MLB

He won't say he's "rooting" for the Cubs -- but ex-Cleveland Indians player Nick Swisher is clearly pulling for Chicago to win Tuesday night ... claiming it's simply better for baseball if the Cubbies win.

Swisher is from Ohio, played for the Indians from 2013 to 2015 and says he still has a bunch of close friends on the team ... but when we saw Nick at LAX Tuesday morning, he explained why he's not Team Cleveland.

The bad news for Chicago -- Nick says he's been talking to some of the Cleveland players and they're feeling pretty great.

There's at least one Cubs fan who is still holding out hope the team isn't cursed forever ... Bob Odenkirk ... who says the mystical "Billy Goat Curse" that hung over the franchise is long dead.

We got Bob out in L.A. and, since he's a die-hard Cubbies fan, we wanted to know if he thought there was bad juju still hanging over the squad.

That woulda seemed like a silly question a week ago ... but the team's down 3-2 in the World Series after losing two at home ... and some fans who previously believed are letting old fears creep back in.

Check out the clip -- Bob says those people need not worry ... telling our camera guys the curse that dogged the squad has been gone for a long time now.

Jose Fernandez had cocaine and alcohol in his blood last month when he was involved in a boat crash that killed his two friends, along with the famed pitcher.

Jose's BAC was .147, approaching twice the legal limit, according to the Miami-Dade Coroner's Office. Cocaine was detected in his system as well.

Fernandez's friends both had small amounts of alcohol in their system ... one also had cocaine.

TMZ broke the story ... Fernandez and friends partied at a local bar less than two hours before the fatal crash. The spot -- American Social Bar & Kitchen -- has a dock for boaters to pull up, get out and get served.

It's still unclear who was driving the boat at the time of the crash.

This is pretty damn freakin' awesome ... Charlie Sheen just delivered the most epic pump up video in Cleveland Indians history ... going full Ricky "Wild Thing" Vaughn to fire up the tribe faithful.

Sheen -- who played Vaughn in the epic 1989 comedy -- just donned his old CLE uniform, complete with the signature horn-rimmed glasses, while screening the movie in his home.

The boat crash that killed Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez and 2 other men is now a homicide investigation -- as officials believe the person who was driving the boat was boozed up.

TMZ Sports has obtained the search warrant affidavit into the Sept. 25th incident -- in which investigators say all three bodies pulled from the water "had a strong odor of alcohol emanating from them."

Derek Jeter got the band back together in NYC Tuesday night -- well, a couple of guys from the band -- when he reunited with some of his old Yankees teammates at a MASSIVE celebrity party.

Numba Two kicked it with CC Sabathia, Jorge Posada and Dellin Betances at Jeter's Turn 2 Foundation event at Cipriani.

Ne-Yo performed (he was awesome) in front of a star-studded crowd that included soccer legend Ronaldinho, Dave Winfield, Tiki Barber, Andrew McCutchen and Hoda Kotb.

Oh yeah, Derek's hot model wife, Hannah Jeter, was also there ... and she looked good!

The Turn 2 Foundation helps kids and teens avoid drug and alcohol addiction ... cool to see everyone come together for a good cause.

Huge night in Cleveland ... with the World Series and the Cleveland Cavs season opener -- but the cops are SUPER PREPARED -- thanks to the Republican National Convention.

We spoke with Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association President Stephen Loomis -- who says "it'll be all hands on deck" to make sure everyone has a safe and a fun time.

"There's nothing we can't handle," Loomis says ... "We're experienced with big crowds since the RNC and the Cavs championship parade, so we're pretty well-versed now."

"Those events taught us lessons on how to deal with big crowds."

Loomis says the downtown area will be crawling with cops -- including a bunch of undercover officers and bike patrol -- but he's optimistic everything will go smoothly.

Lakers power forward Larry Nance Jr. is calling a foul on Major League Baseball ... saying they cheated the fans by not letting Charlie Sheen throw out the first pitch of the World Series.

We got Nance -- an Akron native -- out in L.A. at the Dew NBA 3X and asked what he thought about the MLB striking out efforts to get Sheen to throw out the first pitch in Cleveland ... as Ricky "Wild Thing" Vaughn.

Check out the clip -- Nance thinks it was a huge mistake ... saying the fans want it, the city wants it ... even going so far as saying IT'S MEANT TO BE!!!

Scottie Pippen butchered "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" in fantastic style Saturday night during the Cubs game.

Someone clearly without a clue handed Scottie the mic during the 7th inning stretch, and what happens next is just amazing.

P.S. ... the Cubs won.

You know what sucks ... LUKEWARM BEER!!!

But fear not, St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Stephen Piscotty says he can save your mouth from sucking down overheated brew ... with a very chill invention.

It's called the Beer Bit -- and Stephen and his brother, Nick, swear it will keep your booze COLD for up to an hour!!!

The guys just launched their own Kickstarter campaign -- and already raised more than $13,000 ... PLUS they even got teammate Yadier Molina to help promote it!!!

Don't hit the panic button ... the Dodgers are gearing up for one helluva comeback -- so says Steve Garvey, who believes the Blue Crew will beat the Cubs AND the Indians!

We spoke with the 10-time MLB All-Star -- who told us it ain't time to hit the panic button on L.A. yet since they still have Kershaw up their sleeves ... who will crush Chicago in game 6.

But Garvey didn't stop there ... the Dodgers legend says his former squad will ultimately bring home the World Series hardware -- and he even predicts how many games it'll take to get the job done.

Bobby Valentine says he's sick and tired of all the people trying to guilt him into rooting for the Chicago Cubs ... telling TMZ Sports he's bleeding DODGER BLUE and he's damn proud of it.

The ex-MLB player and manager touched down at LAX on Wednesday to hit up the Dodger game with his very close friend, Tommy Lasorda.

Valentine says he's all about the Blue Crew -- ever since they drafted him with the #5 overall pick in the 1968 MLB Draft!

Former Major League MVP Andre Dawson ain't worried about the Chicago Cubs trailing 2-1 to the Dodgers in the NLCS ... telling TMZ Sports, "this is a team that knows how to respond."

Dawson -- an 8 time All Star during his 21 seasons in the majors -- says he's still confident the Cubbies can win it all this year.

"This team can still most definitely win the World Series this year," The Hawk says.

"They have outstanding starting pitching, their bullpen is top grade and they have great hitting. They can play with anyone offensively, and their bench depth is where it needs to be."

"When you’re down 2-1, you’re not worried. But you’re obviously concerned. Tonight is a must-win game for the Cubs."

Think the Dodgers were stoked to take a 2-1 lead in the NLCS Tuesday night??? HELL YEAH!!

Check out Yasiel Puig, Adrian Gonzalez and Justin Turner in the locker room after beating up on the Cubs last night ... they're pretty excited.

There will be NO EIGHTH CHILD for Johnny Damon ... 'cause the ex-MLB star says he just got snipped for the second time ... after his first vasectomy didn't quite hold up.

There's no MLB conspiracy against the Toronto Blue Jays -- and Jose Bautista's suggestion that the ALCS is rigged against his team is "silly" ... so says MLB on FOX's play-by-play guy Joe Buck.

Quick background ... Bautista said there are "circumstances" working against the Blue Jays -- and it doesn't take a brain surgeon to know he's saying the home plate umpires are favoring the Cleveland Indians.

So, how does Buck feel about the situation? Let's just say he doesn't agree ...

"Why would it would be rigged? Sounds more Trump-esque," Buck said.

"Silly. Totally silly."