement deal with bat company Hillerich & Bradsby -- was written entirely by the then 23-year-old Ruth, and is dated September 9, 1918.

Ruth signed his name, "Geo. H. Ruth," 6 times on the paper ... so Hillerich & Bradsby could take the best version of his John Hancock and stamp it on bats.

The signatures were all authenticated by PSA ... and given a grade of MINT 9.

The contract also comes with the original mailing envelope, also addressed entirely by Ruth.

"Mr. Bradsby/Louisville Base Ball Bats/Louisville, Ky." the MLB legend wrote. The envelope in which the contract was sent was from the Hotel Metropole in Chicago.

The deal came together when the company approached Ruth, and asked to use his name. For his troubles, the Bambino requested $100.

Yes, $100 for arguably the greatest baseball player ever. Compare it to current players who regularly sign contract and endorsement deals worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

FYI, a lot of the game's early-day sluggers used Hillerich & Bradsby bats ... including Ty Cobb and Lou Gehrig, in addition to Babe.

The unique piece is now available for bidding at MINT25/Lelands. Bidding started at $100K ... but there have already been 8 bids, with the high bid reaching 145K.

But, you can expect the contract to sell for much more ... 'cause people behind the auction tell us they expect it'll ultimately go for around $800K to $1 million!

Former MLB pitcher Jim Corsi passed away early Tuesday morning after a battle with liver and colon cancer. He was 60 years old.

The sad news comes just one day after an interview was released ... where Jim said, "I'm at peace. I know if I die, I'm going to a better place," according to Steve Burton of WBZ TV.

On Tuesday, Burton confirmed Corsi passed away overnight with his family at his side.

In the interview that aired Monday, Corsi -- who had been battling Stage IV liver cancer and terminal colon cancer -- urged people to stay on top of their health, something he wished he did a better job of in his younger years.

"I made a mistake when I was younger by not getting a colonoscopy," Corsi said.

"I was a professional athlete and thought I was invincible, strong. You’re not. Cancer is not prejudice to anybody."

But, despite his bout with cancer, Jim still managed to walk his daughter down the aisle during her wedding in October 2020 ... a moment he said he'll never forget.

Corsi -- who was drafted by the Yankees in 1982 -- played for five different teams ... but he spent most of his time in the big leagues with the A's and Red Sox.

During his MLB career, Corsi posted a career ERA of 3.25 and a 22-24 overall record as a relief pitcher.

Andrés Meléndez -- a catcher prospect in the Cleveland Guardians' minor league system -- died on Thursday in Florida ... the team announced.

He was only 20 years old.

The Guardians did not reveal a cause of death ... but said the passing was "sudden."

"The Cleveland Guardians are saddened to share Andrés Meléndez passed away suddenly this afternoon," the team said in a statement Thursday night. "Meléndez is remembered by his teammates and friends as a positive, respectful and thoughtful young man with a beautiful smile who had a profound impact on others."

"He will be greatly missed."

Meléndez initially signed with the Milwaukee Brewers' organization as an international free agent in 2017 ... but was later traded to the Guardians in 2019.

In his first season at the Low-A level of the minor leagues this year, Meléndez hit 8 home runs and batted .247 -- and was just beginning to gain notoriety with the Guardians' affiliate, the Lynchburg Hillcats.

"We join the Cleveland Guardians in mourning the untimely loss of Andrés Meléndez, a former player in the Brewers organization," the Milwaukee Brewers said in a statement Thursday night, "and offer the friends, family and teammates of Andrés our heartfelt condolences during this difficult time."

Meléndez's Hillcats teammate, pitcher Josh Wolf, mourned the loss shortly after the tragic news was announced ... saying the catcher was "always bringing positive energy to the field and locker room."

"He was a fantastic teammate and an even better person," Wolf added. "Love you Andres."

MLB superstar Mookie Betts is officially a married man -- the Dodgers slugger tied the knot with his longtime girlfriend, Brianna Hammonds, at an oceanside wedding in California on Wednesday ... and TMZ Sports has the pics!!!

The ceremony in Rancho Palos Verdes looked amazing -- with 29-year-old Betts rocking a green suit and Brianna in a stunning white dress.

Betts' Dodgers manager, Dave Roberts, and teammates Justin Turner, Chris Taylor, Joe Kelly, Kenley Jansen and more came through for the monumental moment ... as well as rapper Nelly and Heisman winner Eddie George.

The reception looked like a blast -- with all the players and their WAGs partying it up all night.

Taylor also had more to celebrate -- he just inked a 4-year, $60 million deal this week!!

As we previously reported, Betts and Hammonds got engaged in January 2021 after 15 years of dating. They have a baby girl, Kynlee, together.

Betts -- a 2-time World Series champ -- already had two rings ... and now he's gotta do some rearranging for number three!!

Cody Bellinger and his model GF, Chase Carter, are officially parents -- the Dodgers announced the couple's baby girl has just been born!

Bellinger's team said in a social media post Tuesday that the newest Belli entered the world this week ... and revealed her name is Caiden Carter Bellinger.

The team congratulated the star outfielder and his significant other ... giving a "welcome to the world" caption to the latest member of the Bellinger family.

No official word yet from either Mom or Dad on the birth -- we're sure a post is being prepped as we type -- but the two both shared the Dodgers' post and are no doubt thrilled about the addition nonetheless.

As we previously reported, Chase -- who's been dating Cody for about a year now -- revealed her pregnancy on Instagram back in July ... and Cody was thrilled about it all at the time, writing on Chase's post, "Ay ay ayyyyyyyy!!"

The best part for Cody -- baseball season is months away from kicking off ... meaning Belli's got plenty of time to enjoy his new role as Dad.

Marcell Ozuna was slapped with a 20-game suspension, retroactively, after commish Rob Manfred says an investigation concluded the Atlanta Braves star outfielder violated MLB's domestic violence policy.

31-year-old Ozuna was placed on administrative leave in May 2021 after he was arrested for allegedly getting physical with his wife. At the time, authorities said Marcell repeatedly grabbed his wife by the neck and slammed her into a wall. Cops claimed they actually witnessed some of the attack.

Ozuna -- one of the leagues best players -- missed 20 games.

The Braves ended up making a deep playoff run -- winning their first World Series since the mid-90s -- without Ozuna's bat and glove.

In addition to the alleged incident, Marcell was also dealing with a serious hand injury he sustained playing at Fenway Park just days before he was arrested. .

The criminal charges were ultimately dropped ... and the 2-time All-Star was never convicted of a crime.

However, Manfred still believes there's enough there to warrant the suspension.

“My office has completed its investigation into the allegations that Marcell Ozuna violated Major League Baseball’s Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy."

The commissioner continued ... "Having reviewed the totality of the available evidence, I have concluded that Mr. Ozuna violated our Policy and that discipline is appropriate.”

FYI, Ozuna was scheduled to make $12 million last season ... meaning the suspension cost him over 1.5 mil!

Guess you could say this is a bad ... sign.

The Guardians era is off to a piping hot start ... with Cleveland's new team store sign falling off the stadium wall and breaking into a bunch of pieces.

The Land's MLB team officially said goodbye to its old controversial nickname for good on Friday ... and the Guardians welcomed the change by releasing its new merch for fans to purchase at 9 AM.

As diehard Clevelanders lined up to get their swag, the new sign that was being placed on the Progressive Field wall tumbled to the ground. Luckily, no Guards fans were injured during the incident, according to Tom Withers of the AP.

It's yet another hiccup for Cleveland since the name change was announced -- as we previously reported, the organization was sued by the Cleveland Guardians roller derby team last month ... being accused of bullying the OG Guardians into changing their name.

Here's hoping it's smooth sailing from here -- 'cause someone could get hurt.

Bryce Harper was so overwhelmed by winning the second MVP award of his career on Thursday ... he broke down in tears.

MLB Network cameras captured the emotional moment ... just seconds after the league announced the Philadelphia Phillies star was the recipient of the honor.

Harper -- who was wiping tears off his cheeks throughout his interview with the network -- said this one meant a significant amount to him, considering he had started the year in April by being drilled in the face with a 97 MPH fastball.

"This year was tough," Harper said. "Starting off getting hit in the face, it was definitely a tough couple days for me. Tough couple weeks for me trying to get back."

Harper thanked his family, his wife, his teammates -- and even his chef for helping him get through the year, joking, "I never went to bed hungry!"

Harper -- who previously won the NL MVP back in 2015 with the Washington Nationals -- beat out Juan Soto and Fernando Tatis for the honor this year ... and it was well deserved.

Mookie Betts showed off his big heart at a Thanksgiving charity event on Wednesday -- and then he showed off his dance moves ... and it was all awesome!!!

The MLB superstar was out at Algin Sutton Recreation Center in South L.A. -- just a few miles from Dodger Stadium -- giving away turkey dinners with a side of moves.

The 29-year-old passed out birds and all the fixin's to those in need ... and then he hit the Wobble with a bunch of people in attendance.

Check out the footage, it's clear the dude can play baseball well AND dance at a high level too!!!

As for the event, it was a Brotherhood Crusade affair that officials say Mookie had a hand in inspiring.

The giveaway included whole turkeys, vegetables and corn bread dressing -- and it ain't hard to see everyone there was stoked for the free dinners.

There will be two Guardians in Cleveland after all ... the MLB team formerly known as the Indians just announced it's settled its lawsuit with a local roller derby squad -- and both will use the "Guardians" nickname going forward.

The baseball-playing Guardians made the announcement Tuesday ... revealing both sides reached "an amicable resolution" this week after the roller derby team had filed a lawsuit in late October.

In the suit, the roller derby team accused the MLB org. of trying to bully its way into jacking the roller-skating squad's longstanding nickname -- and wanted to put a stop to it all.

The derby team claimed the baseball team ripped off parts of their logo -- and then, according to derby team owner Gary Sweatt, offered "likely no more than fifteen minutes of annual team revenue" when settlement talks initially began.

But, the MLB team said in a statement things have changed in the last few weeks ... and both parties are now happy with each other.

"Both organizations will continue to use the Guardians name," the MLB org. said in its statement.

Terms of the settlement, however, were not revealed.

There's nothing foul about President Biden using the word "negro" when referring to the old baseball league ... at least according to the steward of the league, who's defending and applauding him for saying the word.

No doubt you've seen the clip of the Prez speaking on Veterans Day at Arlington National Cemetery and flubbing in a big way ... saying he'd "adopted the attitude of the great negro at the time." Cringeworthy, for sure, but to be fair Biden misspoke, and eventually cleared it up intending to call out the great Negro League player Satchel Paige.

Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, tells TMZ ... not only was it crystal clear to him what Mr. Biden meant to say, but it would have been "harmful" if he'd used any other word.

Bob says he was surprised at the online fallout -- people ticked off POTUS used such a dated term -- because he says there's a reason the word is still on walls of his museum. As Bob put it, they still use "Negro" to preserve the league's nearly 30-year history -- from 1920 to 1947. He compares it to the NAACP, which also hasn't changed its name, despite the fact (almost) no one uses the "C" word nowadays.

Further, he says "It was an honor that the President made a point to honor Satchel Paige, who happened to be one of the greatest pitchers" in the history of ANY baseball league.

One of the best prospects in the Pittsburgh Pirates' farm system was so pissed off over being hit by a baseball Saturday -- he straight-up charged the mound and attacked the pitcher who threw it.

The wild scene all went down in an Arizona Fall League game in Scottsdale ... when Bucs outfield prospect Canaan Smith-Njigba was drilled in the upper shoulder area by a pitch from Red Sox prospect Josh Winckowski.

In video of the play, captured by Baseball America, you can see Smith-Njigba immediately ran at Winckowski after being plunked -- and started throwing punches.

The guy appeared to land three huge right hands ... before the rest of the players on the field dove into the scrum to break things up.

Both Winckowski and Smith-Njigba were ejected for their roles in the fight ... though no word yet on if they face further punishment.

As for why Smith-Njigba was so irate over being hit ... the two teams had played Friday night -- and one of Smith-Njigba's teammates had been hit in a similar fashion during that game.

The Atlanta Braves partied like its '95 on Friday ... with players getting bombarded with beers getting thrown at 'em by fans at the World Series parade -- and it's hilarious!!

TONS of fans were out and about in the streets of Atlanta to watch the champs soak in the rewards of their hard work.

The Braves -- who haven't won the Fall Classic since 1995 -- capped off a Cinderella postseason run by defeating the Brewers, Dodgers, and the pesky Astros.

As the parade made its way through ATL, the players made sure to show their appreciation for the fans in attendance ... and well, the fans returned their favor.

In the video, you can see a fan in the crowd tossing a beer to Austin Riley -- a third baseman for the squad -- and he's able to snag the brew from the air!!

Dansby Swanson was also able to snag a beer Stone Cold Steve Austin-style ... and we gotta admit, the throw was just as impressive as the Gold Glove-worthy catch.