TMZ Sports - Page 50

The MLB and MLBPA are teaming up to do what they can during the coronavirus pandemic ... donating a HUGE amount of money to put food on the table for thousands of people in need.

Of course, President Trump has declared a national emergency as a result of the spreading infection ... with many being told to stay home from work and unable to provide for their families.

MLB and the Players Association are looking to help those affected by the pandemic ... by shelling out $1 million total to Feeding America and Meals on Wheels.

Commish Rob Manfred released a statement on the decision, saying, "In these difficult times of navigating this pandemic, it is important that we come together as a society to help the most vulnerable members of our communities."

"As an institution, Baseball is extending our commitment to addressing childhood hunger and food availability issues during this crisis."

Feeding America plans to use the donation to help food banks in highly impacted areas ... while Meals on Wheels plans to extend its service to senior citizens in need.

The best receiver in the NFL was just traded ... for a 28-year-old running back!?!?

Yup, that just happened ... DeAndre Hopkins was sent packing from the Texans to the Cardinals for David Johnson -- and it's got everybody wondering, WHAT THE HELL IS BILL O'BRIEN DOING?!

The stud receiver -- a 27-year-old, 3-time All-Pro who was on a VERY team-friendly deal -- was traded along with a 4th-round pick just minutes into the league's legal tampering window Monday.

And, in return, O'Brien's Texans reportedly received Johnson, a 2nd-rounder this year and a fourth-rounder next year ... and the move is being universally panned on social media.

As for why ... if you're unfamiliar, Johnson has just 1,308 rushing yards in the last 3 seasons combined -- and was benched last year in Arizona in favor of Kenyan Drake.

Hopkins, meanwhile, has recorded at least 96 catches and 1,165 receiving yards in each of the past 3 years.

Yeah, not a great look for the Texans!!

Also, you'll recall ... O'Brien was the architect behind the trades that cost the Texans two first-round picks (in the Laremy Tunsil swap), and JaDeveon Clowney this past season.

Did the NBA coronavirus suspension just breathe life into a possible NBA return for Kevin Durant?!?!

Sorry, Brooklyn Nets fans ... it sounds like the answer to that question is a big, fat NOPE ... 'cause KD's right-hand man, Rich Kleiman, says a summer return from his Achilles injury is "not very realistic."

Of course, the 31-year-old superstar went down with the injury in the NBA Finals last June ... and KD hasn't played a minute of NBA basketball since.

With the entire Association coming to a screeching halt last week due to the coronavirus outbreak, many fans -- especially in BK -- speculated the suspension could be a blessing in disguise for Durant.

But, KD's longtime business partner, Rich Kleiman, put an end to the speculation on Monday ... telling ESPN the chances are slim he suits up in time for a potential playoff push for the 7th-seed Nets.

"Honestly, not very realistic from my standpoint, and not even spoken about," Kleiman told "Golic & Wingo."

At the time, KD was given a 12-month rehab timeline ... which would time up perfectly with the league's potential return date.

Regardless, Kleiman says don't hold your breath.

"It feels like (playing this season) clearly was not something that was in the cards prior to all this."

"And, now, I think just like the rest of the world, it's hard to take anything more than day by day."

Kleiman says the next step is figuring out the best place for KD to rehab while following the CDC's new recommendations ... which suggests no gatherings of more than 50 people.

Tyrann Mathieu is going to bat for Derrick Henry ... roasting the Tennessee Titans for choosing to sign Ryan Tannehill to a longterm deal instead of paying the workhorse RB.

"Damn they paid the QB but the RB who made the QB job 75% lighter he don’t get no love," the Honey Badger said Monday. "Boy it’s cold."

The Titans inked Tannehill to a monster deal Sunday ... agreeing to terms on a 4-year, $118 MILLION extension -- but chose not to pay Henry with a big contract as well.

Instead, the team will reportedly place the franchise tag on Derrick ... guaranteeing him only roughly $12 million for 2020.

It ain't exactly pennies ... but for comparison, Ezekiel Elliott -- who Henry outrushed last season by nearly 200 yards -- will make $15 mil next season with plenty more guaranteed for the following years.

"Thank god that man come from a good family," Mathieu said of Henry.

Of course, Tennessee can still get a longterm deal done with Derrick eventually this offseason ... although it seems unlikely, considering how paying RBs have worked out for NFL teams the past few years (sorry, Rams, Falcons and Cardinals).

Here's a challenge for you ...

Try watching this awesome video of Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Cre'von LeBlanc surprising his mom with a brand new car for her birthday -- and DON'T think about coronavirus!

It's impossible!! But, we'll try ...

LeBlanc's story is amazing -- he was an undrafted free agent who was cut by 3 teams before catching on with the Eagles. He's growing into a stud cornerback and will probably sign a big contract one day, but he ain't exactly drippin' in cash yet.

Still, he decided to treat his mom to a brand new Jaguar for her birthday -- and made sure his friends and fam were standing by to catch the action!

But, all we can think about is ... SOCIAL DISTANCING!! Don't hug! Air high-fives maybe!?!

Make sure to wipe down the inside of the car before Mama gets inside!!!

Of course, LeBlanc's mom was THRILLED over the gift -- saying, "Thank you, Lord!"

25-year-old LeBlanc is obviously close with his mom. His father passed away when he was only a sophomore in high school.

"You deserve the world and much more," LeBlanc wrote on social media ... "I know we have been thru a lot and I'm here to relieve some of dat pain. enjoy ya new ride."

Utah Jazz superstar Donovan Mitchell says he feels ZERO signs of the coronavirus days after testing positive for the infection ... in fact, he's down to get back on the court TOMORROW.

As we previously reported ... Spida tested positive for COVID-19 right after his teammate Rudy Gobert's health status eventually put the entire NBA season on hold last week.

After giving a brief update on social media, the 23-year-old is detailing his past few days with "Good Morning America" -- from isolation -- and says he feels fully healthy.

"Got no fever, no symptoms as of right now and just blessed to be okay," Mitchell says. "Right now, the biggest thing for me is to just stay in isolation and just keep to myself."

"I keep making the joke when people keep asking me that if you were to tell me that I would play in a 7-game series tomorrow, I'd be ready to lace up."

Mitchell says it took a while to "cool off" after Gobert's positive test ... but admits he's just happy his other teammates weren't affected.

Of course, Gobert has apologized for being so careless about COVID-19 before his diagnosis. Remember, he jokingly touched a bunch of mics and recorders during a press conference. Gobert says he now understands he needs to take the matter seriously and has donated more than $500k to relief efforts.

Life behind bars ain't too bad for Ronaldinho ... the soccer legend joined a prison league futbol tournament last week -- and reportedly won a pig for dominating the games!!

If ya missed it ... the 39-year-old Brazilian has been locked away in Paraguay prison after officials say he entered the country using a fake passport.

Dinho has been at the facility for about two weeks ... but he's clearly making the most of it -- because the dude joined a soccer league with other inmates and CRUSHED it.

Videos and pictures surfaced of the former Ballon d'Or winner out on the asphalt with the guys ... and according to witnesses, his teams had no trouble piling up wins.

In fact, reports say Ronaldinho and his squad not only got a cool trophy for all the Ws ... they even earned a prized pig for the championship!!

It's a pretty cool moment for Ronaldinho, considering the circumstances ... but it doesn't seem anyone's too worried about a lengthy stay behind bars for the former soccer superstar.

His attorneys have reportedly called the whole passport incident a misunderstanding ... saying Ronaldinho didn't know the documents were fake.

UFC legend Michael Bisping seems pretty fired up about the organization's decision to hold fan-less fights during the coronavirus pandemic ... telling TMZ Sports the first event in Brazil was a smash hit!

"The fights were fantastic! They were really good," Bisping told us when he arrived back at LAX from Brazil.

"We've done it before. It's like 'The Ultimate Fighter,' 'The Contender,' there's not much difference. Obviously, there was no crowd so it wasn't the same. But, the fights were fantastic. They delivered."

Bisping was one of the few people allowed into the Ginásio Nilson Nelson arena in Brasília, Brazil on March 14 ... since he served as the event's color commentator and post-fight interviewer.

There was criticism surrounding the event -- with some people saying Dana White should have pulled the plug on the whole thing in the wake of coronavirus warnings from health officials.

But, the fights continued ... and WILL continue ... with UFC actively trying to find a way to hold ANOTHER big event on Saturday.

Donald Trump and his buddy, Vladimir Putin, are leaving their mark on America's pastime, literally ... because the world leaders autographed a baseball and it's going up for sale!!!

Here's the deal ... a high-ranking Russian government official got Putin to put his John Hancock on a baseball in Russia at the start of the year, and then a member of the GOP got Trump to sign the same ball during a meet-and-greet before his March 2 campaign rally in North Carolina.

The baseball and it's unmistakable signatures are going up for sale through the memorabilia company, Moments in Time -- and they're hawking this slice of the Trump-Putin bromance for a cool $54,000.

It's unclear if Trump knew Putin's autograph was on the other side of the baseball when he put pen to cowhide ... but as we've reported, it's kinda easy to get Trump to sign things -- like his own articles of impeachment.

And, the price of Trump signed baseballs continue to skyrocket ... remember, they used to be worth only $200 tops before he was sworn into office. Add Putin to the mix, and you get a pretty big price tag.

TMZ Sports has obtained new footage of Gervonta Davis' attack on his ex-girlfriend ... and it appears to show the boxing superstar taking a swing at the woman.

As we previously reported, Davis was arrested last month ... after a woman told cops she was roughed up by the 25-year-old at a celeb basketball event on Feb. 1 in Coral Gables, FL.

Now, we've obtained new footage from the altercation ... and you can see, Davis CLEARLY gets violent with the woman.

Davis walks the baseline at the Watsco Center, immediately puts his hands on the woman's shoulder and neck area ... and pulls and pushes her into the arena's locker room area.

While in there, new footage shows Davis cocking back his left hand and appearing to fire it at the woman. You can see moments later, the woman charges right back at the boxer.

Eventually, the two are separated ... but the drama doesn't end there -- because Davis appears to get in ANOTHER altercation with another man.

The footage shows Davis confronting a man who appeared to be filming the incident ... and at one point, it looked like they were going to square off for a fight.

Ultimately, everyone was separated ... and Davis was locked up 3 days later on a charge of simple battery/domestic violence.

Davis has denied ever hitting the woman, saying in a statement, "I never once hit her ... yeah I was aggressive and told her come on. That's the mother of my child. I would never hurt her."

Cops say the woman suffered injuries to her lip and left jaw in the altercation.

The mystery surrounding the death of Floyd Mayweather's ex, Josie Harris, continues -- with no evidence of drugs or suicide at the scene, law enforcement sources tell us.

We broke the story ... Harris -- who has 3 kids with Floyd -- was found in her car in front of her family home Tuesday evening in Valencia, CA.

We're told one of her kids noticed Josie was unresponsive in the vehicle and made the call to 911. Lifesaving measures were taken -- including an attempt at CPR -- but it was too late.

Mayweather had publicly accused Harris of having a drug problem in the past -- but we're told officials did NOT find any drugs or evidence of drug use when they looked through Josie's car.

We're also told there was no suicide note. It does not appear she intentionally took her own life.

Now, the case is in the hands of the medical examiner who will evaluate the results from the autopsy -- along with toxicology -- to determine the cause of death.

Harris dated Mayweather from 1995 until 2010, when Floyd attacked Harris in front of their children at her Las Vegas home.