Baseball

Jacob deGrom decided to have a little fun before NY's game Tuesday ... horsing around with a teammate in pregame warmups -- and it has Mets fans absolutely TRIGGERED!!!

The scene was captured by MLB Network cameras hours before the Mets' game against the Braves in Atlanta ... and it was pretty silly -- deGrom wrestled a teammate to the ground in hilarious WWE fashion.

Seriously, the play fighting was actually funny ... deGrom pulled the shirt over his teammate's head, threw him to the ground -- and then another Met came in to count down the pin!

The problem ... Jacob's battled some injuries this season -- and Mets fans are absolutely LOSING IT over the sight of their star ace rolling around on the ground unprotected!!

NY fans have erupted on social media ... pleading with deGrom to take care of himself -- especially with his next start scheduled for Thursday night.

Don't worry, deGrom made it through the outfield scrap unscathed ... but it would seriously be a bummer if something did happen to him.

Cleveland Indians outfielder Josh Naylor broke his leg in a horrifying fashion after colliding with his teammate during a game Sunday ... and video of the play is VERY hard to watch.

The gruesome scene all went down in the 4th inning of the Tribe's game against the Minnesota Twins ... when Naylor was trying to track down a fly ball in right field.

The problem ... his teammate, Ernie Clement, was charging for the ball as well -- and when the baseball finally came down from the sky, the two crashed into each other HARD.

The collision sent Naylor flying -- and when he landed, his leg bent awkwardly underneath him ... horrifically twisting it.

You can see in slow-motion replay, Naylor was in EXTREME pain ... writhing on the ground.

Naylor was eventually carted off the field and taken to the hospital ... and after the game, Indians manager Terry Francona confirmed his player was dealing with a significant injury.

"We know that there's a fracture," Francona told reporters. "Other than that, he's being evaluated over at the hospital right now."

Naylor had played in 69 games for Cleveland this season ... hitting 7 home runs and batting .253.

A Mexican Baseball League hitter was so livid after he was drilled by a fastball Wednesday ... he straight-up attacked the pitcher with his bat AND helmet -- and the wild scene was all caught on video.

It all went down in the Toros de Tijuana game against Rieleros de Aguascalientes in Tijuana ... when Toros catcher Gabriel Gutierrez absolutely lost his mind in the 8th inning.

Things between the two teams had been chippy all night -- and when Gutierrez appeared to be purposely drilled by a pitch ... he snapped.

Check out the footage of the chaos, Gutierrez launched his bat and then his helmet at Rieleros pitcher Brandon Quintero ... and then all hell broke loose.

The two teams' benches cleared and several skirmishes broke out ... with some of the fights even including wild haymakers!!!

Eventually, the two teams were separated ... with three players ultimately being booted from the game over the incident.

The Toros went on to win, 5-3 ... and afterward, Tijuana star Leandro Castro said in Spanish everything was essentially the Rieleros' fault.

He pinned the blame on them being upset over a previous matchup between the two teams ... and added he REALLY hopes a similar scene never happens again.

It's not just the Dodgers team getting beat down in San Diego ... a Dodgers fan got smacked around too!

Check out this video of a Dodgers fan in enemy territory during the team's road trip to San Diego.

Unclear why the guy in the Clayton Kershaw jersey was so mad -- but he approached a group of Padres fans at Petco Park on Tuesday night looking for a fight and yeah, he got what he wanted.

The problem for the Dodgers fan ... he ain't exactly Francis Ngannou.

He threw some punches but nothing really connected and within seconds, he was being wrestled into the bleachers while the Padres fans proceeded to beat his ass.

Eventually, some other Padres fans and a dude in a Yankees jersey pulled the Dodgers fan away ... while a bunch of fans shouted, "Beat L.A."

Law enforcement tells us no arrests were made.

But, to make matters worse for the Dodgers fan, L.A. lost the game 3 to 2.

Toronto will now be without one of its best pitchers for FIVE games ... MLB has just hit Alek Manoah with the ban after they say he "intentionally" drilled an opponent with a heater.

Manoah -- after giving up back-to-back home runs in Saturday's Blue Jays vs. Orioles game -- threw a 93 MPH fastball that beaned Maikel Franco right in the shoulder area.

Given that he had just let up two straight bombs ... Baltimore felt Manoah hit Franco on purpose -- and an all-out brawl nearly ensued.

Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed before any punches were thrown ... but Manoah was ejected nonetheless -- and the MLB clearly felt Tuesday, that it wasn't enough punishment for the 23-year-old righty.

MLB officials announced Manoah "has received a five-game suspension and an undisclosed fine for intentionally throwing at Maikel Franco."

They added Manoah's manager, Charlie Montoyo, was also receiving a one-game ban for his role in the incident.

Manoah will appeal, however, which means his suspension will not go into effect until that process is completed.

El Mago looked more like El No Recuerdo on Monday ... 'cause Cubs star shortstop Javier Baez lost track of the outs during an inning, and was then promptly benched over the blunder.

Baez looked straight-up ridiculous during the bottom of the 4th inning of Chicago's game against the Indians ... when the 28-year-old thought there were 2 outs.

You can see in the clip of the play ... after Anthony Rizzo hit a pop-up to left field, Baez began circling the bags completely unaware there was only 1 out prior to the at-bat.

Baez was then promptly doubled off at first base ... and after he didn't seem to care too much about the mistake, his manager yanked him.

Cameras caught David Ross having a deep conversation with Baez about the play in the dugout ... and it wasn't hard to see Baez wasn't happy with Ross' decision to bench him.

The Cubs went on to lose the game 4-0.

Afterward, though, Baez vowed to be better going forward, saying, "[Ross and I] talked about it. We’re on the same page. I’ll be there tomorrow to help the team."

Added Ross, "We had a good conversation, and I think that’s behind us ... Javy’s really important to this team."

Tough scene for Javier ... but hey, remember when he made this play just a few weeks ago???

Sang Ho Baek -- a freshman on George Mason's 2021 baseball team -- died Saturday after his Tommy John surgery turned tragic ... his teammate, Scott Morgan, has confirmed.

The pitcher recently underwent the elbow procedure ... and in a statement on a GoFundMe page, Morgan announced Baek ultimately passed away due to complications from it.

He was just 20 years old.

"After battling through injuries throughout the season, Sang required Tommy John surgery," Morgan, a GMU outfielder, wrote in the GoFundMe statement.

"He suddenly passed away due to complications with his surgery. As a team, we are all mourning his passing."

It's been reported Baek suffered a blood clot while trying to recover from the procedure.

Baek played in seven games for the Patriots in '21 ... and his GMU head coach, Bill Brown, said he was "an incredible teammate."

"He will be missed and forever cherished in our hearts," Brown added.

Tampa Bay Rays prospect Tyler Zombro is clearly lucky to be alive today ... the pitcher revealed he needed brain surgery after being drilled in the head by a line drive this month -- and the scar he showed off Thursday is gnarly.

Zombro -- who was struck by a comebacker in a minor league game on June 3 -- posted pics from his recovery on his Twitter page ... and it's truly miraculous he appears to be okay following the scary scene.

Zombro showed the entire right side of his head was opened up by docs after he was hit by the baseball ... and then later closed up with a grip of staples.

"Unbelievably grateful to be in the situation I’m currently in with the incredible help from @DukeHospital & staff," Zombro said.

"To all of you that have showered my family and I with positive thoughts, I have no doubt that all of the prayer support kept God with me throughout that night, as I’m in a very fortunate position all things considered."

The initial injury was one of the scariest incidents anybody's EVER seen on a baseball diamond ... Zombro let a fastball go and it was smacked right back at him.

The 26-year-old could be seen convulsing on the mound and was immediately rushed to the hospital.

In fact, things looked so dire, Zombro's minor league team, the Durham Bulls, postponed their game the following day in wake of the injury.

But, Zombro said Thursday he's doing much better ... even cracking a joke about his sprint speed!

"In optimistic news: I’ve never been the fastest on the field so I may have gotten a boost after this surgery," Zombro said.

Zombro added he intends to get back on the diamond eventually ... though there's no timetable for a return at this point.

Blue Jays pitcher Ross Stripling says he's sorry for throwing a temper tantrum after his teammate's error ... calling his actions both embarrassing and mortifying.

The Toronto starter went crazy after Joe Panik botched a throw to first base in the Jays' loss to the Yankees on Wednesday night ... screaming at his third baseman and throwing his hands in the air.

Stripling could be heard telling Panik to essentially play better ... and the on-field explosion was so off-putting, even Yankees broadcasters called Stripling out for it live on-air.

But, it didn't take long for Ross to realize he really screwed up ... 'cause he issued an apology to Panik after the game, calling the scene "the most disrespectful thing I've ever done."

"I'm completely embarrassed about it," the 31-year-old said. "I simply let the moment get too big for me."

Stripling said he not only spoke to Panik about it all, but addressed the situation with his entire team as well.

"I mean, I literally can't explain it," Stripling said. "Honestly, I'm mortified by it, I can't stand that's the way that went."

Ross continued, "It'll never happen again from me, I promise you that."

Ross added that Panik had accepted the mea culpa and told him "no hard feelings."

"Please, just talk to us. Please, just work with us."

Gerrit Cole is BEGGING MLB officials to ease their latest stance on pitchers and foreign substances ... telling reporters Wednesday night he's VERY concerned a league crackdown on it all could lead to serious injuries.

The Yankees star kept it real in his meeting with the media after New York's huge win over Toronto ... saying the lack of sticky substances on his hand really hurt him during the game.

In fact, Cole said he struggled so much with gripping the baseball all night long ... he became not only concerned about his arm, but also batters in the box.

"I would just hate to see players get hurt," the 30-year-old said. "I would hate to see balls start flying at people's heads. I had a really tough time gripping the baseball tonight, especially early when it was windy."

Cole is now imploring MLB officials to back down from their threat to impose fines, ejections and even suspensions on pitchers who are caught putting foreign substances on their hands and baseballs.

"It's so hard to grip the ball," Cole said after the Yanks' 3-2 victory. "For Pete's sake, it's part of the reason why almost every player on the field has had something, regardless if they're a pitcher or not, to help them control the ball."

Of course, the comments echo Tyler Glasnow's concerns from earlier this week ... when the Tampa Bay Rays ace said he believed the league's crackdown ultimately caused a serious injury to his elbow.

For his part, despite grip issues and a dry hand, Cole still dominated a strong Blue Jays lineup ... throwing 8 innings and giving up just 4 hits and 2 earned runs while striking out 4.

"I would encourage the commissioner's office to continue to talk with us, please, because we're the ones that throw the ball," Cole said.

"My lifelong dream -- I want to go out and win a Cy Young, I want to be an All-Star, and now it's all just s*** on."

Rays superstar Tyler Glasnow melted down in front of reporters Tuesday ... claiming the MLB's new crackdown on foreign substances RUINED his elbow -- and he's now VERY upset about it.

The 27-year-old Tampa Bay ace said when MLB officials hinted at punishing pitchers for rubbing substances on their throwing hand and baseballs ... he was forced to adapt.

Glasnow -- who said he usually uses sunscreen and rosin on his hand to get a grip on balls -- did away with the stuff two starts ago against the Nationals on June 8.

And, while Tyler spun a gem, he said the lack of tack on his hands put strain all over his elbow ... claiming that led to it blowing out in his last start against the White Sox on June 14.

"Waking up after that [Nationals] start, I was like, 'Okay, this sucks,'" Glasnow said. "Something is weird here. And then that same feeling is persisting all week long."

"And then I go into my start [Monday] and that same feeling, it just pops or whatever the hell happened to my elbow. Like, I feel it. Something happens. And I'm sitting up here like, 'You've got to be f***ing kidding me.'"

The Rays say Glasnow was diagnosed with a torn lgiament in his elbow as well as a flexor tendon strain ... and it's now very possible the dude will need Tommy John surgery to recover.

Glasnow made it clear he wasn't using the foreign substances to cheat, but rather to just get a grip on the baseball -- and now he's concerned other pitchers might suffer his same fate because of MLB's sudden, midseason rule change.

"I'm frustrated that they don't understand how hard it is to pitch," Glasnow said. "And to tell us to do something completely different in the middle of the season is insane. It's ridiculous."

Tommy Pham says the trash talk directed his way this year has been ruthless -- with fans bringing up his terrifying offseason stabbing incident ... and now, he says he wants MLB to step in.

The Padres star spoke candidly this week about the verbal abuse that's been hurled at him at ballparks this season ... and he says it's been flat-out disgusting so far in 2021.

“The vulgarity this year, the gestures, I've never seen it at this level," the 33-year-old outfielder told The San Diego Union-Tribune.

"I want to know if this is just because fans have been gone for a year and now they’re back and acting a certain way. That (stuff) shouldn’t be tolerated.”

Pham explained it's "common" for him to hear jabs about the October 2020 night in which he nearly lost his life during a stabbing incident outside of a San Diego strip club.

You'll recall, Pham was slashed so badly by a blade following an altercation with people outside of the venue, he said he needed 200 stitches to close the wound.

Pham explained to the Union-Tribune he's quite frankly tired of fans bringing that up and more ... saying he's ready to talk to MLB officials about getting involved to make it all stop.

"I need to talk to MLB," he said.

Most impressive fan catch EVER??

A spectator at the Dallas Baptist vs. Virginia game made an insane head's-up play on Monday ... by not only snagging a home run ball -- but recording it on his phone at the same time!!

It all went down in the Columbia Super Regional matchup just minutes ago ... where a trip to the College World Series is on the line.

The game has been filled with highlight plays, but the biggest of all came when Jackson Glenn hit his 2-run dinger to put the Patriots up early in the 3rd inning ... with the fan snagging the ball in the left-field stands!!

Of course, the folks at ESPN tracked the fan down and got the footage he captured ... and it's pretty wild!!

The fan got a ton of praise from the guys in the booth, too ... saying, "That's just pre-determined knowledge of what's about to happen in the game."

"It's a smart baseball fan there!"

The kid's a natural with the glove ... so we gotta assume he's a baseball superstar for his local club.

Have a bad weekend? There's probably no way it was worse than Beau Burrows' ...

The Detroit Tigers pitcher got so sick on the mound Saturday -- he blew chunks ALL OVER IT -- and then he was promptly sent down to the minors afterward.

The gross scene all went down in the Tigers' game against the White Sox ... when Burrows entered the contest in the 4th inning with Detroit losing 8-2.

The 24-year-old rookie cruised in his first inning on the bump ... but ran into some major issues when he came back out for the fifth inning.

He walked a batter, gave up two straight hits, then walked another batter ... and even though he went on to strike out the next two guys -- something went terribly wrong.

Check out the footage, as Burrows was trying to close out the inning ... he got visibly ill -- and threw up everywhere ... TWICE.

Burrows tried to stay in the game ... but he was pulled after trainers and coaches came out to talk with him.

But, the worst part? The Tigers sent him down to Triple-A after the game ... meaning he's going to have to work his ass off to get back up to The Show anytime soon.

As for his health, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch didn't seem concerned this was a long-term or serious issue ... explaining his pitcher was simply just nauseous.

This is a beautiful, beautiful sight.

The Chicago Cubs welcomed a FULL-CAPACITY crowd to Wrigley Field Friday for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic started ... and none other than Bill Murray was present to give a majestic rendition of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game!!!"

Of course, it's tradition for the Cubbies to welcome their biggest supporters to help serenade the crowd during the 7th-inning stretch ... so the team brought out its most diehard fan for the first game back with a full stadium.

"This is what it feels like to be 100%," Murray yelled to the crowd before the big moment. "And, we're gonna be louder from right now until the last out in the top of the 9th inning, understood?"

Remember -- the Cubs haven't hosted a full stadium since 2019 ... so the place was ROCKING during their game against hated rival St. Louis.

"Let's scare the hell outta these Cardinals, let's scare them!!" Murray added.

The whole crowd singing along with the Chicago native was a powerful moment ... and Murray made sure to make the last note hold out as long as possible.

The video is pretty damn emotional considering what sports fans have been through in the past year ... and hopefully, there's more content like this moving forward.

"Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?"

That's how one MLB broadcaster reacted to an INSANE throw by Mookie Betts on Thursday ... and yeah, the play was seriously that good!!!

It all went down in the bottom of the 2nd inning of the Dodgers' tilt with the Pirates in Pittsburgh, when Ka'ai Tom hit a line drive to Betts deep in right field.

Mookie made a hell of a play to secure the out ... but he wasn't done there -- 'cause he then did a 360-degree spin to throw out the tagging runner at home plate!!

Watch the clip, the long toss was amazing ... Betts took several steps, twirled and fired -- and ended up throwing an absolute dart that gunned Erik Gonzalez down at home plate!

In typical Mookie fashion, the dude didn't even celebrate the absurd double play ... he calmly let his teammates know there were two outs, and then went right back to his right field position!

By the way, Mookie also homered in the game, stole a base and scored an additional run -- leading L.A. to a 6-3 win.