MLB

Whitey Ford -- widely regarded as the greatest Yankees starting pitcher of all time -- has died at 91, the team confirms.

We're told Ford passed away Thursday at his home in NY.

The Yankees issued a statement saying the team is "incredibly saddened to learn of the passing of Hall of Famer Whitey Ford."

"Whitey spent his entire 16-year career as a Yankee. A 6x WS Champion and 10x All-Star, The Chairman of the Board was one of the best lefties to ever toe the rubber. He will be deeply missed."

Ford made his MLB debut back in 1950 -- but took time away from the game to serve in the U.S. Army during the Korean War from 1951 to 1952.

He returned to the Yankees in 1953 and played until 1967 -- racking up a 236-106 career record with an E.R.A. of 2.75 and 1,956 strikeouts. Unreal.

Ford -- who was born and raised in New York City -- was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974, along with his teammate Mickey Mantle.

The Yankees retired Ford's #16 jersey that same year.

Ford is survived by his wife Joan (they married back in 1951) and their two children Eddie and Sally Ann. They had a 3rd child, Tommy, who passed away in 1999.

Just last week, fellow MLB pitching legend Bob Gibson passed away at the age of 84. Gibson is also a Hall of Famer and considered one of the greatest pitchers of all time.

It's arguably the most untouchable record in American sports ... and now the jersey HOF'er Cal Ripken Jr. wore for his 2,632nd consecutive MLB game is about to hit the auction block.

Ripken Jr. -- a 19x All-Star and 2x A.L. MVP -- played in EVERY GAME from May 30, 1982 to September 19, 1998 ... spanning over 16 consecutive seasons.

Incredible ... never sick, never hurt, and a record almost everyone agrees will NEVER be broken.

Now, the black Baltimore Orioles home uniform -- rocked by Ripken Jr. during the last game of his amazing streak -- is on the block at Goldin Auctions ... and it can be yours.

FYI, Ripken Jr.'s Orioles beat Derek Jeter's New York Yankees at Camden Yards, 2-0.

But, that's not all ... Goldin has some other incredible items straight from Ripken Jr.'s personal collection.

Also on the block is the black Louisville Slugger bat Cal used on September 6th, 1995 (his 2,131 consecutive game) ... and the day he dethroned "The Iron Horse," Lou Gehrig, as baseballs Iron Man.

GA also has the jersey Cal wore during his Major League debut in 1981 ... and if that's not old enough for you, a game-worn Little League jersey.

The entire collection of items comes directly from Cal Ripken Jr. ... and Ken Goldin says he wouldn't be shocked if the jersey sells for over $500K -- which would make it by far the highest-priced modern jersey ever.

All in all, Goldin says the entire collection is likely worth OVER $5 million.

Manny Machado lost his freakin' mind on the diamond Wednesday night -- going on an F-bomb-laced tirade ... and it's all 'cause a Dodgers pitcher celebrated a great defensive play.

Here's the deal ... in the 7th inning of Game 2 of San Diego's playoff series with L.A. -- Brusdar Graterol took the mound to try to help close things out for the Dodgers.

The problem? He let a fastball out over the middle of the plate that Fernando Tatis Jr. CRUSHED -- and it looked like a no-doubter, 2-run bomb that would give the Pads a 5-4 lead.

But, centerfielder Cody Bellinger saved the day ... robbing the HR with ease -- and Graterol went NUTS!!!

Brusdar threw his glove with joy, then tossed his hat, then fist-pumped ... and Machado (who had bat flipped the hell out of a homer earlier in the game) hated ALL. OF. IT.

The former Dodger melted down on the diamond, telling Graterol "F*ck you!" repeatedly, before adding, "I'll be waiting for you!"

Graterol soaked in the trash talk ... blowing the guy a kiss -- while the rest of his Dodgers teammates told Machado to sit down.

The next inning, Graterol went on to get Machado to ground out ... and the Dodgers eventually sweated out a 6-5 win to take a commanding 2-0 series lead.

Great theater.

An ultra-rare, 110-year-old Honus Wagner baseball card is about to hit the auction block ... and it's expected to sell for OVER $1.2 MILLION!!

The 1909-11 T-206 Wagner is regarded by hardcore collectors as one of the most desirable cards in existence.

How desirable?? Well, Goldin Auctions -- the auction site selling the Wagner card -- previously sold a version of the T-206 for $3.12 MILLION in 2016!!

This Wagner card -- featuring a portrait of Honus on the front with a "Sweet Caporal" cigarette ad on the back -- isn't quite graded as high ... but with only around only 50 in existence, it's one of the most valuable pieces of cardboard in the world.

FYI, Honus -- an 8-time NL batting champion and Hall of Famer -- played from 1897 to 1917. Wagner was a career .329 hitter and he racked up 3,430 hits ... and is widely considered one of the greatest ballplayers ever.

Fun fact ... Wagner earned less than $140K over his 2-decade long career. Now, his baseball card will likely sell for 8 times what he made playing ball.

The card hits the GA block on October 12 ... good luck!!

California-born athlete Randy Johnson (also known as "The Big Unit") was a household name in the '90s as the lanky lefty pitcher with one heck of a fastball and an equally epic mustache and mullet combination.

Randy has beamed balls across the plate for a bunch of great baseball organizations including the Montreal Expos, Houston Astros and New York Yankees ... but he was best known for his contributions to the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Seattle Mariners.

Johnson was photographed on the mound for over two decades ... but has now taken on a career on the other side of the lens as a photographer.

"The kid’s a clown!"

CC Sabathia lost his mind on Carlos Correa in an epic rant this month ... telling the Houston Astros star to straight-up "shut the f*ck up!"

If you missed it, after Correa and the 'Stros beat the Minnesota Twins to move on into the 2nd-round of the MLB playoffs last week ... Carlos rubbed some salt in Houston haters' wounds.

"I know a lot of people are mad," Correa said after the series W. "I know a lot of people don’t want to see us here, but what are they going to say now?"

Sabathia was asked about those comments on the 'R2C2 podcast' ... and the former New York Yankees ace didn't hold back.

"They cheated and then they’re mad at us!" Sabathia said. "Like get the f*ck out of here!”

"It’s a f*cking joke," CC added. "And, then you finish under .500 this year. Like, shut the f*ck up!"

Of course, CC's had BIG BEEF with Correa and the Astros over their cheating scandal for a long time now ... he's clearly felt burned given his Yankees teams lost to the Astros in both the 2017 and 2019 playoffs.

In fact, despite being buds with Astros manager Dusty Baker ... CC made it crystal clear he's hoping the A's whoop Houston in their upcoming ALDS series.

Darryl Strawberry wants to personally help former NBA star Delonte West kick drugs ... 'cause the MLB legend knows firsthand how addiction can ruin lives.

The 58-year-old former NY Mets star famously battled alcohol and cocaine addiction -- but he's been sober for over a decade and now dedicates his life to helping others conquer drugs.

So, with 37-year-old West -- who was reportedly using drugs and living on the street -- entering rehab last week with the help of Mark Cuban, we called Strawberry to ask what advice he has for the hooper.

"Delonte West is just like anyone else that probably has some deep-rooted issues that have never been dealt with, ya know? Putting on a basketball uniform and being successful, that just covers up everything that happens to a person."

Strawberry continued ... "It reflects back to when he was probably young somewhere, some kinda trauma, abuse or something affected him and it can leave you crippled and paralyzed. So, no one signs up to be in that situation he is. I didn't sign up to be in that situation."

But, Darryl -- who now runs Strawberry Ministries with his wife, Tracy -- isn't just talking about West's struggles ... he actually wants to work with Delonte.

"I would love to help him."

Strawberry says he doesn't want to interfere with Delonte's current treatment program ... but after he completes rehab, Straw wants West to know he'll be around to help keep on the right back.

"My hopes and thoughts and prayers are with him. Here was a guy that was successful playing in the NBA, and here he is struggling. He's down and out."

"I just want him to know that people like me, that are in recovery, been for a long time, is praying for him and thinking about him," Darryl tells us.

"If there's anything I can ever do to encourage him and sit down and have a talk with him, I just hope he can reach out and do that."

Bob Gibson -- one of the greatest pitchers in MLB history -- has died after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

The St. Louis Cardinals legend passed away while in hospice care in Omaha, Nebraska ... according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Gibson had been in the cancer fight for more than a year.

During his 17 seasons in Major League Baseball, Gibson was THE MAN!!!

A 2-time World Series champ. 2-time World Series MVP. 2 Cy Young awards. NL MVP in 1968.

He made the All-Star team 9 times! He was a 9-time Gold Glove winner.

He logged 3,117 strikeouts! 251 wins!!

RIDICULOUS, RIGHT?!!

Of course, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981 -- first ballot.

The Cardinals retired his #45 back in 1975 and put him in the franchise Hall of Fame in 2014. There's also a statue of Gibson in front of Busch Stadium.

He was also a MONSTER on the basketball court!! In fact, he had a brief stint with the Harlem Globetrotters back in the day!

"Sweet" Lou Johnson -- a key member of the L.A. Dodgers 1965 World Series team -- has died, the team announced. He was 86.

The former outfielder famously smacked a home run off Jim Kaat in Game 7 of the '65 World Series, giving the Dodgers what ended up being an insurmountable lead over the Minnesota Twins.

FYI, Sandy Koufax was pitching for the Dodgers that day.

Johnson only played with the Dodgers from '65 to '67 -- he also played with the Cubs, Angels, Braves and Indians during his 17 seasons in the big leagues.

But, after his playing career, he was a staple at Dodger Stadium -- doing PR work for the team. Super nice guy.

"Lou Johnson was such a positive inspiration at Dodger Stadium with our employees and our fans as well as throughout the community in the appearances he made on behalf of the organization," Dodgers President & CEO Stan Kasten said in a statement.

"Dodger fans will always remember his important home run in Game 7 of the 1965 World Series, when he was clapping his hands running around the bases.”

According to the Dodgers, Johnson got the nickname "Sweet Lou" back in '65 because "of his infectious smile and because he was always clapping his hands."

In total, Sweet Lou racked up 48 HRs and 232 RBIs in 677 games -- with a .248 batting average.

He also famously had the only Dodgers hit -- and scored the only Dodgers run -- in Sandy Koufax’s perfect game on Sept. 9, 1965 against the Chicago Cubs.

No word on cause of death. He's survived by his wife, Sarah, and their 3 children.

What is ... baseball???

No, seriously -- what is baseball? That's the question all of the contestants on "Jeopardy!" were asking themselves Thursday when Alex Trebek revealed a category dedicated to Yankee Stadium.

Look, sometimes Jeopardy gets a crop of contestants who know a little something about sports ... but man, this group was STRUGGLING.

Props to Mason who correctly got "Babe Ruth" after an obvious $200 clue. But, the gang went 0-4 on the rest of the category.

No one knows anything about Aaron Judge? Or Mickey Mantle? Or Yogi Berra?!!?

And, you should see the panic on Mason's face when the $2,000 answer is revealed to be the Daily Double! PANIC!!!!

Even the official Jeopardy twitter account took a swipe at the contestants ...

"We didn't expect this category about the Bronx Bombers to bomb so hard. Oh well! @Yankees."

Still, nothing beats when Trebek clowned a bunch of contestants for butchering a football category back in 2018.

Atlanta superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. dumped a whole bottle of salt in Trevor Bauer's playoff exit wound Thursday ... trolling the hell out of the Reds pitcher -- and it was SAVAGE!!!

Here's the deal ... Bauer was flat-out dominant in Game 1 of the Braves-Reds wild-card round series -- and he showboated for most of the outing, even hitting Conor McGregor's famous billi strut on the mound.

But, once Bauer was pulled, Atlanta was able to lock up the win in extra innings. And, on Thursday, the Braves beat the Reds once again ... sending Bauer and his team packing.

Afterward, Acuna went after Trevor in an epic tweet ... writing, "Goooo homeeeee" with a crying emoji and a GIF of Marc Gasol hittin' the billi strut!

Yeah, SHEESH!!!!

The tweet hit so hard ... Bauer's agent, Rachel Luba, just had to comment on it -- writing, "Haha I can respect a good troll game...but to be fair, TB still owned you, regardless of outcome."

Bauer's shockingly yet to fire back ... but we're sure there will be some sort of Twitter/YouTube/Instagram post on it all coming soon.

Sorry, Yankees ... former MLB All-Star Royce Clayton says the Dodgers will win the World Series -- telling TMZ Sports, "This is the year."

Clayton -- who we got out checking the surf in Malibu on Thursday morning -- says it pains him to make the prediction as a longtime S.F. Giant ... but he says he just sees it coming.

"I live here, I got love for them," Clayton admitted. "And, you know, if my Giants aren't in there, then I have to say I'm rooting for the home team."

Clayton says there are a few reasons he's pushing L.A. over NY and others to win the 'ship ... #1 being the addition of Mookie Betts.

"That really puts their offense in another tier," Clayton says.

Clayton added he believes the Dodgers' starting pitching is great ... and says he thinks Kenley Jansen will have a big postseason as well.

As for the team's shortstop ... Clayton tells us he LOVES Corey Seager -- adding the dude should be in line for a HUGE payday this offseason.

Mariah Carey is opening up about her first sexual experience with Derek Jeter ... going as far as to detail his "honey-dipped skin."

Carey spoke out about their romance in her new book, "The Meaning of Mariah Carey", saying she met the MLB legend at a dinner party back in 1997 ... but she admits they didn't hit it off right away.

It wasn't until they shared their experiences about being biracial that Carey saw Jeter as a "Prince Charming" ... and they started to get serious feelings for each other.

The two began to secretly talk ... and shared "a warm, slow, intoxicating kiss" on Jeter's roof (which inspired her song, "The Roof") ... but they never took it further because "Neither of us had wanted to cheapen our romance by cheating on my marriage."

Once her divorce with Sony music exec. Tommy Mottola was complete, Carey says she wasted no time and flew to Tampa to do the deed with Jeter.

"Everything was so new and sweet, down to the smooth texture of his honey-dipped skin. It was how it was supposed to feel," Carey says, according to TooFab.

Carey called the experience "so sensual" ... and admitted he was only the second guy she had slept with.

As special as it was, Carey knew it wasn't going to last ... saying they were both huge stars and could not "live up to each other's fantasies," but they both fulfilled each other's needs at the time.

Thom Brennaman is officially OUT as Cincinnati Reds play-by-play man ... the 57-year-old formally resigned from his position weeks after he used a homophobic slur on air.

Remember, back on Aug. 19, Brennaman was broadcasting the Reds-Royals game ... when he was caught on a microphone referring to a place as "one of the f** capitals of the world."

Brennaman had been indefinitely suspended by the team over the comment ... but on Friday, Thom announced he was officially stepping away from the broadcasting position for good.

"My family and I have decided that I am going to step away from my role as the television voice of the Cincinnati Reds,” Brennaman told WCPO in Cincinnati.

"I would like to thank the Reds, Reds fans and the LGBTQ Community for the incredible support and grace they have shown my family and me."

It's obviously a big deal ... Brennaman had been working with the Reds since 2006 -- and was regarded as one of the best announcers in MLB prior to his suspension.

Brennaman has repeatedly apologized for his use of the slur ... and recently claimed he's now a "better person" after weeks of reflecting on the incident.

Brennaman -- who was also booted from his role as an NFL play-by-play announcer for Fox -- told WCPO he's hoping to one day return to a headset again.

"I have been in this profession that I love for 33 years," Thom said. "It is my hope and intention to return. And if I'm given that opportunity, I will be a better broadcaster and a much better person."

Oneil Cruz -- arguably the best minor league prospect in the Pittsburgh Pirates' org. -- was in an accident in the Dominican Republic on Monday that reportedly left 3 people dead.

The MLB team confirmed Cruz's involvement in the crash Tuesday ... calling the incident "tragic."

"We have been in contact with Oneil," the Pirates added, "and he is cooperating fully with the local authorities."

According to Diario Libre, one of the biggest news outlets in the DR, 21-year-old Cruz was riding in a jeep down a highway when it came up from behind and hit a motorcycle.

The outlet reports the bike -- which had 3 occupants on it -- did NOT have its lights on. The report added all three people on the motorcycle died from injuries suffered in the crash.

Cruz was not seriously injured in the wreck ... the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

The Pirates said they are still gathering info on the situation ... and will provide more on it all as it becomes available.

Cruz is a 6-foot-7, 210-pound infielder who is currently #3 on the team's top 30 prospect list. He had been playing this season at the team's alternate site in Altoona, Penn., before that camp broke last week.

Amazing news ... Baltimore Orioles star Trey Mancini just finished 6 months of chemotherapy treatments -- and his GF couldn't have been happier, saying, "This is the best day ever!!!!"

Mancini has been battling stage-3 colon cancer ever since docs discovered a tumor last spring ... and the road for the MLB slugger to get better has been tough as hell.

Mancini described getting chemo treatments amid the coronavirus pandemic as "crazy" ... and added he's been forced to receive his drugs through a mediport in his chest.

But Mancini's GF, Sara Perlman, said Monday the 28-year-old was finally done with his chemo treatments ... and she was THRILLED for Baltimore's outfielder!!

"TREY DID IT!!!!" Perlman said. "He completed chemotherapy!!! What a six months it has been. I’ve never been more proud & joyful."

She added, "Thank you for all the love and support. We are SOOOO grateful!!!!"

The Orioles, meanwhile, gave Mancini a sweet present for completing the treatments -- a signed team photo with personal messages from the guys.

Mancini was moved by the gift ... saying of the framed pic, "I'm speechless right now. This is one of the coolest things I've ever gotten."