MLB

It's been a month since Brian Cashman was ordered to step away from his car at gunpoint ... but the Yankees GM still has no hard feelings toward cops, praising the officers to TMZ Sports!!!

"The police were doing their job, and so it was all good," Cashman said. "I followed their commands and it all worked out."

Cashman was stopped in Darien, Conn. on Aug 9 after cops mistakenly thought he had stolen the Jeep he was driving ... and when they ordered him out of the car, the scene was tense.

Multiple officers had their guns drawn -- seemingly ready to shoot at any moment -- telling the 52-year-old to get away from the car.

Eventually, the scene calmed down when cops realized they had the wrong guy ... and Cashman was free to leave.

When we got Brian out in NYC on Wednesday ... he told us he hasn't changed his mind one bit about the officers' actions, saying they did a great job throughout the stop.

"Big shoutout to the police for what they do and keeping us all safe."

As for the case against Cashman, cops say he's been cleared of any wrongdoing ... with the lead officer on the scene even apologizing to the Yanks exec.

Johnny Damon is going to bat for fired Red Sox exec Dave Dombrowski ... telling TMZ Sports, "Dombrowski is a very good GM, very honest."

Boston made the shocking move just a few days ago to can their team's president of baseball operations -- just 10 months after he won the World Series.

Reporters out in Beantown are perplexed by the move ... and nobody seems to have a definitive answer as to why the dude was fired after having so much success since he was hired in 2015.

When we got Damon out in NYC on Wednesday ... he said of the surprising move, "[The Red Sox] must know something else that's going on."

But, Damon ain't concerned that this will be a death blow for Dombrowski ... he played for the guy in Detroit in 2010 -- and says Dave's a really good GM.

"If he wants another job, he'll find another job," Damon says ... "I hope for him the best."

As for what he thinks ultimately went wrong in Boston -- Damon seems to think bullpen issues cost Dave his job, saying, "He wasn't given a closer this year and their setup guy was a headache."

The MLB barred the Mets from wearing NYPD hats during their game Wednesday ... so Pete Alonso took matters into his own hands, and bought his whole team custom 9/11 cleats instead.

The rookie MLB superstar wanted his squad to do something special to remember the tragedy Wednesday ... and thought wearing unique NYPD and FDNY hats would be awesome.

But, after the MLB told him no (they've denied teams from wearing the caps during actual game play every year) ... Alonso skirted the rules by getting his squad amazing spikes.

"It's really important and it's just a little gift from me to my teammates," Alonso said. "I'm really happy that everyone wore the shoes. We could've gotten fined for it, but everyone was willing to back up the cause."

The cleats were awesome ... some of them featured American flags, some had World Trade Center pictures on them, and some said, "We Will NEVER Forget."

"No one really knows how deep those emotional scars can be," Alonso said of the spikes.

"Living here, just kind of interacting with everybody, I've tried to immerse myself in the New York living. I see traces of it every single day. Little bits and pieces of it ... I just want to show recognition to all the people who are heroes."

"#911 ... Neither here nor there, but just think: If you were born on that terrible day, tonight is your last night of being jailbait anywhere in this country"

Yep, those words were tweeted out from Lenny Dykstra's verified Twitter account the day before the 18th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

Yeah, that's bad ... yet somehow, it was made even worse because the tweet included a map of the U.S. showing the age of consent in each of the 50 states.

Bad.

But, the ex-MLB slugger INSISTS his fingers were not responsible for typing those words -- instead, blaming the whole thing on his "college-student intern."

Of course, there was blowback from some rightfully offended people ... so Dykstra went back to Twitter to try and explain his way out of this.

"The college-student intern responsible for the tweet about age of consent and 18 years since 9/11 is going to be taking a break to focus on schoolwork," Dykstra said.

"I had indeed mentioned to her how quickly time had flown by. She meant no harm and will learn from the experience."

Right ...

Nick Swisher is heartbroken Christian Yelich won't return to the diamond this season after hurting his knee ... and he tells TMZ Sports he thinks the Brewers might be done after the devastating injury.

"I don't know, man," Swisher says. "That's a big hurdle to get over at this point in time."

Yelich -- arguably the front-runner for the National League's MVP award -- fouled a ball off his right knee Tuesday night ... and after the game, the Brewers said he'd be done for the season with a broken kneecap.

When we got Swisher out in NYC on Wednesday ... he told us things are looking grim for the Brew Crew's playoff chances now with their superstar out of the lineup.

But, Nick ain't completely slamming the door on Milwaukee's chances to make the postseason ... telling us, "At the end of the day, man, it's September baseball."

"Anytime you're playing good baseball in September, you feel pretty good about that."

The Brewers are just ONE GAME out of the second Wild Card spot in the NL ... and they are getting stars Mike Moustakas and Keston Hiura back this week -- so maybe there is a chance!!!

Vin Scully is one of the most legendary broadcasters in sports history ... and you can own the piece of paper that literally got him hired by the Dodgers 70 years ago -- if your bank account's fat enough.

This is awesome ... back in December 1949, 22-year-old Vincent Scully typed a 2-page letter and sent it to Brooklyn Dodgers President Branch Rickey -- the man who years earlier signed Jackie Robinson.

In the letter -- now on the auction block at SCP Auctions -- Scully wrote, "I am applying to you for a job in connection with your broadcasting and television programs" ... offering his services for a 3-year period.

Scully's salary demand ... "wages at the rate of $100.00 per week" for the 1950 season.

Vin asked Rickey to sign the letter if the terms were acceptable ... and that would "constitute a contract" between the announcer and organization.

Branch signed the papers ... and Scully joined the booth in '50 with Red Barber and Connie Desmond.

The rest is history ... Scully eventually became the lead man in the Dodgers booth and called the team's games for 67 years.

And, it all started with a letter authored by a 22-year-old kid ... that's now up for auction and expected to sell for over $20k.

Happy bidding.

BIG PAPI'S BACK!!!!!!

David Ortiz is making his first appearance at Fenway Park since he was nearly killed in the Dominican Republic last June ... and Sox officials say he's going to throw out the first pitch!!!

Ortiz almost lost his life after a gunman fired a bullet into his lower back outside of a DR club on June 9 ... but after several surgeries -- Ortiz says he's been feeling MUCH better.

So much so, the guy decided to hit up the Red Sox game Monday night to give his former squad a little bit of a boost heading into a rivalry game with the Yankees -- and fans are fired up!!!

Unclear if Papi will take the mound for the first pitch or just throw the heat from the infield grass ... but either way, it'll be a welcome sight for EVERYBODY in the baseball world!!!

By the way, the Yankees have paid their own tribute to the Sox legend recently ... superstars Edwin Encarnacion and Gary Sanchez went to visit him before they started the series last week.

Props for the cool move!!!

Mickey Rourke says he's ready to end the beef with Lenny Dykstra once and for all -- but says if Lenny disrespects him again, he's not afraid to throw them hands!!

Remember, Lenny says he wants to have a celebrity MMA match with Mickey to settle their years-long beef over an alleged $30,000 debt ... one of the nastiest feuds in Hollywood.

They've been trashing the hell out of each other in the media for years -- but it seems like Rourke is sick of all the drama.

Rourke spelled it out for us at Mulberry Street Pizzeria in Bev Hills ... saying if Lenny has real interest in squashing the beef, he's down to have a friendly beer summit and make peace.

But, if he wants to brawl ... Lenny knows where to find him.

The Cleveland Indians REALLY want to get the world's most famous Biebers together -- and it could finally happen next week ... in Anaheim!!!

Justin Bieber and Indians pitcher Shane Bieber have bonded on social media due to their famous last name -- and they even wore baseball jerseys recently jokingly paying tribute to the other.

Shane wore a "Not Justin" jersey during MLB Players' Weekend, when the athletes get to wear whatever name they want on their jerseys. And, Justin responded by rockin' a "Not Shane Bieber" jersey during a recent motorcycle outing.

Now, we're told the team wants to take the bromance to the next level by trying to arrange a face-to-face next week when the Indians come to California for a 3-game series with the Angels.

Our sources tell us reps for the Indians have reached out to Justin's camp to invite him to one of the games so he can meet Shane ... and we're told JB is seriously considering the offer.

Justin is a big sports fan and loves hanging with athletes ... from Neymar to Floyd Mayweather and he's also obsessed with hockey.

Shane has previously told us interacting with Justin on social media was one of the great thrills of his life!!!

The baseball doesn't fall too far from the tree in the Freddie Freeman household ...

Here's 2-year-old Charlie Freeman CRUSHING Wiffle balls in the Atlanta Braves slugger's house ... and check out the kid's amazing swing!!!

Of course, Freddie is a lefty with some of the most pop in the entire MLB ... but his son is growing up a righty -- and seems he's definitely on track to follow in Dad's footsteps regardless.

The video -- which was posted by Freeman's wife, Chelsea, on Freddie's off day with the fam on Wednesday -- is impressive, but it ain't a one-time thing ... Chelsea throws up vids of Charlie crushing balls all the time!!!

Charlie is super adorable after blasting the taters ... you can see in the vid he goes over to the living room coffee table to make sure all his toys celebrate his homers with him! It's adorable.

The Freemans are a super tight-knit family ... Freddie flies home on his off days to hang with Chelsea and Charlie all the time ... with Chelsea writing back in 2017, "I'm pretty sure he is the best daddy in the world!!!"

Rudy Giuliani is going to bat for James Paxton, Masahiro Tanaka and the rest of the Yankees' starting pitchers ... telling TMZ Sports they're good enough to win the World Series!!

"They wouldn't have the best record in baseball if they didn't have enough pitching," the former NY mayor says.

Of course, tons of MLB pundits disagree ... especially because the Houston Astros added Zack Greinke to their already stacked rotation at the trade deadline while the Yanks stood pat.

But, Giuliani says he's got no worries about the Yanks' staff heading into the postseason, telling us their 90-49 record "indicates they do" have enough!

Currently, the Yankees rank No. 14 in the league with a 4.44 staff ERA ... while other World Series favorites like the Dodgers (3.45) and Astros (3.69) rank 1st and 4th, respectively.

MLB pitcher Carlos Carrasco is giving back in a HUGE way following his return from cancer ... pledging $200 for each strikeout he earns in the month of September to childhood cancer research.

Cookie -- who was diagnosed with Leukemia in the Spring -- returned to the Cleveland Indians on Sunday after stepping away from the team for a few months to focus on treatment.

32-year-old Carrasco is launching the "Punchout Cancer with Cookie" campaign in his return to the mound ... announcing he'll make a donation to St. Jude's every time he K's a batter this month.

"I have cancer, but cancer doesn't have me," Carrasco said in the announcement video ... adding the disease has not affected his spirits through his journey back to the team.

"I want to remind families that there is always hope."

But, the coolest part?? Carrasco's teammate, Shane Bieber, is joining in on the campaign, pledging $100 a strikeout.

"With @cookie_carrasco returning back to the mound, we are reminded of how far positivity, faith, and resiliency can take us," Bieber said.

"To think he’s back pitching after being diagnosed with Leukemia just a couple months ago is nothing short of inspiring."

On top of that, Carlos Santana is donating for every home run ... and Francisco Lindor is pitching in for every team win!!

Tyler Skaggs' reputation will ALWAYS be as a hero who dominated on the diamond ... so says ex-MLB stud Dallas Braden, who tells TMZ Sports Skaggs' autopsy results don't change anything.

"People are going to pass their judgments," Braden says ... "They're going to say what they're going to say -- we remember Tyler for what he's done on the field."

A medical examiner in Texas last week found Skaggs tragically died after choking on his own vomit due to a lethal mix of pain killers and alcohol in his system.

But, when we got Braden out in NYC just hours after the news broke ... he told us Skaggs will always be remembered for his pitching -- not by the way he died.

"What you do on the field, how you compete on the field, is what a lot fans are going to remember you by," Dallas says. "Off the field, you're a completely different human being."

Skaggs played 7 years in the MLB before his death in July ... starting 96 career games with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Angels.

The 27-year-old won 28 career games and posted an ERA of 4.41.

Skaggs' family announced last Friday they are working tirelessly to find out who might have given the former pitcher the drugs, saying, "We were shocked to learn that it may involve an employee of the Los Angeles Angels."

Sorry, Chipper Jones ... Tom Glavine says Ronald Acuna Jr., Freddie Freeman and this year's version of the Braves' offense is BETTER than the 1995 Atlanta team that won it all!!

"They're good," Glavine says ... "They're pretty good."

Of course, the bats on the '95 squad were awesome ... Chipper, Fred McGriff, Javy Lopez and Ryan Klesko helped power the team to its third-ever World Series championship.

But, when we got Glavine -- who was a star pitcher on that roster -- out in NYC this week ... he told us he believes this year's team has more pop!

As for this year's Braves pitching staff ... Glavine wasn't about to go crazy with the praise -- he says him, Greg Maddux, John Smoltz and the rest of the 'pen definitely had the edge there.

"We had a good rotation," the Hall of Famer says.

Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez were riding in a SUV when it allegedly bowled over a man in an L.A. alleyway ... at least according to a lawsuit he's filed against the superstar couple.

In the docs obtained by TMZ ... Liyanage Perera claims he was walking behind an eatery off Melrose Ave last October when he was hit by the Cadillac SUV in which A-Rod and J Lo were passengers.

He doesn't name the restaurant in the suit, but we believe it was Craig's, because we have this video of their SUV striking a paparazzo.

In the suit, Liyanage claims he was seriously injured and he's going after the singer and baseball player to cover medical expenses, plus damages. The suit makes no mention of Liyanage's profession.

Liyanage admits A-Rod and J Lo were not behind the wheel, but in the suit he claims they failed to instruct their security team to be careful as they pulled away from the restaurant. He also points out they didn't stop to check on him ... or as he puts it ... "they quickly fled the scene."

As we reported at the time, Liyanage had a report with the Sheriff's Dept., but no criminal charges were ever filed. Law enforcement sources told us pedestrians are not allowed to block a vehicle by standing in front of it, and drivers are permitted to creep forward.

MLB star Tyler Skaggs died in a Texas hotel room from a deadly mix of booze, fentanyl and oxycodone ... according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner.

In the toxicology report released Friday, the ME's report lists the cause of death for the Angels pitcher as a mix of "alcohol, fentanyl and oxycodone intoxication with terminal aspiration of gastric contents." In other words, Skaggs choked on his own vomit while under the influence.

The report says his death has been ruled an accident.

It's interesting, the autopsy says, when Skaggs was found dead in his hotel room, he was "clothed in black denim jeans, a black belt with white metal decorations and decorated white buckle, red boxer shorts, black socks and dark brown western boots." The description sounds a lot like what Skaggs was wearing on the team plane, when the Angels dressed in western gear as they flew from California to Texas on June 30.

As we reported ... Tyler was found dead in his team hotel room July 1, when the Angels were in Texas to play the Rangers.

Tyler's family issued a statement Friday, inferring an Angels employee might have been involved in the tragic incident.

The Skaggs family says ... “We are heartbroken to learn that the passing of our beloved Tyler was the result of a combination of dangerous drugs and alcohol. That is completely out of character for someone who worked so hard to become a Major League baseball player and had a very promising future in the game he loved so much."

The statement continues ... “We are grateful for the work of the detectives in the Southlake Police Department and their ongoing investigation into the circumstances surrounding Tyler’s death. We were shocked to learn that it may involve an employee of the Los Angeles Angels. We will not rest until we learn the truth about how Tyler came into possession of these narcotics, including who supplied them. To that end, we have hired attorney Rusty Hardin to assist us.”

Tyler's death sent shockwaves through MLB ... and the Angels tossed a combined no-hitter in their first home game after his passing.

His wife, Carli, gave a heartfelt tribute to the late pitcher during his private funeral.

Tyler was 27.