MLB

Trevor Bauer and his attorney showed up to an L.A. courtroom Friday ... making it clear they're ready to fight the pitcher's assault accuser's allegations.

Bauer -- wearing a purple suit, pink shirt and tie -- showed up just prior to the morning proceedings. His accuser was also in court.

During the hearing -- which was scheduled in order to determine if a temporary restraining order against Bauer should turn into a permanent one -- Bauer's attorney said they want to call 3-4 witnesses to support his case.

Meanwhile, Bauer's accuser -- through her attorney -- said they would like to call around six witnesses to show why the restraining order should be granted.

The parties estimated a hearing on the matter would take around 2 days.

The hearing is expected to begin after a lunch break later Friday afternoon.

As we previously reported, Bauer's accuser got the temporary restraining order in late June ... after she said in court docs the MLB star was violent with her during two sexual encounters in April and May.

In the docs, the woman claimed Bauer choked her unconscious and punched her repeatedly ... leaving her with black eyes, bruises, scrapes and scratches.

The 30-year-old pitcher and his reps have denied the allegations ... claiming the incidents were part of 2 entirely consensual sexual encounters.

Police and the MLB are conducting investigations into the claims. Bauer -- who's been on administrative leave and away from the Dodgers' mound since the allegations -- has not been arrested nor has he been charged.

It's unknown if Bauer plans on testifying during the hearing.

Cleveland pulled out the big guns to unveil its MLB team's new name, drafting none other than Tom Hanks to roll out ... the Cleveland Guardians!!!

A slick new video announced the name change -- which takes effect next season -- with Hanks handling the voiceover, explaining the new name is intended to unite fans "as one family, one community."

The old name, of course, had been trashed for years for being divisive and offensive to Indigenous people.

The new name is linked to a couple of local celebs -- 2 statues on the city's Hope Memorial Bridge, which is right near the team's Progressive Field. Those were built as "guardians of traffic" to symbolize progress in transportation.

The MLB name is more about progress for the city and the team, but like anything else new ... haters gonna hate. Reaction to the Guardians name and logo -- a "G" with a baseball, in the same font as the old name -- is mixed. At best.

That's alright ... Cleveland's used to it.

Does a good fastball run in Pettitte blood? Derek Jeter is certainly hoping so ... 'cause the Marlins exec said he signed Andy Pettitte's son this week because he's banking on the kid's DNA!!

Jeets spoke about the Marlins' deal with Jared Pettitte out in NYC to Adam Glyn ... explaining, with a little bit of his tongue in his cheek, that he inked Andy's boy 'cause of his legendary pops' skillset.

"He's got good genes," Jeter said wryly when asked why he thought his longtime Yankees teammate's son deserved a chance in the Miami org.

Of course, the younger Pettitte is much more than just Andy's kid ... he's got a live arm -- even though he did record a 5.81 ERA in 13 games at Dallas Baptist University this year.

"I do model a lot of my game after [my dad]," Jared told YES Network earlier this month. "I really have to rely a lot on command and just kind of the movement on my pitches."

Jared did not get picked in the 2021 MLB draft ... but Jeter was still able to get him on board as an undrafted free agent this week nonetheless.

And, when asked if he was emotional about being reunited with another Pettitte after having so much success with Andy in New York ... Jeter said he's taking a wait-and-see approach for that.

"Not yet," Jeter said. "We got to get him down there [in the minor leagues] first!"

A shirtless MLB fan's face got demolished by several men in a wild brawl at the White Sox game Tuesday night ... and the insane fracas was all caught on video.

The melee went down at some point during the Sox's tilt with the Twins at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago ... when men let their fists fly in the stadium's left-field bleachers.

You can see in the footage ... the fight was violent -- with haymakers being thrown, and landed, repeatedly.

The man without a shirt took most of the damage ... eating flurries of punches from multiple people involved in the skirmish.

To the guy's credit, though, he had quite the chin ... 'cause he took everyone's best shot -- and still wanted more.

It seems at some point cooler heads prevailed ... 'cause when we reached out to cops over the incident, they told us no arrests were made.

As for the game, the Sox used a big 8th inning to railroad Minnesota, 9-5.

Sports fans are still demonstrating very bad behavior while attending games, but one Yankees fan really paid the price for his shenanigans ... by getting completely owned by a security guard after running on the field.

The chaos went down during the top of the 6th inning against the Phillies Tuesday night, when the fan made his way onto Yankee Stadium field and started racing across the outfield.

He made it to center field before a stadium security guard took him down with an impressive tackle ... then kept slamming him to the ground as he tried to escape.

The security guard's apparent wrestling skills were enough to contain the fan -- who NYPD has ID'd as 25-year-old Leonardo Lertora-Leiva -- until about half a dozen other security workers showed up to help escort the guy off the field ... to the delight of the crowd.

NYPD tells TMZ ... Lertora-Leiva was arrested for running onto the field of an active MLB sports event and disrupting it. He was booked for 3 misdemeanors, including criminal trespass.

As we reported, another Yankees fan was just banned for life from attending MLB games in the Bronx -- or anywhere else for that matter -- after he threw a ball onto the field Saturday night during a game against Boston, and hit Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo.

Dog lovers will appreciate this ... New York Mets catcher Tomas Nido just showed major love to his adorable pup -- by getting a tattoo of the canine on his leg!

TMZ Sports has learned the baseball player wanted to get some ink to celebrate his beloved pet last week ... so he hit up artist Keith Hernandez from Bang Bang Tattoo in New York City.

We're told the 27-year-old handed over a portrait of his Yorkie, Louie, that he got 8 years ago ... and Hernandez then went to work.

The artist took a few hours to do the piece ... and it all ended up coming out pretty incredible!!

Check out the details ... the drawing of Louie -- which will now sit on the inside of Nido's shin forever -- looks SUPER real, right down to the fluffy hair and little dog outfit.

We're told Nido got one more tat while he was in the shop ... getting the letter "E" inked behind his ear -- a shoutout to his 8-month-old daughter, Eleni.

In total, Nido ended up sitting in the chair for about 3 or 4 hours ... and we're told he's planning to head back to the shop in the near future to get more ink done.

Joe Burrow ain't the only one who thinks Skyline Chili is "trash" ... 'cause Mets announcer Gary Cohen UNLEASHED on the Cincinnati delicacy in an epic rant ... calling the dish straight-up "disgusting."

Of course, the chili chain is as polarizing as they come ... with Cincy folks swearing the stuff is good, and others wishing it ceased to exist.

The Bengals' superstar QB even shared his take before getting drafted in 2020 ... saying, "Cincinnati's gonna hate me, but I hate that stuff."

Cohen decided to pile on the hate while calling the Mets vs. Reds game at Great American Ball Park on Monday ... and it's absolutely hilarious.

"This is the local delicacy known as Skyline Chili," Cohen said.

"The 5-Way with the spaghetti and the beans and the cheese — first the disgusting chili gravy ... After the onions comes the cheese, and that’s what makes it the 5-Way."

"There’s the cheese — they put like 10 tons of shredded cheese on there ... And this is supposed to be food that you actually eat."

When his partner Ron Darling admitted he's never tried the grub, Cohen explained why it's a must.

"You need to try everything once. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Try it once, and then you’ll never eat it again," Cohen said.

Congrats are in order for MLB ace Shane Bieber -- the Cy Young winner got on one knee and popped the question to his longtime GF over the weekend ... and she said "YES!!!"

The 26-year-old Cleveland superstar and Kara Maxine Kavajecz made their engagement public on Monday ... sharing pics of the couple's big moment in San Francisco.

The setup looked truly special ... with Bieber setting up a romantic area overlooking the city and decked out with pillows, candles, wine and more.

"Forever my girl," Bieber captioned his post with shots from iQphoto, which showed him on one knee and embracing his new fiancee.

"I always knew," Kara added.

Bieber and Kavajecz first met years ago at the University of California, Santa Barbara ... and have been inseparable ever since.

Of course, Biebs is one of the best in the sport -- he's 41-18 in his career with a 3.31 ERA.

The pitcher has been sidelined with an injury since mid-June with a shoulder strain ... but it's safe to say he's been making great use of his time off the diamond.

A New York Yankees fan who drilled Red Sox star Alex Verdugo in the back with a baseball this weekend is now banned from attending MLB games FOREVER.

Yanks and MLB officials confirmed the decision Sunday ... after the fan hurled a ball at Verdugo from his seat in left field during the Boston vs. NY game Saturday night.

The scene was wild ... Verdugo tossed a baseball into the crowd to give a souvenir to a young fan, but seconds later, a man in a Yankees shirt heaved it back at him while he wasn't looking.

The ball plunked the Sox outfielder ... and he was FURIOUS over it, pointing up at the fan and yelling with rage.

Ultimately, the fan was booted from the game ... and then hit with a perma-ban from ALL MLB ballparks by officials less than 24 hours later.

"While the Yankees appreciate the spirit and passion of our fans in our various rivalries -- especially with the Red Sox -- reckless, disorderly and dangerous behavior that puts the safety of players, field staff or fellow fans in jeopardy will not be tolerated," Yankees officials said in a statement.

"There is absolutely no place for it at Yankee Stadium. The safety of everyone at Yankee Stadium, including guests in the stands and players on the field, will always be the top priority for the Yankees organization every time we open our doors."

Both the Red Sox and Yankees managers, Alex Cora and Aaron Boone, denounced the fan's actions ... with Boone calling it all, "awful, embarrassing" and "unacceptable."

The fan was somehow not arrested, NJ.com reported over the weekend ... though it's unclear if criminal charges are being pursued.

Padres superstars Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado are being hailed for their heroics after gunshots forced Nationals Stadium into lockdown, and left some fans searching for a safe place to hide.

Video inside the game shows Tatis and Machado springing out of the 3rd base dugout and running to open a fence to the stands. As we reported, someone fired at least 7 shots Saturday night just outside the stadium, during the 6th inning.

The shots could be heard on the broadcast as the teams were walking to their dugouts, and fans were immediately told to shelter in place. Some fans at field level were exposed and scrambling for somewhere to take cover, and that's where the sluggers stepped in to help.

Both players ran from the cover of their dugout, and unlocked the gates from stands onto the field -- allowing terrified fans to flee. A stream of spectators sprinted, some carrying children, from the field into the protected dugout.

Cops say a total of 3 people were injured in the shooting ... including one woman who was attending the game. Although the shots were fired outside the stadium, cops say at least one bullet ricocheted and hit the spectator.

Peyton Manning looked absolutely nothing like one of the greatest athletes ever on Tuesday ... botching the ceremonial first pitch at the MLB All-Star Game -- and it was pretty terrible.

The former Broncos QB was tapped by baseball officials to kick off the big night at Coors Field in Denver ... and, boy, did he disappoint in the role.

Check out the clip ... Manning took the bump, reared back with an ugly wind-up, and then fired a fastball that didn't even reach home plate.

Seriously, it wasn't good.

In fact, the ball bounced so far from being a strike ... it had to be knocked down by Rockies pitcher German Marquez to save Peyton from all-time embarrassment.

You can tell from the footage, even Manning was disappointed with the toss ... he shook his head and threw up his hands before receiving the ball back from Marquez.

Of course, Manning's been retired from being a star athlete for more than 5 years now ... so maybe the 45-year-old deserves a pass here.

Fernando Tatis is shining bright like a diamond at the MLB's 2021 All-Star Week ... rockin' a massive 'El Nino' diamond chain --- worth $200k!!

The San Diego Padres shortstop's nickname is 'El Nino' ... and you may have spotted Tatis rockin' the ice during the Home Run Derby in Denver on Monday -- and the jewelry is amazing.

TMZ Sports has learned that the pendant -- featuring a little boy's face -- is filled with 25 carats of VVS emerald diamonds ... and the specially made Hermes chain holds 75 carats of VVS diamonds!

That's a total of 100 carats -- worth 200 racks!!

And, Tatis isn't the only All-Star reppin' his alias in some new bling ... Atlanta Braves' Ronald Acuna Jr. got a diamond 'El Abusador' pendant featuring his team's logo.

It's infused with 100 carats of VVS diamonds and is worth $175K!

Even though the right-fielder tore his ACL last weekend, he'll still be in Denver showin' love -- and maybe we'll catch him sportin' the new ice!

We're told that both chains -- made by Gabriel the Jeweler -- were designed and inspired by their close friend Nick Drbal.

Belli's having a baby!!!!

Cody Bellinger's model girlfriend, Chase Carter, just announced the couple is pregnant ... and is already 20 weeks along!!!

And, the Dodgers superstar clearly couldn't be more excited about it ... he commented on Carter's announcement on social media, "Ay ay ayyyyyyyy!!"

Belli and Carter have been dating for around a year ... and the two are very clearly in love, as they were inseparable during Bellinger's run to the World Series last October.

You'll recall, Carter was spotted at most of the MLB star's playoff games ... and even celebrated on the field with him after L.A. beat Tampa Bay to win it all.

No official due date has been announced yet for the baby Bellinger ... but doing the math should mean Cody -- who turned 26 on Tuesday -- will be a dad in November.

An MLB fan flipped over some railing and crash-landed onto his head trying to track down a Home Run Derby ball Monday ... but somehow, the dude escaped with no serious injuries.

The wild spill happened early in the MLB's long-ball event at Coor's Field in Denver ... when A's star Matt Olson cranked a dinger deep into the stadium's right field upper deck.

The man could be seen on the broadcast reaching over some railing to try to catch the ball ... but when he stretched just a little too far, he tumbled to the concrete below.

The scene was actually pretty terrifying ... the guy fell multiple feet and landed VERY awkwardly -- but he explained afterward he somehow avoided catastrophe in the tumble.

"It was coming right through here," the fan said, breaking down his thought process of chasing after the ball. "And I got up and tried to go over the railing to get it."

The fan said he suffered some scrapes on his elbow, but otherwise, came out of the spill just fine.

But, the dude said he didn't even get to come away with the baseball ... adding, "Never ended up getting it."

SAD!!!!!

By the way, the Derby was awesome this year ... Pete Alonso, Trey Mancini, Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani all put on amazing shows -- with Pete ultimately coming out on top for the second time in a row at the event.