Celebrity Health

Shohei Ohtani has been cleared by the Angels to pitch in the World Baseball Classic final against Team USA on Tuesday night ... paving the way for a potential dream matchup against Mike Trout in the championship game.

The Halos star last threw for Japan in the tourney on March 16 against Italy ... and many thought that would be his last time on the mound in the huge baseball event -- as he's still ramping up his right arm in preparation for the 2023 MLB season.

But, with Japan beating Mexico in a thriller on Monday night -- Ohtani expressed interest in appearing in relief for his home country against America in the finale ... and Angels brass said on Tuesday morning they'd allow it to go down if the opportunity arises.

Of course, there is risk involved. Ohtani has never thrown on just four days rest ... and he is less than five years removed from Tommy John surgery. Plus, he's expected to also bat in the heart of Japan's lineup for the entirety of the contest too.

But LA general manager Perry Minasian told reporters he'd be comfortable if Ohtani needed to throw an inning or so to help his team secure a WBC win.

"He's the last guy on planet Earth I'm worried about," Minasian said. "He's going to be prepared. He's going to have an idea of what he needs to do. If he does decide to pitch, I have the utmost confidence he will be ready to pitch and be fine."

Manager Phil Nevin echoed Minasian's comments ... saying he was fired up over the possibility of seeing Ohtani vs. Trout on the big stage.

"Who wouldn't want to see the two best players in the world go at it, right?" he said. "Then we'd have a lot of fun talking about it the rest of the year."

Ohtani -- who some believe could sign a $500 MILLION contract next offseason -- is currently scheduled to be the Angels' Opening Day starter on March 30.

The WBC final, meanwhile, kicks off in just a couple hours at 7 p.m. ET in Miami.

Ja Morant is adamantly denying he has a drinking problem after the NBA concluded he was intoxicated when he flashed a gun on Instagram earlier this month ... telling reporters alcohol was NOT the reason he entered a counseling program.

Morant spoke publicly for the first time since rejoining the Grizzlies this week -- and the Memphis superstar was asked if alcohol played a role in his decision-making that ultimately led to his eight-game suspension.

"Never had an alcohol problem," Morant said. "I didn't go there for alcohol. I went there for counseling. To learn how to manage stress and cope with stress in a positive way, instead of ways how I tried to deal with it before that caused me to make mistakes."

"[The] only problem with me right now is just getting into a space mentally that I'm very comfortable in and I feel good at. That's why I made the decision to take time away and go to counseling. That helped me learn a lot of things."

Ja said he contemplated stepping away from the NBA before he was engulfed in drama ... admitting he was afraid to leave the team. But the two-time All-Star says he's glad he made the decision to address his mental health.

Morant -- who was on the bench for Memphis on Monday, but didn't play in the game against the Mavs -- said now that he's back around his teammates, he's focused on improving himself and working toward getting back out there on the court.

Amanda Bynes' parents aren't viewing her recent psychotic episode as a reason to put her into another conservatorship ... but that doesn't mean her episode hasn't set off alarm bells.

A source with direct knowledge tells TMZ ... Amanda's parents, Lynn and Rick, are deeply concerned about their daughter's well-being and health after her latest ordeal -- but another conservatorship isn't on the table, at least for now.

Amanda had been living independently in her own house and taking cosmetology classes and until fairly recently seemed to be doing fine, so Sunday's episode seemed like an anomaly.

We're told her parents are also taking comfort in the fact Amanda was self-aware enough to recognize she was in trouble ... flagging down a car for help and calling 911 herself.

TMZ broke the story, Amanda was placed on a 5150 psychiatric hold after being spotted walking naked near Downtown L.A. Sunday morning.

She was taken to a nearby police station and a mental health team felt a psych hold was necessary. Typically, 5150 holds last only 72 hours, but they can be extended.

As you know, Amanda was in a conservatorship for almost a decade, starting back in 2013 while struggling with her mental health. The plug was pulled on her conservatorship a year ago tomorrow.

Two star high school athletes from Illinois -- who were enjoying their spring break in Colorado -- were tragically killed in a horrific sledding accident over the weekend.

They were only 17 and 18 years old.

The Summit County Sheriff's Office said the crash happened at Copper Mountain Ski Resort in Frisco at 8:35 PM on March 19 ... after Dylan Bazzell and Drew Fehr's sled launched off of a massive snowbank at the bottom of a half pipe.

"The two individuals came down hard on the hard ice below," police said, "causing blunt force trauma."

Emergency medical personnel raced to the scene to tend to the two teenagers ... but they were pronounced dead a short time later.

The school district in Illinois where the two attended high school said counselors would be available to help students cope with the loss.

"As we know, 'it takes a village' to raise a child," Prairie Central school district officials said in a statement. "And it will take all of us working together to comfort and support our children through this tragic event."

Bazzell and Fehr, both high school seniors, played for Prairie Central's basketball and football teams. Bazzell had just been named to the Associated Press All-State First Team earlier this month.

Fehr, meanwhile, was a football team captain who logged 1,439 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns this past season.

Police said the deaths are under investigation ... and are urging spring breakers and other thrill seekers "to always practice safe on snow activity habits and to be aware of the risks associated with these activities."

Tennis legend Martina Navratilova says her recent battle with cancer has paused her plans for adoption with her wife ... even though she revealed she's now, thankfully, free of the disease.

Navratilova recently sat down with Piers Morgan to talk about everything she's been through since she was diagnosed with throat and breast cancer earlier this year ... and she admitted that despite beating it all -- it sadly led to her putting an indefinite pause on ideas of adoption with Julia Lemigova.

The 66-year-old, who also previously beat breast cancer in 2010, explained in the interview for Morgan's Talk TV show, "We were thinking about adopting but that's definitely put on hold, and I don't think it's going to happen."

She added, according to the Daily Mail, "I think it's just too complicated and the energy, I only have so much right now."

Navratilova then told Piers, "I'm not really the youngest anymore and I don't want to be the grandmother on the playground."

Lemigova, a 'Real Housewives Of Miami' star, said during a reunion show for the Bravo TV hit earlier this year that the couple had, at one point, actually been very close to adopting ... before Navratilova's battle took precedence.

At times during her interview with Morgan, Navratilova got emotional over everything ... wiping away tears.

She did, though, ultimately deliver some great news regarding her health ... saying doctors recently told her, "as far as they know I'm cancer-free."

Amanda Bynes has been placed on a psychiatric hold after she was found roaming the streets naked and alone ... TMZ has learned.

An eyewitness tells us ... Bynes was seen walking near downtown Los Angeles early Sunday morning without any clothes. We're told Bynes waved a car down, telling the driver she was coming down from a psychotic episode. Amanda herself then called 911.

Our law enforcement sources say Bynes was taken to a nearby police station, where a mental health team determined she needed to be placed on a 5150 psych hold.

Fortunately, our sources say it doesn't appear Bynes was hurt at all during the ordeal, though things could've been much worse given the area where she was found.

A source close to Amanda tells us she's currently hospitalized, and will likely continue to receive care for several days. Typically, a psychiatric hold only lasts 72 hours, but it can be extended.

It was almost one year to the day when Amanda's 9-year conservatorship was officially terminated. Amanda's mother was her conservator starting back in 2013 when it was clear she was having issues with her mental health -- she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. After a series of bizarre incidents -- including one where she set her neighbor's driveway on fire, almost engulfing her dog in flames -- she was sent to a psychiatric ward for treatment.

Interestingly enough, Amanda was supposed to attend 90s Con in Connecticut this weekend, an event she canceled on due to illness.

Since the conservatorship ended, Amanda seemed to be doing well for herself, though the most recent incident is obviously very concerning ... it's unclear if her parents or legal team will step in.

Gwyneth Paltrow's trial is about to kick off after she was sued over a "hit-and-run" ski crash years ago ... and she will almost certainly take the stand.

The actress' Park City, Utah trial is set to begin Tuesday following the 2016 incident ... and sources close to Gwyneth told the New York Post she's going to testify. Fact is ... there's no 5th Amendment right to take a pass, and even if she didn't want to testify the other side could force the issue.

As we reported, Gwyneth was hit with a lawsuit back in 2019 by Utah resident Terry Sanderson ... who claimed Paltrow slammed into him a few years back while skiing down the mountain at Deer Valley Resort, causing him to suffer a concussion and broken ribs.

He says she got up after the collision, didn't say anything, and just kept on going while he was left lying on the mountain.

What's more, Terry claimed an instructor behind Gwyneth accused him of causing the crash -- and says he filed a false report with the ski resort blaming him for the crash.

Terry asked for $3.1M in damages, but Gwyneth filed a countersuit against Terry the next month for $1, calling HIM out for causing the collision ... citing that resort incident report as proof.

One dude crossed the finish line in this year's L.A. Marathon with a pretty impressive feat, but he wasn't on a runner's high -- he was just high.

Podcast host Adam Ill took to the streets of Los Angeles with over 22,000 others Sunday morning ... but, we're guessing he was one of only a few smoking joints while on the 6-hour jog.

Adam documented a good portion of his trek, but he was mostly showing off his HIGHlights.

He didn't set any time records, coming in 954th out of 1,163 men in his age range -- but he was live on Twitch during his run and mentioned it was all going down on his birthday. One hell of a way to kick off another trip around the sun.

For those unaware, Adam calls himself "The Highest Host" and a cannabis celebrity ... and he hosts 'The OG Potcast', one of the longest-running Mary Jane-themed podcasts.

It's a lock he lit up more than birthday candles to celebrate finishing the marathon!!!

Shaquille O'Neal sparked concern after sharing a photo of himself in a hospital bed on Sunday ... but TMZ Sports has learned the NBA legend simply needed to fix a nagging injury, and he's now doing OK.

Our sources tell us the 51-year-old went under the knife over the weekend to have an issue with his hip corrected -- and everything went according to plan. We're told he's already on the mend.

In a caption Shaq posted along with the photo -- he tagged his "NBA on TNT" colleagues, Ernie Johnson and Candace Parker, saying even though he couldn't be at work, he was still tuning in to the show.

"Miss y’all," he wrote.

Parker, a two-time WNBA champ, responded, "Love ya big Fella ♥."

It's unclear when Shaq will return to his TV gig -- our sources say there's no set time frame -- but in discussing the upcoming procedure earlier this month on his podcast, "The Big Podcast With Shaq," he seemed to say he had April 16 in mind for when he could be active again.

He added on the pod that he was going to go on a diet to get "shredded" after the surgery ... and eventually reveal an 8-pack!!

Demi Moore is sharing a heartwarming family moment honoring Bruce Willis ... she was by her ex-husband's side to wish him a very happy birthday as he copes with dementia.

Demi posted a sweet video Sunday ... as Bruce's entire fam gathered around to celebrate his 68th birthday. Bruce and his current wife Emma Heming, Demi and a mix of their kids all sang to him and presented a candlelit pie.

Bruce was smiling, and seemingly mocking his family's attempt to harmonize. It's really the first time we've heard him speak since he was diagnosed last year with aphasia.

In her caption, Demi wrote ... "Happy birthday, BW! So glad we could celebrate you today. Love you and love our family. Thank you to everyone for the love and warm wishes -- we all feel them."

Of course, the birthday wishes come about a month after his family announced his original diagnosis of aphasia progressed to frontotemporal dementia.

Demi and Bruce share 3 daughters together -- Rumer, Scout, and Tallulah -- who all celebrated alongside their dad.

He has been married to his current wife Emma for about 13 years.

Their 2 children -- Mabel and Evelyn -- were on hand for the special day as well ... and Emma shared an emotional video as she opened up about their hardships since Bruce's FTD diagnosis.

Def Leppard's Rick Allen is breaking his silence after being attacked last week -- and it sounds like he's actually calling on forgiveness for the alleged culprit.

The rock band's longtime drummer issued a statement Sunday, which has some encouraging updates on his condition. He says, "Thank you everyone for your overwhelming support. Your love and prayers are truly helping. My wife Lauren [Monroe] was thankfully not with me at the time of the incident. We are together now, and working on recovering in a safe space."

According to ABC News, which obtained his remarks, Allen and his family are now shifting their attention toward "healing for everyone involved" ... although he doesn't really elaborate.

There's more ... RA goes on to say, "We ask you to join us in our effort to move from confusion and shock to compassion and empathy. We understand this act of violence can be triggering for so many people."

He finishes with ... "To all of the fans, veterans and first responders in our global community, we are thinking of you all. Together with love, we can all get through these difficult times."

Allen never mentions his alleged attacker by name -- 19-year-old Max Hartley, whom police claim was the one who beat Rick down -- but it does seem he's alluding to him ... and, perhaps, there's more to the story.

In any case, it's great to hear he's doing okay. You'll recall ... the incident was described to cops as brutal. Hartley is accused of bum-rushing Rick at a hotel in Ft. Lauderdale, allegedly knocking him to the ground and going on to attack a woman who was nearby too ... according to the arrest report. The dude was booked for battery, among other charges.

Bruce Willis turns 68 today -- and his wife, Emma Heming, is opening up about the milestone with brutal honesty ... and a lot of emotion.

Emma took to Instagram to share her thoughts on her husband's birthday, which she says started out with her crying this morning. The reason ... Emma is obviously dealing with Bruce's recent dementia diagnosis -- and she says it takes a toll on her and their family.

She goes on to say that people are always commending her for being so strong in the face of adversity ... but, as she notes, she doesn't have a choice in the matter -- and simply does what she has to do to keep her household and life in order.

Despite having to put on a brave face, Emma says she experiences times of grief and sadness -- especially with having two young children that she and Bruce are raising -- and as she tearfully explains ... it's difficult.

BTW, Emma says these videos she makes -- giving updates on Bruce's condition and how it's affecting their home life, etc. -- are gut-wrenching to her ... but she does them anyway because she knows how many fans BW has ... who are interested in his well-being/journey.

She says the outpouring of love and support she and Bruce have received means the world to her ... and Emma clearly takes it all to heart. We also know Emma is deeply protective of Bruce these days -- she recently told paps (publicly) to back off and to leave him be.

Elizabeth Banks' looks over the years are aca-awesome!

Here is a fresh 27-year-old version of the "Pitch Perfect" star gracing her natural beauty at a UNICEF For Fashion event in Los Angeles back in 2001 (left). This was just a couple of years before she played Marcela Howard in the film "Seabiscuit."

And, 22 years later, the actress and filmmaker looked picture-perfect and dressed to the nines at this year's Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Beverly Hills, California. She learned how to be quite critical during her "Pitch Perfect" days as Gail the commentator, so the imperative question here is ...

MTV's "The Challenge" star Nelson Thomas' GoFundMe is getting some serious support after his car crash, and some of the donations are coming from fellow reality stars.

The charity campaign quickly picked up steam after going live earlier this week -- and reality TV fans will definitely recognize some of the names chipping in with funds. Nurys Mateo and Tori Deal, who both starred on "The Challenge," dropped $1K each ... while Mark Long and Corey Lay from the series also ante'd up donations.

Outside of Nelson's 'Challenge' crew ... Nicholas Maccarone from "Big Brother" chipped in $250, "Wild 'N Out" star Justina Valentine gave $500, as did Maria Menounos.

Zak Longo from MTV's "Are You the One?" gave $5K ... moving the campaign closer to its $200k goal.

As we reported, Nelson was injured in a fiery crash in Austin, TX earlier this month. Minnesota Vikings receiver K.J. Osborn and a few others were able to rescue him from the wreckage.

Nelson ended up in pretty bad shape -- he showed some of his cuts and burns from his hospital bed, saying he's doing better but has a ways to go.

A Los Angeles-based meteorologist fainted during a live TV broadcast this weekend -- and there's still no word on her condition after the terrifying moment was caught on camera.

Alissa Carlson Schwartz was helping CBS L.A.'s KCAL team kick off the newscast early Saturday morning, leading the 7:00 AM hour with a weather report about incoming rain for L.A. this next week. However, before she could even get into her report, she lost consciousness.

The video is absolutely horrifying ... you see Carlson's eyes roll to the back of her head, and she begins to lean forward on the desk she was at. Eventually, she completely collapses.

As the two anchors noted at the beginning of the segment, Carlson was on set with them -- but it appears she might've been at a different location ... because they didn't seem to notice she'd passed out until a few moments later. They panicked and cut to commercial.

It's been a while now and there's still no official update on how Carlson is doing. KCAL never came back to a live news report after this -- the station opted to air pre-recorded/promotional programming for several hours. At the moment, they're covering the NCAA.

Here's the thing ... Carlson had previously experienced a similar episode years ago -- throwing up on set during a weather report when she was at a different station -- and as a result ... she was diagnosed with a leaky heart valve. That was back in 2014.

Unclear if her previous diagnosis played any role in Saturday's episode. We've reached out to KCAL for a statement ... so far, no word back. They haven't addressed this at all thus far.

You'd think Andrew Lloyd Webber would be feeling the pressure of having to craft King Charles' coronation music -- but the dude is pretty relaxed ... hilariously so, in fact.

The Broadway legend -- responsible for the numbers heard in "Cats," "The Phantom of the Opera" and others -- dished to WaPo about the Royal assignment he agreed to about a month ago ... namely, composing THE musical piece that'll be playing while KC gets crowned in May.

It's quite the task, and yet ... ALW sounds super chill about it. His interview here makes it seem like the gig is just another day in the office. He says, "I have written quite a lot of choral music. [M]y father was a very distinguished church organist and choirmaster and the choral tradition is not something that is new to me in a way, because it’s been there all my life." In other words, he's been there ... done that. Now, he's just doing it for the King.

As WaPo notes, Lloyd Webber's actually somewhat familiar with Charles -- having met and visited with him on a handful of occasions in the past. He tells this funny anecdote, kinda poking fun at the King's vanilla demeanor/interests ... and what HRH is passionate about.

ALW says, "The great thing about Charles is that he has a great love of really quite a lot of causes that are a little bit unfashionable. He cares very deeply about all sorts of quite interesting things."

The guy adds this ... "I mean, like, three or four years before lockdown, I got a call from him saying could I come around to meet him at Lancaster House quite urgently, because he’d had an idea. What it was that he was worried about was the fact that there wasn’t enough access for young people to go and learn how to play the church organ."

As for the actual music itself that he's putting together ... the deets are out. It's a three-minute tune set to the melody of Psalm 98, which will include the lyrics/refrain that reads, "O sing to the Lord a new song." Lloyd Webber's expected to put his own spin on it, though.

ALW's heading to London soon to test the audio at Westminster Abbey, where the ceremony will go down. Charles may be struggling with pop acts, but he's got the classics locked down.