MLB

Ross Stripling's first season in San Francisco ain't off to the best start -- he revealed Monday he accidentally went through the team's picture day with food in his teeth!!!

The new Giants pitcher posed for the photos a couple days ago -- but when they came back this week ... he noticed something wasn't quite right with his pearly whites.

In between two of his top incisors -- there was something black wedged in ... and it didn't take him long to realize it was actually part of his lunch that day!!

The 33-year-old, though, was a good sport about it all ... tweeting a photo of the mishap and laughing it all off.

"Went the entire picture day with a piece of pepper in my teeth and no one told me," he said, adding a crying emoji.

No word yet if the Giants will retake the photos for the guy, who signed with the team in free agency in December, or if they'll simply work some photoshop magic.

1501 Certified Entertainment honcho Carl Crawford is admitting errors in dealing with Megan Thee Stallion, and wants all fences mended going forward -- but says they haven't spoken since 2019!!!

TMZ Hip Hop sat down with Carl and his newly installed 1501 President Kai "Verse" Tyler ... as their label enters a new chapter without the H-Town hottie.

Carl openly admits, as an ex-MLB star, his competitive drive is high but his knowledge of the music industry is somewhat limited ... and that's where Verse enters.

Verse is an industry vet who's had experience dealing with artists' publishing and publicity campaigns ... which led to a convo about 1501's current flagship artist, Erica Banks, and their plans for her career.

Carl also walked back his past vitriol toward Jay-Z and Roc Nation -- he'd previously blamed them for planting evil seeds in Megan's head -- and he came clean about his association with Tory Lanez.

Fans knew the Megan beef was real when Carl and Tory flicked it up last year inside a club, but Carl's admitting he and Tory don't know each other ... and the encounter was just trolling to get back at MTS. Ultimately, he regrets the stunt.

Verse says his focus is boosting the label's artistic reach, and he thinks Erica starting an OnlyFans page is just another aspect of dealing with today's social media generation.

That aside, he's certain the "Bust It" rapper has a banger with Kehlani, and even a cooking show coming up!

Terrifying scene out at Pittsburgh Pirates' spring training practice Tuesday ... a guest of the org. suffered a medical emergency on the field -- and needed immediate attention from trainers and doctors.

The incident happened while the man was helping shag fly balls in the outfield. According to the team, he suddenly collapsed, and officials rushed to his aid right away.

Reporters at the stadium described the scary scene ... with Post-Gazette Pirates beat writer Jason Mackey saying the individual needed CPR.

Pirates players, meanwhile, took a knee and looked on from the infield as the situation unfolded.

A spokesperson for the Pirates said the man eventually became "alert and responsive" -- before he was taken to the hospital for further evaluation.

Pirates practice ultimately resumed several minutes later.

Pittsburgh manager Derek Shelton spoke to the media afterward about what happened ... and he praised his team's medical staff for doing an "unbelievable job."

Ex-Mets pitching coach Phil Regan has filed a lawsuit against the team ... claiming the only reason he was booted from his gig in NY nearly four years ago was because he's old.

The 85-year-old baseball lifer spelled out his allegations in a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ Sports, alleging the age discrimination happened after he took over the interim pitching coach role in the middle of the 2019 season.

Regan, in the suit, says after he filled in for the fired Dave Eiland, the team saw immediate results. He claimed the staff's aces -- Jacob deGrom, Zack Wheeler and Noah Syndergaard -- all got better under his watch ... and he added that the team's ERA lowered significantly too.

But, he said he was not retained following the season ... claiming he was not brought back solely because he was 82 years old at the time.

In the suit, filed by high-profile employment attorney Matthew Blit, Regan said the team's GM at the time, Brodie Van Wagenen, even admitted to him that he wasn't coming back because he was "too old."

Regan also said in the lawsuit that Van Wagenen told him, "If we don't find the young pitching coach we are looking for, we will hire you back."

The Mets ended up hiring 33-year-old former MLB pitcher Jeremy Hefner to replace Regan in the offseason.

Regan -- who both played and coached in the MLB for six decades -- did not coach again following the '19 season. He's suing for unspecified damages.

"Phil is the first to crack jokes about his age," Blit said in a statement to TMZ Sports, "however there is nothing funny about a person being told that they are being passed over because their employer wants someone younger. That's discrimination, plain and simple."

Blit added, "Suing for discrimination in professional sports is extremely rare. In fact, Phil debated doing this for many years. But the hurt from the conversation that he had with Mr. Van Wagenen continues to haunt him to this day. He can hear the exact words playing in his head over and over. Phil knew this had to be done."

Tim McCarver -- a two-time World Series champ who went on to become one of MLB's most famous broadcasters -- has sadly died.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred confirmed the news on Thursday afternoon ... calling the baseball legend "an All-Star, a World Series Champion, a respected teammate, and one of the most influential voices our game has known."

"All of us at Major League Baseball are grateful for Tim's impact on sports broadcasting and his distinguished career in our National Pastime," the commish added. "I extend my deepest condolences to Tim's family, friends and the generations of fans who learned about our great game from him."

MLB.com reported the cause of death was heart failure. He was 81 years old.

Tim got his start in the MLB in 1959, when he signed with the St. Louis Cardinals as a teenager. The catcher went on to become a full-time player in 1963, before he earned his first All-Star selection in 1966.

In 1967, he finished second in MVP voting -- just behind Orlando Cepeda and just ahead of Roberto Clemente.

Tim won two World Series with the Cardinals -- but eventually left the org. for Philadelphia in 1970. He went on to play for the Expos and Red Sox, before finishing his career with the Phils.

He ended his playing days after the 1980 season ... finishing with a career .271 batting average, 97 home runs and 645 RBI.

Following his playing career, McCarver became one of baseball's most popular analysts for FOX, calling games alongside Joe Buck from 1996 to 2013. Prior to his work at FOX, TM also worked for NBC, ABC and CBS.

At CBS, he famously had water thrown on him by Deion Sanders over some previous comments he had made about the two-sport star.

In 2012, McCarver was eventually given the Hall of Fame’s Ford C. Frick Award. He had just retired from broadcasting last year.

Cole Tucker clearly spared no expense when he asked Vanessa Hudgens to marry him ... 'cause the actress was seen rockin' her new engagement ring this week -- and it's HUGE!!

Hudgens was spotted with the bling while out grabbing a bite to eat with her family in Los Angeles on Wednesday -- and it ain't hard to see her MLB player beau picked out some fine jewelry for his future bride.

Sporting an oversized sweatshirt, sweats and slippers ... the diamond on the "High School Musical" actress' left hand stood out like a sore thumb -- appearing to be nearly the size of her knuckle!!!

Hudgens has only had the ring for a few months now -- the couple only got engaged at the end of 2022 -- but check out her smile, she's clearly loving it and the engagement life.

Hudgens and Tucker initially began dating in 2020 -- and have become inseparable ever since ... with Hudgens attending plenty of his baseball games, and Tucker spending most of his offseasons with her.

Just recently, Hudgens glowed about Tucker ... saying in a sappy Instagram post, "I'll stop the world and melt with you."

She added two emojis ... "❤️🥰."

Now batting for the Atlanta Braves ... Travis Kelce?!?

A former MLB scout tells TMZ Sports that very well could have been a possibility this year and beyond -- if only Kelce had opted to play baseball instead of football after high school.

Reggie Sanders -- who scouted for the Braves in the Ohio area as Kelce was starring at Cleveland Heights H.S. in the early 2000s -- tells us that in his several trips to see the teenager who grew up to be a Kansas City Chiefs star ... he was blown away by what he saw.

Sanders remembered the future tight end as a good hitter with blazing speed ... and noted the young Kelce, who graduated H.S. in 2008, was towering, too.

"He seemed like a big leaguer on a field of high school players," said Sanders, who worked for the Braves from 2002 to 2007. "He looks almost the same size today as he was in high school."

Sanders said after watching Kelce play, he was "certain" the guy would have ended up in the big leagues if he had stuck with it ... telling us, "I remember writing his report and I comped him to Josh Hamilton."

Of course, Kelce never stayed with baseball -- he opted to follow in his big brother's footsteps and play football at Cincinnati. The rest, as you know, is history ... and he'll be playing for his second Super Bowl championship next week.

You can't mess with Alek Manoah's fastball on the field, and you apparently can't mess with it off of it either ... 'cause the Blue Jays ace absolutely eviscerated an MLB Network analyst this week after the guy body-shamed him on live TV.

Anthony Recker, a former MLB catcher who's been breaking down players and games for the league's network for the past year, made the comments on "MLB Tonight" on Wednesday ... seemingly taking a shot at Manoah's 6-foot-6, 285-pound frame.

"Show me you're willing to put a little more time in the gym," Recker said.

Manoah caught wind of the remarks a few hours later -- and he was clearly pissed over them.

"Hey @Anthony_Recker my job isn’t to please you," the 26-year-old said on his Twitter page. "You are an outsider you don’t know me or my work ethic. What I do in the gym has clearly worked check the numbers, sucks you can’t say the same for yourself."

Recker immediately tried to backpedal on the comments, telling Manoah his remarks were taken out of context.

Manoah, though, wasn't buying it ... adding, "Youre just like everyone else. Love to talk and then wanna say sorry when you get called out. If you wanna see how an All Star, 1st team All-MLB, and CY young finalist trains. Come meet me [at the gym]."

The right-handed flamethrower then shared a bunch of videos of him getting after it in the weight room.

Former Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman later entered into the conversation -- slamming Recker for his comments as well.

Vanessa Hudgens and her MLB player boyfriend, Cole Tucker, have just taken their relationship to a whole 'nother level ... TMZ Sports has learned they're engaged!!!

A source close to the two tells us ... Tucker popped the question sometime at the end of 2022.

It's unclear when exactly the question was popped ... but the couple was in Paris in November -- a lovely place for a potential engagement to go down.

The "High School Musical" star and the Colorado Rockies utility man have been dating since 2020 -- and have been nearly inseparable since they initially became romantic.

Vanessa's been spotted at a ton of his baseball games over the past couple years -- and in Tucker's offseason, he's spent nearly all of his free time with the actress.

Just a few days ago, Hudgens proclaimed her love for the baseball player in a mushy social media post, writing, "I’ll stop the world and melt with you ❤️🥰."

Tucker's written similar messages to Hudgens on his Instagram too.

It was quite a 2022 for Tucker ... he started the year as a Pittsburgh Pirate before moving on to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

He ultimately signed as a free agent with the Rockies this offseason -- meaning he and Vanessa are now going to be spending a whole lot of time together in Denver in 2023.

Derek Jeter says he was slumping so terribly back in the 2004 season -- he turned to none other than a golden thong to get him out of his rut.

Seriously.

The former Yankees captain made the surprising -- and hilarious -- revelation while playing a game called "True Confessions" with Jimmy Fallon and Rita Ora on Wednesday night's "The Tonight Show."

Jeter was forced to pick one of two topics, and his two cohosts had to guess if he was telling the truth or not.

"I once wore a thong, in public, in front of thousands of people," Jeter said.

Both Fallon and Ora thought it was a fib -- but the ex-NY shortstop said it was, in fact, a real tale.

Jeter explained ... back in 2002, he got a new teammate who swore up and down that wearing a golden thong would get him out of any slump.

Jeter initially thought it was a load of B.S. -- but at the start of the '04 season, he hit an offensive rut that he had never seen before.

"Every day I'd walk in, [my teammate] would point at the thong," Jeter said. "So, finally, I wore the thong."

First pitch of his first at-bat? Home run for Jeets.

"Yes, yes," Jeter said. "That is true."

The game was said to be the Yanks' April 29, 2004 contest against the Oakland A's. Records show he was in an 0-for-32 skid before cracking a dinger off Barry Zito at Yankee Stadium.

As for who the golden thong's true owner was? According to a 2015 interview on the Dan Le Batard Show, it was none other than Jason Giambi.

"The golden thong is legendary," JG said during the '15 discussion on ESPN Radio. "It's never not gotten a hit."

By the way, if you're wondering about the hygiene of it all -- don't worry, Jeter said there was no thong-to-skin contact.

"I had shorts on underneath," he said. "I put the thong over the shorts."

Sad news for Cleveland fans -- famous Guardians bleacher drummer John Adams passed away on Monday, the team announced. He was 71 years old.

Adams was a staple at Cleveland baseball games for nearly five decades ... attending his first game with drum in hand back in 1973.

Adams gained notoriety for his heartbeat-esque drumming during Guardians home matchups ... and was inducted into the team's Hall of Fame in 2022, with a bronze instrument and bleacher erected in Heritage Park in his honor.

"For nearly five decades the beat of John’s drum was the heartbeat of baseball here in Cleveland," Guardians Senior VP of Public Affairs Bob DiBiasio said on Monday. "We are all saddened by John’s passing."

"His dedication, commitment and passion for our franchise, at both Cleveland Stadium and Progressive Field, was unmatched. John will forever remain a member of our team."

The team says Adams attended more than 3,500 games over the course of his fandom ... including three All-Star Games, 11 playoff series and three World Series.

He missed games in recent years due to ongoing health issues.

Unfortunately, Adams never witnessed a Cleveland baseball championship ... but he loved his team nonetheless.

"I do it for the players," Adams previously said. "I love the organization. It’s my way of drumming up enthusiasm for the team."

Cleveland Guardians manager Terry Francona's beloved scooter, which he regularly rides to and from games, was apparently stolen over the weekend ... and now, cops are on the hunt for the alleged thief.

According to the Cleveland Police Department, a member of the Guardians staff said Francona's ride was taken outside of his apartment building sometime between 9:30 PM on Jan. 20 and 8 AM on Jan. 21.

Cops say the Cleveland staffer told them Francona had parked his 2018 Genuine MC Buddy 170i black scooter on Friday night and took the ignition key -- but noticed it was gone the following day ... leading authorities to believe the suspected thief had pushed or tampered with the motorbike to take it.

According to the police report, Francona claims he did not give anyone permission to use it -- and cops have now launched an investigation into the matter.

So far, no suspects have been named and no arrests have been made ... though cops noted in the police report there were several surveillance cameras on the street where his scooter was taken.

A woman claiming to be the mother of Mike Clevinger's 10-month-old daughter says the White Sox pitcher abused her -- strangling her on one occasion -- and now, the MLB is reportedly investigating the allegations.

The woman, Olivia Finestead, made the claims in a series of social media posts on Tuesday  ... alleging Clevinger terrorized her during their relationship.

In one of her posts, Finestead said the 32-year-old "threw an iPad at me pregnant." She also said "he strangled me." The woman also alleged Clevinger "threw chew spit on our baby."

According to The Athletic, Finestead has been in contact with the MLB over the allegations. The outlet also reported that the MLB has launched an investigation into the claims.

Clevinger spent much of his career with Cleveland, but for the last 2.5 seasons he's been with the San Diego Padres. The Chicago White Sox signed him in free agency this off-season.

The Athletic reports the Sox were made aware of Finestead's allegations only after the signing.

Clevinger, who owns a career 3.39 ERA in his six MLB seasons, has yet to publicly comment on the claims. His agent, Seth Levinson, told The Athletic on Tuesday, "We need to fairly and thoroughly protect our client and at the same time be respectful of the White Sox and MLB. We need time before responding."

The Yankees gave Aaron Judge 360 million reasons to return to New York, but it wasn't just about the money ... #99's adorable puppy is best friends with teammate and friend Anthony Rizzo's little pup, and the MVP couldn't split them up!

Judge -- who signed a 9-year, $360 million deal with the Yanks this offseason -- joined Jimmy Fallon on 'The Tonight Show' where he revealed Rizzo's dog Kevin was one of the reasons he ultimately came back.

Judge, whose pending free agency hung over the team as he met with different organizations who pitched him on leaving NYC -- told Fallon that Rizzo texted and called him daily, letting the slugger know he needs to resign!

But, that wasn't all Rizzo did ... the 4x-time Gold Glove first baseman pulled on Judge's heartstrings, constantly reminding him of the bond that his dog shares with Aaron's dog, Penny -- and it worked!!

AJ said Penny and Kevin are best friends, adding that Rizzo leaned into their relationship to convince him to return to the Yankees.

Following his MVP season, Judge was the hottest free agent in baseball, and former Yankees like Derek Jeter and Nick Swisher publicly said the team should do whatever it takes to bring him back.

Rizzo understood the assignment.

Chicago White Sox star Liam Hendriks -- arguably the best closer in the MLB -- has been diagnosed with cancer ... and is slated to begin treatment for the disease ASAP.

The right-handed pitcher revealed the news on his social media page Sunday -- saying docs recently discovered he had non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. He went on to say he'll begin medical care to try to eradicate it all on Monday.

The 33-year-old, though, vowed to beat it ... saying he's going to use "the same determination I have used when facing other obstacles in my life."

"I am confident that I will make a full recovery and be back on the mound as soon as possible," Hendriks said.

"I know with the support of my wife, my family, my teammates and the Chicago White Sox organization, along with the treatment and care from my doctors, I will get through this."

Several MLB stars commented on three-time All-Star's post ... including future Hall of Famer Miguel Cabrera, who left praying hands emojis.

Hendriks has been in the major leagues since 2011, but has blossomed into one of the game's best just recently. He had a breakout year with the Oakland A's in 2019 -- and has gone on to become one of the most reliable ninth-inning guys in baseball since.

The White Sox -- who signed Hendriks to a 3-year, $54 million contract in 2021 -- said Sunday night they plan to help the pitcher on his journey to recovery ... adding they're "optimistic he will pitch again for the White Sox as soon as viable."

Trevor Bauer will in all likelihood pitch during the 2023 MLB season, but it won't be for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The team just announced they've decided to designate the All-Star pitcher for assignment ... meaning his time in Los Angeles is done, and other organizations will have a chance to claim the 31-year-old pitcher.

But, that's unlikely to happen, as any org. that claims Bauer would be on the hook for his immense $22.5 million salary this season.

Bauer wasn't expected to be available for the start of this year ... that is until an independent arbitrator struck down his 324-game suspension, making him immediately eligible to play. All said, Trevor was suspended 194 games.

The decision meant the Dodgers had 14 days to add Bauer to their roster or move on from him.

The team nearly took every available minute available to them, but ultimately went with the expected path.

Bauer hasn't pitched in the MLB since June 2021 ... when a 27-year-old woman accused the MLB star of assault on two occasions in April and May of 2021.

Bauer, who always maintained his innocence, was never charged with a crime. A restraining order sought by his accuser was also denied by a court. Despite some of the wins in court, TB received one of the most severe penalties in baseball history.