MLB

Dusty Baker partied like he was in his 20s again to celebrate his Astros' division-clinching win Thursday night ... chugging champagne straight out of a cleat!!!

The 72-year-old manager drank the bubbly in Houston's locker room after scoring the big 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays ... and check out the video -- it's both gross AND awesome!!!

Just minutes after the 'Stros had locked up the AL West crown, Baker and the guys hit the showers ... and the players lost their minds when their manager pulled off the shoey.

Of course, Baker had good reason to celebrate ... it's the FIFTH different team he's led to a division title in his legendary managing career.

"That was the hardest but greatest year ever for me," Baker told the guys before drinking out of the shoe. "I love you guys, man!"

As for the rest of the 'Stros -- seems they got in the shoe booze game as well ... 'cause they, too, had cleats and alcohol out just before Baker took his sips!!

No worries about hangovers, either ... playoffs don't begin until next week.

One of the men accused of helping orchestrate the 2019 shooting of David Ortiz has been killed in the Dominican Republic, police announced earlier this week.

Authorities in the D.R. say Luis Alfredo Rivas-Clase -- who was one of at least 12 men who allegedly plotted to kill the Red Sox legend -- died after being gunned down in broad daylight over the weekend.

Cops say Rivas-Clase was shot outside of a shopping center ... adding that investigators found 27 bullet shells when they arrived at the scene.

According to D.R. media outlet Listin Diario, witnesses say Rivas-Clase was chased by his attackers in a car and eventually gunned down after he crashed and tried to flee.

It's unclear if the alleged murder had anything to do with the Ortiz case.

As we previously reported, cops in the D.R. say multiple men -- including Rivas-Clase -- attempted to kill Ortiz while he was sitting outside a bar in June 2019.

Rivas-Clase was the last of the suspects still at large -- cops say they had found, arrested, and thrown in jail all of the others, including the alleged shooter.

Devin Williams -- one of the best relief pitchers in the MLB -- punched a wall and broke his hand over the weekend ... and is now likely out for the rest of the season.

The 27-year-old explained the situation to reporters on Wednesday ... saying the injury happened shortly after the Milwaukee Brewers clinched the NL Central division Sunday night.

Williams said he went out to have a few drinks to celebrate the playoff berth ... but for some reason, became enraged on his way home and socked a wall.

Williams said he tried to pitch with the injury this week ... but just couldn't -- and was later diagnosed by team docs with a broken hand that will almost certainly require surgery.

"I'm pretty upset with myself," said Williams, who's expected to now miss all of the Brewers' playoff games. "There's no one to blame but me."

"I feel like I've let my team down, our coaching staff, our fans, everyone. I know how big of a role I play on this team and there's a lot of people counting on me. But I guess all I can do now is cheer my team on and learn from it and not make that same mistake in the future."

The blow is a significant one for Milwaukee -- Williams is a big reason the team had World Series aspirations this year. In 58 games, the right-hander posted a 2.50 ERA with a staggering 87 strikeouts.

Here's the funniest video you'll see all day ... Pedro Martinez was so upset over the umpiring in an MLB game Tuesday night, he straight-up cussed live on-air!!!

Martinez was breaking down the S.F. Giants' game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on MLB Network when he noticed pitcher Luke Weaver appeared to make an illegal move on the mound.

The Boston Red Sox legend argued the movement should've been called a balk -- and when his co-host explained Weaver's never been called for one before in his career ... Pedro snapped!!

"Well," Martinez said, "the umpires don't know s*** about what they're doing!!"

The outburst was so funny, fellow analyst Harold Reynolds could not stop laughing -- and eventually, Martinez had to say he was sorry for the foul language.

"I'm sorry," Pedro said with a big grin. "I apologize. What can I say?"

A woman and her child fell from near the top tier of a multi-story baseball park in San Diego -- a plunge that killed both of them ... and now cops are reportedly calling it suspect.

The horrific incident happened Saturday afternoon not too long before the Padres were set to play at their home field, Petco Park -- when a mother and her 2-year-old son went over an edge on the third level concourse somewhere ... with witnesses claiming the kid went first.

According to the Union-Tribune -- which spoke to eyewitnesses claiming to have first and second-hand accounts -- the mother and son were in a picnic area looking out onto the street side of the stadium, and somehow the boy toppled over a ledge ... and his mother went jumping after him, trying to grab on. The husband is also said to have been on-site.

Their fall amounted to about 6 stories in height, and they landed on Tony Gwynn Drive. Cops immediately showed up and launched an investigation -- so far, they don't know if it was accidental or intentional, but they are saying the deaths appeared to be suspicious.

Onlookers were horrified, and it was quite a scene -- but weirdly enough, the game's start time wasn't delayed ... and the Pads took the field promptly at 4:15 PM PT.

All hell broke loose at a recent Los Angeles Angels game ... when multiple fans grouped up to unleash a beating on a spectator -- and it was all caught on video.

No word on what started the chaos, but it appears a man in a white long-sleeved shirt was the center of it all ... with one fan throwing a huge batch of popcorn at the dude's face ... and another throwing a drink.

A woman -- who fans believe is the spectator's girlfriend -- is seen reaching over several rows of seats in hopes of bringing the guy out of the line of fire ... but that's when things get much worse.

It looks like at least 4 Angels fans rush over to continue the altercation ... unloading punch after punch on the guy from the level above.

What's even crazier ... the alleged girlfriend was still latched onto the male spectator as he got pummeled by the group of Angels fans.

That's when the video ends, but the violent altercation appeared all but over ... despite event security getting involved.

Fans have been getting into fights left and right in recent weeks -- from Browns tailgates to Cowboys and Chargers backers to Bears and Rams supporters getting in scuffles.

We've reached out to cops and the Angels to get more details on the incident and will update you once we hear back.

Former MLB superstar Darryl Strawberry says his teenage granddaughter went missing Wednesday in Nevada ... and the 8x All-Star is pleading for help finding her, and prayers to keep her safe.

59-year-old Strawberry took to social media to get the word out, writing ... "This is our granddaughter MyLisa who is missing right now! Please Please Pray for us as we desperately need your prayers! Thank You!"

MyLisa -- who was born in 2007 according to an online bio -- was last seen on September 22 around 7:15 AM. She was wearing all black at the time ... with a pair of white Jordans.

MyLisa's mom is Darryl's reality TV star daughter, Diamond Strawberry.

Diamond also went to Instagram to ask for help.

"PLEASE REPOST!! PLEASE SHARE!!!! Please help us bring MyLisa home!", she wrote, along with a description of MyLisa.

If you have any info on MyLisa's whereabouts, the Strawberry's are asking people to please call the Henderson Police Department at (702) 267-4555.

Blue Jays pitcher Ryan Borucki has just been banned 3 games ... after MLB officials say he purposely drilled Rays' outfielder Kevin Kiermaier in a game Wednesday night.

Borucki plunked the Tampa Bay star in the 8th inning of Toronto's tilt with the Rays ... and EVERYONE in the building knew it had gone down because of Kiermaier's card-stealing antics earlier in the week.

If you missed it, as Kiermaier was sliding into home plate during the two teams' game on Monday ... a game plan card fell out of Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk's wristband.

Kiermaier saw the piece of paper, picked it up, and reportedly refused to give it back to the Blue Jays -- which REALLY ticked off the org.

So much so, Borucki ended up firing a 93 MPH fastball into the guy's back on Wednesday as a clear retaliation shot ... and then he was promptly ejected.

The MLB obviously felt the tossing wasn't enough punishment though ... 'cause it tacked on an additional 3-game ban Thursday evening.

The MLB also hit Borucki's manager, Charlie Montoyo, with a one-game suspension and an undisclosed fine as well.

Incredible scene on the baseball diamond in Oakland Thursday ... Chris Bassitt returned to the mound just a few weeks after a comebacker broke his face -- and he dominated!!

The A's star pitcher -- who was seriously injured during a game against the White Sox on Aug. 17 -- took the hill for the first time since the freak play ... and threw 3 scoreless innings against the Mariners.

He also struck out four and only gave up one hit ... and the crowd in Oakland was THRILLED to see it all.

Of course, it was hard to fathom seeing this scene just a month ago ... 'cause Bassitt was hit so hard by a line drive, he needed a plate put into his face to stabilize the damage.

The 32-year-old, though, worked his ass off to come back to give Oakland just what it needed ... and, now, the A's currently lead 4-1 in the fourth inning.

Move over, 50 Cent, there's a new worst first pitch of all time ... courtesy of Conor McGregor's ceremonial toss at the Cubs game on Tuesday!!!

The sharply-dressed UFC superstar strutted to the mound for the first pitch before the Cubbies faced off against the Minnesota Twins at Wrigley Field ... and chucked his attempt about 20 feet to the right of home plate.

As Harry Doyle would say, it was "juuuuuust a bit outside."

On a positive note, McGregor's repaired leg looked great!

The fighter was a great sport about it all ... dapping up Cubs infielder Patrick Wisdom after the wild pitch.

Of course, this is Conor we're talking about ... so we're assuming (and hoping) he was just trying to give fans a fun time.

Then again, we've seen him throw a football before ... and he was mocked incessantly for that, too.

It's a safe bet Conor's pitch will now take honors for "worst first pitch ever" from Fiddy, who had a straight-up embarrassing toss that went wide left before a Mets game in 2014.

Conor's been living it up while rehabbing his leg ... from hanging with Justin Bieber to attending the VMAs (where he also tested out his arm with a different object) and hitting up just about every hotspot L.A. has to offer.

Never change, Conor ... but maybe try some practice throws next time???

Sad news ... Tommy Lasorda's widow, Jo, has died at 91 years old -- just a few months after the MLB legend's passing.

The Dodgers announced Jo -- who had been married to Tommy for 70 years -- died Monday night at her home in Fullerton, CA. They added she was "surrounded by her loved ones."

"We send our deepest condolences to the Lasorda family at this time," the Dodgers said.

Jo and Tommy met at a minor league baseball game and later got married in 1950. They had two children together.

They were often spotted at Dodgers games together ... even well after Tommy's retirement in 1996.

As we previously reported, Tommy -- one of the greatest baseball managers in the history of the game -- tragically died in January after suffering a heart attack. He was 93 years old.

Funeral services for Jo have yet to be announced.

A couple of protestors didn't get too far with their signs when they ran onto the field during the Dodgers game Wednesday -- 'cause stadium security ragdolled both of them to the ground in seconds.

The wild scene all went down in L.A. -- when the Dodgers were playing the Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium.

You can see in footage captured by a fan in the stands ... one man invaded the outfield while carrying a big sign.

Quickly, however, he was tackled to the grass -- and then jumped on by 5 other guards.

Meanwhile, while they were trying to reel in the first protestor, a second one jumped onto the field as well. Immediately, though, that fan was dropped to the ground too by a security guard.

Eventually, all of the protestors were taken off the field without further incident.

The signs they were holding reportedly read Bishop, La Loma and Palo Verde ... and represented three low income neighborhoods of Chavez Ravine that were removed in the 1950s in order to build Dodger Stadium.

Of course, this is far from the first time stadium officials have had to take down field invaders ... you'll recall, a ball girl stopped a fan in his tracks in epic fashion back in August.

MLB umpire Junior Valentine was rocked in the face by a wayward throw Monday night ... and the ball hit him so hard, he crumpled to the ground in pain and began bleeding from his cheek.

The bizarre scene all went down in the Cardinals' game against the Mets in New York ... right after Kevin Pillar hit a ground ball to St. Louis infielder Edmundo Sosa.

As the shortstop ranged to his left and spun to try to throw out Pillar ... the ball got away from his intended target -- and ended up smacking Valentine in the face.

You can see in the footage of the play ... Valentine was visibly shaken up -- and needed to be tended to by trainers.

Somehow, though, the dude wiped away the blood and stayed in the game.

Afterward, Valentine's crew chief, Jerry Meals, said in a statement Valentine was doing fine despite the scary scene.

"He's been checked out and has no broken bones," Meals said. "He was incredibly alert from the get-go. The blood seemed to stop fairly quickly, thankfully, and he was adamant that he was fine."

The Yankees and Mets almost fought each other in the middle of the diamond Sunday night ... and it was all 'cause a pitcher in the Pinstripes' dugout had been whistling.

For real.

The wild scene all went down at Citi Field ... just seconds after Giancarlo Stanton hit a huge home run in the 7th inning of the final game of the New York teams' weekend series.

As Stanton was rounding the bases, Francisco Lindor yelled at the Yanks superstar ... while making a whistling motion.

The smack talk was so aggressive, it caused the entire Yankees dugout to clear ... and a brawl almost ensued.

Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed ... and we learned a short time later, Lindor was furious with Stanton and the Yanks after he and the rest of the Mets believed the Yankees were whistling in order to tip their batters off to potential pitches.

"I can't accuse them of them whistling for the signs because I'm not 100 percent correct," Lindor said. "But, I know what I heard, and I felt like there was something out of the ordinary going on."

"And, yeah. I heard what I heard. I'm not accusing them. I'm not saying they're doing it 100 percent. Because I don't know 100 percent. But, it definitely felt that way. And, I took that personal."

Lindor and the Mets had believed the Yankees were using whistling not just during Sunday's tilt, but in their previous meeting on Saturday as well.

Yankees slugger Joey Gallo tried to offer an explanation for it all after the game, saying reliever Wandy Peralta was doing the dugout whistling, but ensured the sounds were "100 percent not" for pitch tipping.

"It's just him trying to be -- like I said, bring energy to the dugout," Gallo said, "especially early in the game."

Today marks the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks ... and the man who caught President Bush's ceremonial pitch before World Series game 3 in NYC says #43 sent him a letter this week, commemorating the powerful moment.

TMZ Sports talked to former New York Yankees catcher Todd Greene -- who was Jorge Posada's backup at the time -- about that unforgettable October night in the Bronx, only 49 days after 9/11, when GWB fired a strike from the mound, symbolizing America's resolve.

"I get the same feeling too when you think back to that moment and how electric the stadium was that night and just what it meant for our President Bush to walk out on the field and as a symbol of strength, as a symbol of healing, as a symbol of unity for our country which is really, really important," Greene, who played 11 seasons in the big leagues, tells us.

"To hear the USA chants and then have President Bush give the thumbs up on top of the mount -- it was, again like you said, it will get the hairs standing on your arms now."

Of course, baseball season was in full swing when the terrorist attacks happened ... and the sport played a critical role in bringing back a sense of normalcy to America.

The 2 most unforgettable moments were Mike Piazza's go-ahead home run against the Braves 10 days after 9/11 ... and of course, Bush's pitch.

It'll never be forgotten.

The Yankees ended up winning the game (down 2 games to none, they had to), behind a strong performance from Roger Clemens, 2-1.

Greene -- who wasn't even supposed to be the catcher who caught the pitch -- says he hasn't spoken to Bush over the years, but did receive a letter in the mail on Wednesday from the former president.

"He sent me a personalized letter that I just received yesterday. President Bush saying how much that moment meant for him and that he was honored, well not honored, I was honored to be on the field with him at the time and just in remembrance of that moment."

Trevor Bauer will not pitch again for the Dodgers this season -- not even if they make it to the World Series -- 'cause the MLB has just extended the star's paid leave through the end of the year.

The baseball org. and the MLBPA announced the move Friday ... agreeing to put Bauer on the shelf for the rest of 2021 as an investigation into sexual assault allegations against the pitcher continues.

As we previously reported, the 30-year-old Cy Young winner has been on administrative leave since late June ... following accusations that he got violent with a woman during two sexual encounters in the spring.

The alleged victim told cops Bauer punched her and choked her unconscious during their meetups ... leaving her with scrapes, scratches, bruises and other injuries.

The woman had obtained a temporary restraining order against Bauer following it all ... though a judge ruled last month a permanent one could not be put in place because Bauer did not pose a continual threat to the accuser.

Prosecutors, meanwhile, are still mulling whether or not Bauer should be hit with criminal charges ... after police turned over their investigation findings to the L.A. County D.A. in late August.

Another woman, meanwhile, has also come forward claiming she, too, was physically assaulted by the baseball player during sex.

Bauer, for his part, has denied any and all wrongdoing in both cases.

The MLB is still in the middle of its investigation into all of the claims.