TMZ Sports - Page 50

Here's Alex Bregman super concerned about the Astros' cheating scand -- AHH JUST KIDDING, BREGS CLEARLY COULDN'T CARE LESS ABOUT YOUR ACCUSATIONS!!!

The 'Stros superstar bolted from all the drama in Texas this week to get in a sick island vacay with his smokin' hot GF -- proving no matter what's going down in Houston, he's still winning!!!

The third baseman joined up with his GF, Reagan Howard, and his Astros teammate, Jake Marisnick (plus some other buds), to hit up St. Barts in the Caribbean ... and there's obviously zero worries about the possibility his 2017 World Series title could now be tainted.

Bregs has been cruisin' around the island with Howard -- soakin' in the beach and the pool and very obviously not covering all parts of his bod with sunscreen.

Looks like great times are being had by all!!!

Of course, back home in Houston ... things are going less swimmingly. The Astros have launched an investigation into claims they stole signs during the 2017 season.

Bregs has yet to comment on the matter ... but seems he's pretty comfortable letting these pics do all the talking for him.

And, hey, if the team DID cheat during 2017 ... it's not like Alex should care all that much -- 'CAUSE HAVE YOU SEEN HIS GIRLFRIEND?!?

"You wanted Zlatan, I gave you Zlatan."

Soccer superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic's stint with the L.A. Galaxy has come to an end ... and in true Zlatan fashion, the 38-year-old left with an epic message for his former organization and its fans!!

"I came, I saw, I conquered. Thank you @lagalaxy for making me feel alive again," Zlatan tweeted. "To the Galaxy fans - you wanted Zlatan, I gave you Zlatan. You are welcome."

"The story continues...Now go back to watch baseball"

Ibrahimovic finished with 52 goals, 17 assists and 1 crotch grab in his 2 seasons with the Galaxy.

Zlatan and the Galaxy mutually agreed to part ways earlier Wednesday ... and the Galaxy thanked him for essentially wrecking the MLS for 2 seasons.

"Since his arrival in 2018, Zlatan has positively influenced the sport of soccer in Los Angeles," team prez Chris Klein said in a statement.

"We are grateful for his work ethic and passion. We thank Zlatan for his professionalism and immeasurable impact on the Los Angeles community and the soccer community in North America as a whole."

Up next?? Probably a return to Europe.

Farewell, new friend ... and thanks for the soundbites.

NFL lineman Malik McDowell was just sentenced to JAIL for fighting a cop in Feb. -- but he's also been ordered to write multiple lengthy essays about the law ... for real.

For example, McDowell must submit a 1,000-word paper to the court on "Finding Meaning In Life Other Than Committing Crimes."

Also, another 750-word essay on "Principles of Declaration of Independence and How Your Behavior Undermines Them."

His other two assignments -- two more 750-word papers on "Importance of Respecting the Rule of Law" and "Importance of Respecting Property Rights."

AND, ALL ASSIGNMENTS MUST BE SUBMITTED IN 90 DAYS!

It stems from the Feb. 18 incident in Lathrup Village, Michigan when McDowell -- a 2017 2nd round pick of the Seattle Seahawks -- was pulled over for a routine traffic violation and ended up brawling with the officer in a gas station.

Video of the incident, obtained by TMZ Sports, showed cops ultimately using a taser to subdue the 6'6", 300-pound defensive lineman. He was charged with multiple felonies including assault and resisting arrest.

Just a few months later in April, McDowell was arrested again ... this time after he was accused of stealing a $75,000 2019 Ford F-150 Raptor. He was hit with a felony charge of receiving and concealing stolen property for that incident as well.

McDowell eventually pled guilty to all the charges after cutting a deal with prosecutors last month ... and at a hearing Wednesday, a judge sentenced him to jail.

Per a court official, McDowell was ordered to spend 153 days behind bars (with credit for 66 days already served) for the cop fighting case ... and an additional 244 days for the truck theft case.

Plus, the judge -- famous for handing out unusual sentences -- ordered McDowell to complete at least 4 essays. McDowell played his college ball at Michigan State -- hopefully he attended a few English classes!

There's more ... McDowell was also ordered to pay fines and fees as well as complete some testing and a substance abuse treatment program.

Of course, it's a solid deal for McDowell, who was facing MULTIPLE years behind bars for the crimes.

Woah Vicky is so serious about taking a real boxing match with arch-nemesis Danielle Bregoli -- she's already started training with a legit boxing superstar, Jermell Charlo.

19-year-old Vicky and 16-year-old Bregoli -- two social media superstars -- already scrapped at a recording studio back in October (the video was crazy BTW) but Bhad Bhabie has been calling for a rematch ... in a boxing ring.

"1 million and I'll fight that horse toothed hoe in the ring," Bregoli tweeted.

Vicky got the message -- and SHE'S DOWN! In fact, she already teamed up with the former WBC super welterweight champ to kickstart her training!!

Check out the training video ... Vicky's already hitting the pads and the heavy bag at Charlo's Lions Only gym alongside Friends On The Internet in Houston like she wants all the smoke!

FYI, 29-year-old Charlo is a MONSTER in the ring -- he's 32-1 and defended the WBC light middleweight title 3 times before a controversial loss to Tony Harrison (they're fighting again next month).

Sources close to Vicky tell us she's taking the training seriously and she's eyeing a June 2020 fight date ... and wants it to go down at AT&T Stadium!!

Skip Bayless is firing back at Ezekiel Elliott's mom over criticism of the Cowboys running back -- he feels bad she's upset over his comments, but says, "I cannot tell a lie!"

The FS1 megastar trashed Elliott and his No. 21 jersey after the RB had a rough game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday ... and Momma Zeke was NOT happy about it.

"I certainly hope I don’t ever see @RealSkipBayless post another pic wearing my son’s jersey," she wrote on social media.

But, Skip went on "Undisputed" on Wednesday to explain himself ... and said he's hurt that she's upset by his comments -- but he's standing by them regardless.

"Does it pain me that Momma Zeke is down? Yes, it does! Yes, it does!" Skip said. "But, I cannot tell a lie. I cannot defend her son when he doesn't deserve being defended!"

Skip says because of Elliott's fat contract ... he deserves criticism when he's not playing well, saying, "I have a job to do, and he has a $50 million guaranteed job to do on Sundays."

Skip added he's hoping he can eventually take Elliott's jersey out of his trash ... saying he wants to see a HUGE game out of the star this weekend against the Lions or next weekend against the Patriots.

As for Momma Zeke's reaction to the show? She seemed understanding of Skip's explanation ... writing on social media that she still hasn't dumped the photo of Skip and Zeke that "Undisputed" execs sent to her months ago.

"I haven’t thrown out the pic, even though MY mother asked me why it was still on my nightstand," she said.

Ohio State just caught a HUGE break in the Chase Young saga ... the superstar defensive end's suspension will be over after 2 games, the NCAA determined on Wednesday.

Long story short, this means Young will be back for the Buckeyes' biggest games of the season -- #9 Penn State and big-time rival Michigan.

Young was forced to sit out OSU's blowout 73-14 win over Maryland last weekend ... and will miss the team's matchup with Rutgers on Saturday, which should be an easy win.

Of course, the 20-year-old was punished after he admitted to receiving a loan from a family friend to fly his GF out to last season's Rose Bowl.

Although Young paid the loan back in full, the NCAA ultimately suspended the pass rusher 2 games -- 2 less than what he was reportedly facing.

Young could end up being the #1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft ... and currently leads the country with 13.5 sacks.

Here's LeBron James going out of his way to show love to NFL star Kyler Murray at the Lakers game on Tuesday ... it's a cool moment.

But, there's another issue with this clip ... did LeBron ignore L.A. Dodgers star Cody Bellinger, who was sitting right next to the QB?!

SAY IT AIN'T SO BRON!!!

Here's the deal ... King James went over to the expensive seats at Talking Stick Resort Arena with about 25 seconds left in the 4th quarter to dap up Murray, the #1 overall pick in the NFL Draft.

FYI, Murray and LeBron have been friends for a while -- in fact, Kyler has a deal with Bron's Uninterrupted media company ... and rocked the logo inside of his suit jacket on Draft night.

But, during the broadcast, we DIDN'T see LeBron show love to Cody ... who was sitting right next to Kyler!!!

Look, doesn't mean Bron didn't chop it up with Cody before or after the game (or maybe LBJ just didn't recognize Cody in a backward hat).

Bron definitely SHOULD know Bellinger ... he shouted out the MLB star for wearing his Lakers jersey for a Taco Tuesday-themed Halloween costume this year!

But hey, at least Cody's killin' it off the diamond ... he and his smokin' GF, Sabrina, seem to be happily in love.

If Stipe Miocic is SERIOUS about a boxing match with Tyson Fury, the Gypsy King says he'll gladly ACCEPT ... as long as they can book it AFTER his rematch with Deontay Wilder.

Of course, Stipe is the reigning UFC heavyweight champ -- but he's so confident in his striking ability, he recently said he'd be down to fight Fury in a boxing match.

So, Fury -- never one to back down -- responded to Miocic ... and he's ALL THE WAY DOWN!

"Stipe says he wants to box me, that would be a good fight for sure," Fury told MTK Global ... "After I get Wilder out of the way I’ll fight Stipe in a boxing match if he wants it."

"It would be a big crossover fight like Mayweather and McGregor."

Fury continued, "I’m open to that fight so he should come and see me. It would be the same outcome for any of them, they’ll all get smashed."

Miocic isn't the only UFC star who wants a piece of Fury -- Francis Ngannou wants a 2-fight deal so he can fight Tyson in boxing and then MMA.

Fury has said he's interested in an MMA fight too -- and even trained with UFC star Darren Till over the weekend.

"It was exciting training with Darren Till and we get on like a house on fire," Fury said ... "He put me through a hard training session and it was really good."

We recently spoke with Dana White about the possibility of a crossover fight with Fury -- and while White's a huge fan, he thinks Tyson would get DESTROYED in the Octagon.

L.A. Rams WR Robert Woods is going to bat for his QB Jared Goff -- telling TMZ Sports the team is still 100% behind Goff ... but acknowledges he's having a "rough year."

25-year-old Goff signed a $134 million contract extension in Sept. after leading the team to the Super Bowl in 2018 -- but the Rams are 5-4 in 2019 and Goff hasn't been playing great.

In fact, many critics are saying the Rams WAY overpaid the former #1 overall draft pick -- with some even suggesting the team needs to cut bait, ASAP.

But, now Woods ... who says Goff is still a monster with all the right skills -- tells us the QB just needs to get out of his funk.

"Jared's the same guy," Woods says ... "Still got that arm, still got that talent. It's just a rough year, it's a rough patch."

"He's just gotta put the ball in my hands and let's go," Woods joked ... "Just get it in your athletes' hands. Let us run! Let us do our work!"

Woods says he strongly believes the Rams are still solid playoff contenders and Goff is the QB that will lead 'em to the promised land.

As for Goff's stats -- he's thrown 11 TDs with 9 INTs this season. In 2018, Goff had 32 TDs and 12 INTs.

As for Robert's contract -- he's in the middle of a 5-year, $34 million contract which he signed in 2017 -- but believes he's got even BIGGER money coming his way down the line.

Steve-O likes jamming ... needles through his hand ... and he hopes you like jamming too.

Check out this insane video that definitely ain't for the faint of heart ... Steve-O takes a super long, but also thin, needle and sticks it all the way through his left hand!!!

The stunt looks extremely painful, but as Steve-O puts it ... the needle's actually working wonders for his paw. Watch the video, he explains why -- think acupuncture on steroids, but without actual 'roids.

BTW ... the dude showing Steve-O the ropes is magician Chris Oberle. He's been doing magic for 15 years, performing for some huge celebs like Jason Statham, Nate Diaz, Steve Aoki and Ryan Cabrera.

This is NOT a magic trick though ... it's all too real.

Of course, America's favorite jackass is no stranger to painful stunts ... the last time we saw him inflicting pain on his own body, Steve-O was taking a golf club to the face courtesy of Chuck Liddell.

The WORST thing the New York Giants could do for the struggling and banged-up Saquon Barkley is force him to sit the rest of the season ... so says the team's all-time leading rusher, Tiki Barber.

The G-Men are having a terrible season -- they're 2-8 and going nowhere fast -- and there's been talk that sitting the 2018 Offensive Rookie of the Year is the smart move for the future.

FYI, Barkley has had a rough go of it the last few weeks -- culminating in the worst game of his career against the then 1-win NY Jets -- when he rushed for 1 yard on 13 carries ... and according to coach Pat Shurmur, got banged up during the game.

So, when we saw Tiki in NYC -- the best running back in franchise history -- we asked him if Giants brass should force Barkley to hang up his cleats until next season.

His answer ... hell no.

"I don't think they should shut him down. I think that would be detrimental to his psyche, 'cause he wants to be out there playing," Barber tells us.

"I think limiting his carries might be smart going forward. Get Wayne Gallman some runs, and try to keep [Saquon] as healthy as possible."

We also talked to Barber about rookie QB Daniel Jones -- who's thrown a bunch of TDs (15) -- but has also fumbled the ball at an alarming rate (13 times).

Remember, Tiki had a fumbling issue before NYG head coach Tom Coughlin changed the way the RB carried the ball … turning him into a star.

Despite putting the ball on the ground way too often, Barber thinks Jones has a bright future in NYC.

"He's having some turnover issues. But, the timing is so different and the speed is so different in the NFL. That's what's causing him to hold on to the ball a little bit longer than he should," Tiki says.

Colin Kaepernick had some demands before agreeing to work with the NFL to conduct a private workout this weekend ... starting with making sure teams were sending serious decision-makers and not the peons.

We've spoken with multiple sources about the workout and were told the NFL contacted Kap's camp first after multiple teams reached out to the league to express interest in the QB.

We're told the league gave Colin a hard deadline on whether he was in or out -- and Colin responded with a few demands of his own.

First, Colin wanted to make sure the workout would be a "legitimate process" -- and not a P.R. stunt.

There is an expectation from Colin's side that the league will provide a list of team officials who will attend.

We're also told Colin pushed back on the workout date because he felt Saturday is a tough day for NFL teams since most teams are traveling and prepping for a game on Sunday.

But, the NFL wouldn't budge and Colin ultimately agreed to do the workout on Saturday. It's still unclear why the league was so dead set on Sat.

Colin tweeted about the workout on Tuesday -- making his expectations crystal clear ... he wants BOSSES on the premises.

"I’ve been in shape and ready for this for 3 years, can’t wait to see the head coaches and GMs on Saturday."

Ex-Tennessee football player Jeremy Banks has finally broken his silence after getting kicked off the team last month ... posting a picture with local police officers and apologizing for his "mistake."

Of course, 20-year-old Banks went on an anti-police rant captured on video while being arrested back in September -- saying, "Where I'm from, we shoot at cops."

He also made comments like "Y'all police are some p*****s, bro. Real s**t, I don't f**k with y'all."

Tennesse stuck with Banks after the video came out -- but cut him from the team days later when TMZ Sports learned the linebacker had made violent threats at a female student in August.

Banks had been radio silent up until last week when he posted an apology on Twitter.

"That night I had forgot to pray moments before, it was counted for though. FOR THE PEOPLE #ThanksGod," Banks tweeted, alongside a pic with what appears to be members of the Knoxville Police Department.

"I’m truly sorry for my mistake & I really appreciate everyone that’s rocking with me..."

Banks is still currently enrolled at UT ... but has not been a part of the team since his dismissal last month.

Besides some tremendously stupid decisions off-the-field, the 20-year-old is immensely talented ... and played both offense and defense for the Vols.

Rafael Nadal DESTROYED a reporter who asked the tennis star if his recent marriage caused him to play like trash Monday ... telling the journalist his question was straight-up "bulls**t."

Nadal married his childhood sweetheart, Xisca Perello, in Spain last month ... and in his first big competition at the ATP World Tour Finals since the nuptials, he got wrecked by Alexander Zverev in straight sets, 6-2 6-4.

So, a reporter asked him afterward if perhaps the reason for his poor play was because of his recent wedding vows ... and that's when Nadal started to tee off.

"Honestly, are you asking me this?" Nadal said. "Is [this] a serious question or it's a joke? Is it serious?"

The reporter pushed forward ... but Nadal kept the clap-backs coming.

"I'm surprised," Nadal said. "It's a big surprise for me you ask me this after I have been with the same girl for 15 years and having a very stable and normal life."

"It doesn't matter if you put a ring on your finger or not. In my personal way, I am a very normal guy."

Finally, Nadal ended the uncomfortable exchange by saying, "Okay. We move to Spanish because that's bulls**t. Thank you very much."

For as awkward as the encounter was ... Nadal kept his cool for the most part -- which is good news for the guy, considering he's got to play another match on Wednesday.

Colin Kaepernick will showcase his talent for NFL teams at a private workout in Atlanta on Saturday in hopes of getting another shot at playing in the league.

... and get this -- the workout was arranged by the NFL!

A memo was sent to every NFL team informing them about the workout session ... which will include throwing drills and an interview session with interested parties.

The biggest question ... will any team take Colin up on the offer and attend the workout?

There are plenty of teams in need of a QB -- starting and backups -- starting with the Cincinnati Bengals, who suck right now.

Kaepernick has been working out and training 5 days a week for years in the hopes of getting back to the NFL ... but said recently no teams have called him for a workout.

Ya gotta assume ... if a team does show up, they will ask him about his kneeling protest and if he plans to continue to take a knee during the national anthem if he does sign with a team.

Remember, Kap's former 49ers' teammate, Eric Reid -- who took a knee with Colin -- is currently playing with the Carolina Panthers and still kneels for the anthem.

Interestingly enough, Cam Newton just went to IR with a foot injury -- so there could be room for a QB over there ... we'll see if they attend the workout.

Colin hasn't played in the NFL since the 2016 season when he parted ways with the San Francisco 49ers.

Kaepernick sued the NFL claiming the league colluded to blackball him because of his protest -- but they later settled the case.

Just call him Raystradamus ... 'cause Ray Lewis tells TMZ Sports he was positive Lamar Jackson would be a beast in the NFL, saying he even predicted it to Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti back in 2018!!!

"I was telling him about this draft," Lewis says. "I was like, 'Listen. You don't know what you got in Lamar Jackson, but I watched that kid his ENTIRE career. He has an 'it' factor!'"

Ray -- who spoke with us on the set of Showtime's "Inside the NFL" -- tells us he's a HUGE college football fan ... and watched a ton of Lamar while the quarterback was tearing up defenses at Louisville.

Ray says it didn't take him long to determine the guy would be an NFL superstar, telling us, "There's a number of athletes that come around in generations that have an 'it' factor."

"He has an 'it' factor."

As for what "it" is, Lewis says it's simple -- "It's, 'I make everybody around me better.'"

Lewis says he and Jackson actually have a good personal relationship as well ... telling us he hosted Jackson at his home shortly after the Ravens drafted him 2018.

"We sat out back by my pool and I just gave him all this insight about what life is and what he can do in Baltimore and how he can change the culture."