TMZ Sports - Page 50

Tony La Russa says the Red Sox had a good visit to Donald Trump's White House last month ... telling TMZ Sports they made the trip to show support for their country.

"The flag, anthem, White House," La Russa says ... "Anything that represents our government, we support."

Of course, some of Boston's biggest names decided not to go to 1600 Penn Ave. for political reasons ... guys like Mookie Betts and David Price, as well as manager Alex Cora, skipped it.

But, La Russa -- who's now the Sox's vice president -- says the guys that did go enjoyed it, saying, "Anything that represents the United States is a good experience."

Kyler Murray congratulated the guys who had their names called in the MLB Draft by posting a pic of himself in an Oakland Athletics uniform .... and killed all the fun by clarifying he's not playing baseball.

The A's drafted Murray with the 9th overall pick in the 2018 draft ... but after winning the Heisman and going to the Arizona Cardinals with the top pick in the NFL Draft, he decided to put baseball on hold.

Murray posted the pic Monday night in his A's threads ... but made it clear he's not having second thoughts on choosing the NFL.

It's probably a smart decision financially, considering he inked a $35 million deal with the Cards ... but there were people like Joe Theismann who said he shoulda stayed on the diamond.

"Congrats to everyone who got drafted today! #JustAPic #History #NoNeedForTheSpeculation #AllLuv," Murray said.

"I just kept going, you know what I mean? Whatever, who cares, f**k it. Let's just throw down."

That was UFC fighter Anthony Smith's reaction to BREAKING HIS HAND in the 2nd-round of his UFC fight with Alexander Gustafsson on Saturday in Stockholm, Sweden.

Smith -- who won via rear-naked choke in the 4th -- tells TMZ Sports it was "super painful" (as you'd expect) ... but there was NO WAY Lionheart was quitting over a broken bone.

"I definitely felt the break and it hurt, but as the fight went on it got worse for sure," Smith tells us.

"Honestly, man, here's my mentality. I'm here, I'm hurt, let's just fight. I don't want any regrets. I don't want to wonder, ah, maybe I coulda pushed it or whatever. I just go do it."

"I told [my coach] Mark, he said, 'How are you feeling?' I said, 'my hands broken.' He said, 'alright we're gonna start throwing elbows.' And, I said, 'Nah, I'll just keep throwing it."'

How the hell did Smith continue?

"I know this sounds silly. But, I remember sitting down in between rounds. My hand was broken. We're going into the 4th. I just kept thinking, man, I just wanna get home and go camping."

Anthony's home, and he's having surgery to fix the break on Wednesday ... and then he says it'll need 4 months to heal.

So, Shaquille O'Neal was on his way to the gym in L.A. ... when all of a sudden he got caught up IN JONAS BROTHERS MADNESS!!!!

It's hilarious ... Shaq starts off asking our guys why hundreds of people are screaming and going crazy across the street -- and when he finds out it's all because of a Jonas Bros. event, he LOVES IT!!

But, we also talked hoops with Shaq ... specifically about Drake, who's been heavily criticized for taunting Golden State Warriors players and going crazy on the sidelines during the NBA Finals.

"Drake is a smart guy," Shaq says ... "He knows what he's doing. It's called marketing, people!!"

Shaq also tells us he thinks the criticism of Drake is a load of crap -- and compares Drake to Clippers' chairman Steve Ballmer, who's famously animated at Clippers games.

"[Drake] is just having fun, having a good time ... as a guy sitting there watching on TV, it's very entertaining."

Shaq also weighs in on the NBA Finals drama between the Warriors and the Toronto Raptors -- and explains why this series is GREAT!!

But again, the best part of the clip is Shaq's unbridled passion for Nick, Joe and Kevin -- even though he only knows one of their names!!!

George Foreman says Anthony Joshua can be champion again ... and he's offering to help the former undefeated fighter, telling TMZ Sports, "He needs someone like me."

Joshua lost via TKO at the hands of Andy Ruiz Jr. at MSG Saturday night ... in one of the most shocking boxing upsets of all-time.

The loss made a lot of people question Joshua's greatness ... and whether he's truly elite.

Not former 2x heavyweight champ George Foreman ... who actually believes the loss could HELP the UK superstar become an even better fighter.

"They're gonna have to go back to the gym. I think he'll be a greater fighter, Joshua now. If he goes back and gets his mind together. He's gonna even be better, but right now he better learn to box and he better get a good manager. I'll do it."

We asked Foreman if he was serious about the offer ... and his response?

"That's certain. He needs someone like me."

If Foreman was steering AJ's career, there's 1 bigtime move he'd make straight away -- NO REMATCH.

"If I'm Anthony Joshua's manager, I say, 'let sleeping dogs lie.' I don't want to fight that guy anymore, because you don't know what you did wrong. You go back and you're gonna do the same thing. Let it slide" ... Foreman tells us.

"Leave Ruiz alone. Let him alone."

So, does the loss take Joshua out of the conversation with Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury for best heavyweight in the world? Foreman's answer ... 6 emphatic "no's".

"No. No, no, no, no, no."

"One punch, uh huh. One punch is not gonna change that, or one knockdown is not gonna change that. He'll be back. He's in the mix. And, probably he'll be better."

Dodgers pitcher Julio Urias just caught a major break in his domestic violence case -- 'cause he won't be prosecuted if he takes care of some business.

The L.A. City Attorney's Office tells TMZ Sports ... Urias will NOT be charged with domestic violence, but only if he completes certain requirements first. We're told he needs to participate in an informal hearing before the City Attorney, which brings in both parties to talk things out.

Urias also must not commit any acts of violence against anyone, while also being required to complete a 52-week DV counseling program in person. If Urias doesn't keep his nose clean for a year, the City Attorney's Office reserves the right to prosecute him on this case.

As we reported ... Urias was arrested last month in L.A. after witnesses saw him getting into an argument with a woman, allegedly shoving her around. When cops arrived, the woman denied anything physical had taken place.

The NFL needs to take a page out of NBA's book when dealing with social issues ... so says "Power" actor Omari Hardwick, who tells TMZ Sports the Association's "leaps and bounds" above other leagues.

As we previously reported ... multiple teams have moved away from using the "owner" title over the past year ... given that the term can feel racially insensitive in a league of mostly black players.

We asked Ghost -- who played college football at Georgia before switching to acting -- what he thought of the idea ... and while he says it's a great move, he's not surprised one bit that NBA teams are taking action ... essentially saying being woke is the NBA's style.

"It's smart ... it only adds to the brand of the NBA," Hardwick says. "The NBA has curated for a while now -- with David Stern and Adam Silver -- a different style of environment."

Kawhi Leonard is suing Nike over his "Klaw" logo ... claiming he drew the symbol himself -- and saying the footwear giant has NO right to copyright it.

It's all in a new lawsuit filed by the Toronto Raptors superstar ... in which he says the famous logo of a "K," an "L" and his jersey number actually came from his own hand, pen and paper back in 2011.

"Leonard traced his notably large hand, and, inside the hand, drew stylized versions of his initials, "KL," and the number that he had worn for much of his career, "2," the lawsuit states.

The problem for Kawhi? He says he permitted Nike to use the logo after he signed a contract with the shoe giant in 2011 ... but they filed for a copyright of the logo "without Leonard's knowledge or consent."

Now, Leonard is suing ... saying they had no right to do that -- adding that when he initially gave permission to use the symbol, it was to "mutually benefit" both parties.

In his lawsuit, Leonard wants control of his logo back ... and is also claiming Nike "committed fraud on the Copyright Office" by registering his logo.

Andy Ruiz will be known for WAY MORE than just beating Anthony Joshua ... so says Oscar De La Hoya, who tells TMZ Sports AR is going to have a long run as champ!!!

"Imagine all the confidence he has now," De La Hoya says.

Ruiz shocked the world on Saturday night when he knocked down Joshua FOUR times and made the heavyweight champ quit in the 7th-round.

But, some have already pegged Ruiz as the next Buster Douglas -- as in a 1-fight wonder ... and not the next big thing in boxing.

Enter De La Hoya ... who told us out at his foundation's 19th annual Golf Classic on Monday that he sees things way differently, saying Ruiz will put together a nice run as the new champ from here.

"Ruiz is the man, now, man," De La Hoya says ... "He's the man."

Of course, the Golden Boy is biased -- he has Mexican bloodlines and tells us he was rooting like hell for Ruiz in the fight!!!

Former NFL WR Jabar Gaffney just cut a deal with prosecutors after his ex-teammate, Lito Sheppard, accused him of wrecking his car ... and he'll avoid jail time if he keeps his nose clean for the next few months.

For the record, Jabar still DENIES the allegations ... saying prosecutors had the wrong guy all along.

Here's the backstory -- Lito says last year, on June 17 ... his 2013 BMW suddenly stopped working in the middle of the road when he was on his way home from a restaurant in Jacksonville.

Sheppard says when he viewed surveillance footage of his car in the restaurant's parking lot ... he claims he saw Gaffney and Gaffney's GF pouring sugar into his gas tank and slashing his tires.

Cops arrested Jabar a few weeks later ... charging him with felony criminal mischief -- and he was facing up to 5 YEARS behind bars for the offense.

But, Gaffney -- who was teammates with Lito in Philadelphia in 2006 -- just cut a deal with prosecutors last month ... agreeing to enter into a pretrial intervention program -- this according to court records and a rep for the state attorney's office.

Gaffney's attorney, Seth Schwartz, tells TMZ Sports the ex-WR will have to pay around $840 in restitution to Sheppard as part of the deal ... but if he keeps his nose clean for the next 6 months -- the charge will be dropped.

As for Jabar, he adamantly denies he was the man seen on video destroying Lito's car ... saying the guy looks nothing like him.

In fact, Jabar's attorney says in surveillance photos prosecutors relied on to build their case ... there don't appear to be tattoos on the alleged suspect's left neck ... but Jabar is covered in ink.

So, why did Jabar take the deal? Schwartz tells us it would have cost Gaffney thousands of dollars to take the case to trial and fight the charge.

"The cost of trying the case was extreme," Schwartz says ... "But this was a not guilty all day."

JuJu Smith-Schuster went to prom and danced to his favorite song -- which is apparently a bunch of high schoolers chanting profanities towards his ex-teammate, Antonio Brown.

JuJu hit up Chartiers Valley High School's senior prom in PA over the weekend ... after student Anthony Molinaro slid into his DMs and said he didn't have a date.

Not only did JuJu show up, he went all-in -- getting matching turquoise velvet suits for the duo to wear for the big dance.

Now, JuJu is no stranger to dancing on and off the field ... but the dude let extra loose when his fellow prom goers started a "F*** AB" chant during the party.

FYI -- Smith-Schuster told us back in April that AB is "his guy" and there's no beef between the two ... but a LOT has happened since then. So, yeah ... shade.

Okay, we're gonna tell ya right off the bat "Jeopardy!" fans ... SPOILER ALERT!!!!

If you've been watching James Holzhauer's ridiculous, record-setting hot streak on "Jeopardy!" ... ya probably heard about the footage of Monday's episode that leaked on the Internet ... and now we can tell you for sure if it was real.

It was. That revelation came to light when Monday's episode started airing in certain cities across the country. Viewers witnessed James' reign get stripped away from him when he lost in Final Jeopardy to a woman named Emma ... who basically bet the farm to beat JH and the other contestant.

That's gotta sting for James, seeing how he got it right, but simply didn't have confidence enough to wager enough. He ended up with $24,799 to Emma's $46,801. He noted in an interview afterward that even if he doubled down, it wouldn't have been enough if Emma also answered correctly and wagered slightly more than him.

Unfortunately for him, she did exactly that. James doesn't seem to busted up about it ... on Monday, he referenced the Drake curse -- usually reserved for sports competitions.

Prior to Monday's loss, James was on a roll ... having won 32 games in a row and racking up almost as much as the 2004 "Jeopardy!" champ, Ken Jennings -- just over $2.5 million. James fell short of that by $58,484 ... and with that, Ken continues to hold the record for prize money.

That doesn't mean James doesn't hold a few records of his own on the show though. He won the most money in one game, and for 11 times during his streak ... he went an entire game without buzzing incorrectly. Not too shabby for second place all-time.

Question ... what is a bitter-sweet bummer? The floor is yours, James.

Don't worry, Lakers fans -- things may be a dumpster fire right now, but you still have Kobe Bryant ... 'cause Lance Stephenson tells TMZ Sports the Black Mamba is mentoring the team!!

There's been a lot of drama around the Lake Show lately ... from failed coaching searches, Magic Johnson quitting and bombshell reports of dysfunction in the front office.

Despite all the noise, Stephenson says he's confident the Lakers are legit contenders next season ... and it might have to do with the 5-time champ hangin' around.

We asked if Bryant has taken on a mentoring role with the team during retirement ... and Stephenson said "definitely, he always comes to practice."

There have been reports that Kobe is also trying to lure Kyrie Irving to sign with the Purple & Gold this offseason ... so even in retirement, the dude's putting in work.

Rest assured, Laker Nation ... you're still in good hands.

Buster Douglas -- the man who SHOCKED the world and beat Mike Tyson -- tells TMZ Sports ... Andy Ruiz's TKO of Anthony Joshua is one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.

Bigger than his 1990 upset of undefeated heavyweight champ "Iron" Mike?? Buster -- a 42-1 underdog when he KO'd Tyson in the 10th round -- wouldn't pick which was bigger ... but was clear, this fight was historic.

"I think it was a great fight, man. It was a big upset. An upset is an upset. Ruiz came to fight, Andy came to get it and he got it."

"Despite all the obstacles that were laying there in front of him that were against him, that he had no chance of winning, and he went out there and did the impossible."

Let that sink in ... Buster Douglas -- the guy responsible for arguably the most shocking upset in sports history -- says Ruiz did the impossible when he stopped Joshua in the 7th round.

Douglas says he actually sees a lot of similarities between him and Ruiz.

"The man believed in what he was doing. He believed in himself despite all the naysayers," Douglas tells us ... "It's a lot of similarities there. I'm just happy for him, and wish him all the best."

Leading up to the fight, Ruiz was a heavy underdog against the unbeaten Joshua ... and seemingly nobody believed he had a chance in hell to win the fight -- a feeling Douglas vividly remembers.

"It definitely takes me back. It's like I kinda relate to what they're going through, the emotion that they're feeling going into the fight. 'I'mma show them tonight!'"

Buster says he was so PUMPED when Ruiz won ... "I felt like running!"

"That's awesome, man. It was great to see that. Takes you right back to that moment that you had yourself."

Legendary golf coach Hank Haney is doubling down on offensive comments he made about the LPGA Tour ... writing Sunday after the U.S. Women's Open, "I knew a Lee would win."

Haney -- Tiger Woods' former swing coach -- was suspended from his radio gig at SiriusXM after he made insensitive comments about the number of Korean players competing in the LPGA.

"I couldn't name you like 6 players on the LPGA Tour," Haney said last Wednesday ... "Nah, maybe I could -- well, I'd go with Lee. If I didn't have to name a first name, I'd get a bunch of them right."

Haney added, "Honestly, Michelle Wie is hurt. I don't know that many. Where are they playing, by the way?"

The comments were immediately hit with backlash -- everyone from Michelle Wie to Tiger Woods himself blasted the guy -- and Haney was hit with an indefinite ban from his radio show as well.

But -- despite issuing MULTIPLE apologies in the ensuing days -- Haney appeared to DOUBLE DOWN on his comments on Twitter after Jeongeun Lee won the Open, writing in a now-deleted tweet, "I knew a Lee would win."

Haney added, "My prediction that a Korean woman would be atop the leaderboard at the Women’s U.S. Open was based on statistics and facts.”

A pro bicycle rider slapped the living hell out of a fan during a big race this weekend ... hitting the guy multiple times -- and then knocking the hat right off his head!!!

It all went down during the Giro d'Italia race in Italy on Saturday ... when a spectator who was running alongside riders tripped up and accidentally knocked into Miguel Ángel López's bike.

The Colombian cyclist was thrown from his ride ... and in response -- he went OFF on the fan!!!

Lopez slapped the guy in the head a few times ... and then knocked his cap straight off his dome.

Lopez apologized for the incident after the stage, but also blamed the fan, saying, "I'm sorry for what happened. I was full of pure adrenaline. But there needs to be more respect for the cyclists."