Baseball

Former MLB star Matt Harvey -- who just recently signed a minor league deal with the Baltimore Orioles -- has been suspended by the league following his bombshell admissions while on the stand in the Tyler Skaggs trial.

Harvey has been banned 60 games, dating back to April 29 -- the MLB just announced.

The league says the 33-year-old right-hander participated "in the distribution of a prohibited Drug of Abuse" -- which violated the league's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.

The suspension comes three months after Harvey admitted in a courtroom that he did give Skaggs Percocets while the two were teammates together with the Los Angeles Angels.

During his testimony -- which was part of the trial related to the 2019 death of Skaggs -- Harvey also admitted to taking painkillers while in the clubhouse. He also said he had previously been a user of cocaine.

Super sweet moment at Camden Yards on Monday ... a young Baltimore Orioles fan was able to get his souvenir home run ball back after he threw it onto the field.

The adorable scene happened in the eighth inning of New York's game against the O's ... when a youngster received a ball that had been smacked into the seats by Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton.

The kid was pumped to get the baseball -- but not knowing its true value ... he ended up hurling it onto the field just seconds after he was given it!!

The kid's dad was in disbelief at what happened ... shaking his head and laughing.

Good news, though -- after Yankees outfielder Aaron Hicks spotted the ball and threw it back into the crowd ... the fans returned it to the toddler!

The kid -- who was wearing an Orioles jersey -- was all smiles, and so was his father, who actually lifted up his son with the baseball in hand -- much to the delight of the fans in attendance.

New York Yankees star Nestor Cortes has shut down his Twitter page and is issuing a mea culpa ... after some of his old tweets containing racial slurs were exposed this weekend.

While the Yanks were playing the Chicago White Sox on Sunday, more than a dozen old tweets from Cortes' account resurfaced ... showing the pitcher using the n-word several times in posts between 2012 and 2013.

Cortes was 17 or 18 years old when he wrote the tweets. One of the tweets seemed to be lyrics from French Montana's song, "Ain't Worried About Nothin."

The now-27-year-old baseball player apologized vehemently for it all on Monday ... and deactivated his account.

"It's unacceptable," Cortes told the New York Post prior to the Yankees' game against the Orioles on Monday. "I could have managed myself better and said stuff differently."

He added, "Those aren't the messages I want to send out. I deleted my Twitter to clean stuff up. Hopefully, I can make a better impact in the world for the people that look up to me to give a better example."

Cortes vowed to eventually return to Twitter "in the next few days" and keep his messages and interactions with fans positive.

Steve Aoki might be able to throw a cake with pinpoint accuracy -- but he sure as hell can't do the same with a baseball, 'cause he absolutely airmailed the ceremonial first pitch at the Red Sox game on Monday night ... and it was truly awful.

The DJ took the mound just minutes before Boston faced off with the Astros at Fenway Park ... and, given the results of the pitch, he's honestly probably wishing he hadn't.

Aoki warmed up his left arm, toed the rubber -- and then heaved a ball that went roughly 20 feet over his catcher's head. It was actually so bad, it rolled over the net behind home plate and fell into the crowd.

Video shot by people in the stadium shows fans were laughing at the pitch -- because it was seriously just that bad.

To his credit, Aoki had fun with the moment ... tweeting after the heave, "i’m gonna stick to throwing cakes."

Of course, Aoki is far from the first celeb to embarrass himself on an MLB diamond ... you'll recall, 50 Cent is known for the worst ever, throwing one sideways in 2014.

And, it ain't like Dr. Fauci's toss in Washington was much better in 2020.

Bills safety Micah Hyde is helping the Buffalo community after a mass shooting left 10 people dead and three others injured ... by committing to donate proceeds from his charity softball game over the weekend.

Hyde, a member of the Bills' org. for five seasons, had originally planned to host the softball game at Sahlen Field -- the Buffalo Bisons' minor league stadium -- to benefit his Imagine for Youth Foundation.

But, Micah almost canceled the event due to the horrific shooting at a Tops supermarket on Saturday ... although he ultimately decided to still hold it, and use it as a way to help victims of the tragedy.

Before the game, Hyde's org. received a $200,000 check from the event's sponsors ... and he announced a portion of those proceeds would go to victims' families.

Additionally, Hyde said money raised from a silent auction at the event would also support the loved ones of those who died in the mass shooting.

The 31-year-old Bills defensive back said he couldn't believe what happened ... and expressed one of the ways to eradicate hate in the world is by showing love to the youth and the community, like what he's doing with his charity softball game, which saw over 10,000 people attend.

The Bills tweeted out that they were praying for the Buffalo community ... and would be meeting Monday to discuss ways the team can help those affected by the senseless violence.

During an interview at the event Saturday, Bills star quarterback Josh Allen said he was "sick to his stomach" and that the incident "hits home" for him and his teammates.

Indianapolis Colts owner, Jim Irsay, has revealed that he is the buyer of the baseball ... tweeting about the purchase on Thursday morning.

"Added to my @IrsayCollection yesterday at auction," Irsay said, "the only known baseball signed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a visit to NY in 2019. A portion of proceeds going to Ukrainian relief."

Irsay added a flexing emoji as well.

An incredibly rare baseball signed by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy just sold at auction ... and a portion of the proceeds are going to a relief fund for the country.

The winning bid for the autographed baseball came in at $50,103 ... according to Boston-based RR Auction, which will be donating their cut of more than $15k to relief efforts in Zelensky's war-torn country.

The sale price is higher than expected ... remember, the ball was projected to go for $15k, and now that's the figure that's being donated.

Zelensky signed his last name on the baseball in two different languages ... Ukrainian cursive and English print ... with his signature underneath an MLB logo.

The ball comes with a letter signed by Volodymyr Yelchenko, Ukraine's Ambassador to the United Nations in September 2019, when Zelensky left his John Hancock during a visit to New York.

Randy L. Kaplan, a government affairs specialist in the Big Apple, got the ball as a gift from Yelchenko ... and he's been collecting signed Major League baseballs from world leaders and heads of state dating all the way back to 1996 with Bill Clinton.

We're told there were 35 bids entered and the buyer wishes to remain anonymous.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. just did his best Bo Jackson impression ... completely -- and easily -- destroying his bat over his leg following a tough strikeout.

The Toronto superstar turned his personalized lumber into kindling in the fifth inning of the Blue Jays' game against the Yankees ... when he struck out on a Jameson Taillon cutter.

Guerrero Jr. was so mad at himself for waving at a pitch that ended up outside of the zone -- he slammed his bat to the ground ... and then snapped it over his right quad.

Video shows the thing didn't stand a chance against the wrath of the 6'2, 235-pound first baseman ... it splintered all over the batter's box.

If you're wondering, there's no MLB rule against snapping a bat in frustration ... so Vladdy won't face any penalty over the temper tantrum.

As for the game ... the Jays are currently down 5-2 -- but Vlad's gotten another bat and is scheduled to come up again shortly.

It's 2022, but COVID is still finding ways to affect baseball ... the MLB just announced the Cleveland Guardians' game against the White Sox on Wednesday has been postponed due to a virus outbreak.

In a statement released just hours before the first pitch was scheduled to go down at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago, the league said the game will not go on because of "multiple" positive COVID tests in the Guardians' org.

This is the first time in the 2022 season that an MLB game has been postponed over coronavirus.

Unclear which players tested positive for the virus ... but the Guardians did reveal prior to the game's postponement that manager Terry Francona had contracted COVID.

Scary moment on the MLB diamond Tuesday ... A's shortstop Elvis Andrus hit Chad Pinder in the face with his knee in a violent collision during Oakland's game against Detroit.

Thankfully, both guys were somehow OK.

The horrifying moment just went down in the fifth inning of the A's vs. Tigers afternoon matchup ... when Andrus attempted to leave the infield to catch a short pop-up that was dropping in left field.

Pinder raced in from deep in left to also try to catch the ball -- and as he dove to make the grab, Andrus accidentally hit him with full force.

Video shows Andrus' knee hit Pinder's face hard -- and the two stayed down on the grass for several minutes.

Trainers eventually came out to check on the Oakland duo -- and, wildly, both guys ended up being fine and stayed in the game.

Guardians first baseman, Josh Naylor, made history Monday night ... and then he celebrated like a madman, cussing up a storm and throwing his helmet -- and video of the scene is EPIC.

Naylor logged EIGHT RBIs in his final three at-bats of Cleveland's wild 12-9, extra-innings win over the Chicago White Sox ... and following his last AB -- one in which he hit the go-ahead three-run homer -- he completely lost it on his way to the dugout.

Video shot by a fan in the stands shows Naylor dropped F-bombs, hurled his helmet into a wall, pounded his chest and screamed, "You can't f***ing beat me!" over and over again.

Naylor also yelled about wanting "all of the smoke" constantly as he charged through his teammates.

The celly was a wild one -- but it's clearly warranted. In his last three at-bats of the Guardians' win, he had a double, a grand slam and a three-run homer. And, according to ESPN, Naylor became the first player in over 100 years to log eight RBIs in the eighth inning and on during a game.

Olivia Rodrigo turned the Philadelphia Phillies game into her own prom on Thursday ... dancing her face off and vibing to her hit song!!

The moment was captured on the Citizens Bank Park scoreboard in the 6th inning of the Phils' game against the New York Mets ... with the stadium showing off the Grammy winner to the fans.

Naturally, OR's "good 4 u" was blaring over the speaker system ... and just like the rest of the world does when they hear it (admit it, you love it), the singer had to rock out.

The video is pretty cool -- Rodrigo jumps up and down, waves to the cameras, dances and points out her friends as the crowd loses it.

So, what the heck was she doing at a Phillies game?? Rodrigo is in the City of Brotherly Love the next two nights for her "SOUR" tour ... so why not catch a good ol' ballgame??

But, by the looks of it, Olivia might not have cared too much about the action on the diamond ... as she was spotted taking pics during the middle of the game.

Hey ... when ya got 25 million followers on Instagram, you gotta take advantage of every photo op.

As for the game, the Phillies lost 8-7 ... and it was one of the biggest collapses in team history.

If the top part of the Yankees' batting order looks a little sluggish tonight ... now ya know why!

New York stars Aaron Judge, Anthony Rizzo and DJ LeMahieu all attended the Rangers' playoff game against the Penguins on Thursday night -- and they were feelin' so good in their seats, they chugged beers together!!

The trio had on-the-glass spots for Game 2 of the Pittsburgh vs. NY series -- and when the Madison Square Garden cameras spotted them ... they pounded their drinks to get the crowd going.

None of the three were Tom Brady-level chuggers ... but it seems clear Rizzo won the drink-off.

As for how the beer-pounding played at MSG -- it seemed to fire up both Rangers fans and the actual team ... 'cause NY went on to score three more goals after the scene, winning the game 5-2.

But, don't fret about a potential hangover, Pinstripes fans, Yankees aren't slated to play the Texas Rangers on Friday night until 7 PM ET.

The SF Giants lost to the Dodgers on Thursday night ... and then one of their fans got dropped in a fist fight afterward -- and the violence was all captured on video.

Shortly after Brandon Crawford and the Giants took an L at Dodger Stadium ... one of their fans suffered the same fate in a scrap outside the venue.

Footage shot by a bystander shows the Giants fan got into an argument with a man in a white T-shirt -- and seconds later, it didn't end well for him.

You can see the guy in the Joe Panik jersey was popped in the face twice -- with the second punch putting him on the ground.

Fortunately for the Giants fan, the other combatant took off following the big right hand -- appearing to save him from further damage.

Doesn't seem anyone suffered any significant injuries -- other than perhaps a big blow to the ego.

Of course, this is far from the first tilt between fans at MLB games this month ... just a couple days ago, Chicago Cubs fans fought it out in the bleachers at Wrigley Field.

Here's a video that'll hit ya right in the feels ... a Blue Jays fan gifted an Aaron Judge home run ball to a little Yankees supporter -- and the gesture was so appreciated, the kid actually cried tears of joy!!

The moment happened in the sixth inning of New York's game against Toronto at Rogers Centre ... when Judge blasted a moon shot into the upper deck in left field.

A Toronto fan initially caught the souvenir ... but he turned and handed it to a little Yankees fan sitting near him -- and what happened next was truly amazing.

The kid -- who was wearing an Aaron Judge shirt -- burst into tears and gave the guy a huge hug!!!

In the clip of their interaction, which was thankfully caught by broadcast cameras, you can see after the two embraced, the boy was completely overwhelmed with joy.

And, as icing on the cake for the little Judge fan ... the Yanks ended up trouncing the Jays, 9-1.

Talk about a great Tuesday at the ballpark.

A Citi Field security guard was forced to leave a game on Wednesday afternoon ... after he was drilled on the top of the head by a towering foul ball.

The scary moment just happened in the second inning of the Mets vs. Braves game in New York ... when Atlanta catcher, Travis D'Arnaud, hit a pitch way into the air down the third-base line.

As the ball was coming down in foul ground, though, a security guard couldn't track it -- and it ended up plunking him.

The ball hit the man so hard, D'Arnaud visibly winced at the sight.

The guard rubbed his head and appeared to be dazed -- and just seconds later, he left his post with a stadium official.

Unclear if he suffered significant injuries ... we've reached out to the Mets for comment on the situation, but so far, no word back yet.

Madison Bumgarner just lost his mind on the baseball diamond ... needing to be physically restrained from an umpire after the guy threw him out of a game.

The Diamondbacks pitcher's blowup just went down after the first inning of Arizona's game against the Miami Marlins in Florida ... following an incident with an on-field ump.

Mad Bum was pissed during the frame over some balls and strikes calls ... and when he walked toward the dugout and got checked by an ump for foreign substances -- he had some words for the official.

In footage of the altercation, picked up by broadcast cameras, Bumgarner was seen clearly arguing with the ump -- before he was eventually tossed.

The ejection set the former World Series MVP off ... and footage shows he went so ballistic, he needed several teammates and coaches to hold him back from going after the dude.

Bumgarner, thankfully, ultimately left the field without further incident.