Tying The Knot

Justin Verlander put a ring on it ... a MASSIVE ring ... and Kate Upton was all about showing it off at the Met Gala in NYC.

Upton hit the red carpet at the event Monday night sporting the boulder on her finger ... and essentially stole the show from all the other huge stars at the event.

Don't worry, Justin can afford it ... he signed a $180 MILLION contract in 2013.

FYI, Upton started dating the Detroit Tigers pitcher roughly 3 years ago ... and they've been inseparable ever since. Upton has said it helps that she's a big baseball fan.

Mazel!

You can't spell dominate with 3 important letters -- I DO -- and it's no coincidence according to NFL legend Shaun Alexander ... who says his stats EXPLODED right after he got married.

The Seattle Seahawks great was out in Chi-Town for the Draft -- when we asked if marriage actually has an impact on NFL performance (you know, with Russell Wilson about to tie the knot).

The good news for Seattle ... Alexander says holy matrimony turned him into a virtual SUPER SAIYAN -- 'cause right after he got married in 2002, he became one of the BEST players in pro football.

Numbers don't lie.

Nick Young is a betting man who dished out some odds on whether he'll get Iggy Azalea to the altar ... after everything they've been through lately.

Expectant "Little Women: LA" star Briana Renee is in the danger zone after going into labor only 6 months into her pregnancy ... TMZ has learned.

Briana's husband, Matt Ericson, rushed her to a hospital Monday night in Murrieta, CA after she experienced severe pains that had her worried about the baby. It turns out those pains were contractions, and now doctors are closely monitoring Briana.

We're told there's serious concern because premature births are typically far more risky for little people. Doctors have Briana on round-the-clock bed rest, and meds to slow the contractions because it's just too soon.

The show is currently shooting, but we're told production is on hold ... since cameras are banned at the hospital.

Black Veil Brides singer Andy Biersack and Juliet Simms secretly tied the knot ... for the second time.

Talk about a long con -- sources tell us the singers actually got married years ago. We pulled a copy of their marriage license, and sure enough ... it says they did the deed in 2012.

TMZ broke the story ... the couple wed (again) in an undercover ceremony last weekend -- which most people thought was their first go 'round.

We're told their close friends and families were in the know. Last weekend's ceremony was purely to go public for fans.

Ex-NFL star Kerry Rhodes is officially showing off ... showing off his super hot fiancee -- "Hall Pass" actress Nicky Whelan -- and her impressive engagement ring on a night out in NYC.

Kylie Jenner and Blac Chyna's war came to an end when big sis Kim Kardashian stepped in to play peacemaker.

Sources close to Blac Chyna tell TMZ she got a call from Kim several weeks ago to hash out the drama over her and Rob Kardashian's engagement. Chyna obliged and went to Kim's pad for the sit-down.

We're told they both agreed there was no reason for family beef over Rob and Chyna getting hitched -- since the more important point was Rob being happy, and getting out of the house again.

The peace summit also covered Tyga -- y'know, the fact he's dating Kylie and is also Chyna's baby daddy. We're told Kim made it clear the time was right for the ladies to chat.

A few days later Kylie and Chyna talked on the phone, which led to Thursday's face-swapping Snapchat session -- and an agreement to squash all beef.

Rob Kardashian is now FULLY out of his shell ... he just talked to us about everything under the sun -- his wedding, his weight loss, and his biggest vice with Blac Chyna.

BlacRob just touched down at LAX -- returning from weekend appearances in NYC and Boston -- and he was a regular chatty Cathy. He addressed the story TMZ broke about producers making big money offers for them to televise their wedding.

Sounds like they're not impressed with any of the deals. Yet.

Rob also says he's dropped 40-50 lbs. so far, but he's not even counting anymore because he's too busy being happy. Just watch -- honestly, it's been years, if ever, since we've seen Rob this talkative.

He even broke some news to us about his driver license -- and let's just say Uber's gonna love him!

Seattle Seahawks safety Earl Thomas got married like a king this weekend -- with an actual CROWN on his head ... and that wasn't even the best part!

Andy Biersack -- lead singer of rock band Black Veil Brides -- and Juliet Simms will tie the knot Saturday in a secret wedding ceremony. Oops.

The couple got engaged on the downlow a few months back and will seal the deal this afternoon in front of a select group of friends, family and bandmates.

Simms -- runner-up on season 2 of "The Voice" -- has been dropping Instagram hints for months.

We're told the couple dropped off their pooch at The Wagmor Luxury Pet Hotel Thursday on their way out of LA. They're keeping the location super secret.

The Lyon family is gonna need another seat at the table ... because "Empire" co-stars Trai Byers and Grace Gealey tied the knot in a very real wedding.

The private ceremony and reception went down Thursday at a mansion on Grand Cayman Island ... the guest list was limited to close friends and relatives ... none of their "Empire" co-stars attended.

Guests dined in style -- steak and lobster -- and danced to hip-hop, disco and, of course, reggae.

#Congratulations

Rob Kardashian is pooh-poohing stories that his family is upset he's getting hitched to Blac Chyna ... he says it's the opposite.

Rob and Chyna had just left a Century City building after a "business meeting" and beelined it for a gas station convenience store to get some snacks, when the photog asked about the deafening lack of response by the Kardashian klan.

From Russia with love -- Lindsay Lohan is engaged to be married to her 22-year-old boyfriend.

We're told Russian heir Egor Tarabasov popped the question over the weekend, and LiLo said ... Da.

As we've told you ... 29-year-old Lindsay and Egor started dating about 5 months ago, and got serious pretty quickly. Egor spent the holidays in NY with the Lohan fam, who gave him the stamp of approval.

Egor, whose father is a multi-millionaire businessman, met Linds through mutual friends at a party.

Rob Kardashian and Blac Chyna are in position to follow in Kim's footsteps and cash in with a TV wedding special worth millions, but Rob's gonna have to go against the family to get paid.

Several big-time TV producers tell us pitchmen are putting together offers for Rob and Chyna. We're told the most lucrative path would be an episodic docusoap leading up to the big day. They're looking at $150k-$200k each per episode, plus another $500k each for the finale.

In addition, we're told wedding vendors hawking flowers, cakes, dresses and all that crap would also fork over big dough for integration deals, but Rob's got a big mama problem.

Kris Jenner has the family, including Rob, under a blanket deal that gives E! first crack at anything Kardashian. Kris has made it clear she's not a fan of "Blac Rob" ... so it's doubtful she'd be down with the project.

So, Rob and Chyna would be stepping out on their own -- familiar territory at this point.

Rob Kardashian and Blac Chyna will be married within a year in front of the entire Kardashian family, or that's at least plan A for the couple ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to the couple tell us BC and Rob don't want a long, drawn out engagement -- so they're already talking about ceremony ideas, and even a guest list. We're told they're certain they want Rob's family to be there.

That's an impressive olive branch since, as we told you ... Kris Jenner and Rob's sisters aren't sold the engagement's even real.

As for where they do it -- a quickie wedding makes ya think Las Vegas, and chapels are drooling at the possibility of corralling Rob and his famous fam. Reps at the Little Vegas Chapel are offering "Blac Rob" ... 2 Elvises, 2 showgirls and a pink Caddy convertible for pick up and drop off.

Meanwhile, the Little White Wedding Chapel -- where Britney Spears once married (briefly) -- is aiming high with a helicopter ceremony above the strip. They'll even throw in ground transport with a 14-seat Hummer for the whole family, if they RSVP.

Kanye West is clearly conflicted over Rob Kardashian's engagement to Blac Chyna, but he's stickin' by him because he's family.

'Ye touched down at LAX Friday sporting his famous grin ... and when asked if the Kardashian Klan supported ChyRo, it was all love ... at least for Rob.