TMZ Sports - Page 50

Former MLB star Don Baylor -- the 1979 AL MVP -- has died at the age of 68 after a long battle with cancer.

Baylor played 19 seasons in the majors for the Yankees, Red Sox, Twins, Orioles, Athletics, and Angels ... winning a World Series with Minnesota in 1987. He hit 338 home runs, and knocked in 1,276 runs in his career.

The former MVP hung up his cleats in 1988, but was still involved in baseball ... managing the Rockies and Cubs.

D.B.'s family says the slugger was diagnosed with multiple myeloma -- a form of cancer -- 14 years ago.

Team Lannister had a ringer in their battle against the Dothraki Sunday night ... as flamethrowin' Mets superstar Noah Syndergaard came outta nowhere with an EPIC spear throw.

Noah, AKA Thor, lived up to his nickname in his few seconds on screen -- launching a fastball to take out a Dothraki soldier.

It was kinda hard to tell if that was actually Thor ... but the ace confirmed his cameo right after the episode, saying “Take that you mean Dothraki."

Spoiler alert: Syndergaard also defended his squad basically takin' an L -- “To my side's defense . . . they had a FRICKIN DRAGON!!!”

It's all good, Noah -- you did your part.

L.A. Lakers star Larry Nance Jr. says he's totally pumped to take flight with new teammate Lonzo Ball ... telling TMZ Sports Zo's skills are gonna make the whole team better!!

We spoke with Nance at LAX about the #2 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft ... and it's clear he's ready to be on the receiving end of some big-time alley-oops from Zo.

"I was 270 lbs with a 48-inch vertical, benching 500 pounds, running a 4.5, 4.6." -- LaVar Ball

You read that correctly ...

LaVar tells TMZ Sports his size, strength and agility was OFF-THE-CHARTS when he was a college athlete -- making him a better prospect than any tight end in NFL history.

So, why didn't things work out for the Big Baller on the field?

Ball says he has a perfectly good explanation -- and he's using the lessons from his failed efforts to go pro to make sure his kids succeed ... and so far, it's working.

So ... either this is an Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite moment, or LaVar would've really dominated the league.

You decide.

Darren Daulton -- a former all-star catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies -- has died after a long battle with brain cancer.

The Phillies released a statement Sunday night saying Daulton had passed away ... no other details immediately available. Daulton was diagnosed with glioblastoma in 2013 after having 2 tumors removed. He announced he was cancer free in 2015, but the disease returned.

Daulton played professional baseball since 1980, and played almost his entire career with the Phillies before retiring in 1997. He was a key part of the Phillies winning the National League Championship in 1993 ... during which he had 24 home runs and 105 RBIs. He also went on to win a World Series with the Marlins in his final year.

Daulton was inducted into the Phillies' Wall of Fame in 2010.

Lewis Hamilton has a new purpose at the beach ... rep Justin Bieber to a T (shirtless).

The Formula One race car driver was out Sunday on a beach in Barbados, where he was rockin' Bieber's Purpose Tour shorts ... the same ones the Biebs was seen in himself last week.

From the looks of these pics ... Lewis must've thought they were gym shorts, 'cause he's in full beach action mode ... catching footballs and hitting the water.

One thing's for sure -- he's got Bieber's look down lock, stock and barrel ... from showing off his tatted torso to even sagging a bit and giving Supreme some free press. Bieber did the same with Calvin Klein ... but he's got an endorsement deal with 'em.

So the question here is ... who did it better?

Neymar gave Paris Saint-Germain fans 265 million reasons to cheer in his 1st appearance as a member of the team this weekend ... even though he didn't play.

The Brazilian super star was officially presented as a P.S.G. player Saturday in a match against Amiens SC -- but couldn't take the field 'cause his record $520 million-plus total deal hadn't been registered in time.

Neymar didn't seem to mind though -- the dude's reportedly now the highest paid soccer baller ... ever. Plus, P.S.G. went on to win the game without him at 2-0.

$265 million over 5 years ... not a bad bench fee for day 1.

Floyd Mayweather doesn't get in the ring with Conor McGregor until August 26, but the battle is on for Vegas nightclubs scrapping to book the biggest names for that weekend.

The lineups are already INSANE -- 50 Cent, Diddy, Chris Brown, The Chainsmokers, Jamie Foxx, Rick Ross, Calvin Harris, Amber Rose and even Conor himself are headlining parties. Here's how it's shaking out as of now:

FRIDAY:
Drai's -- 50 Cent, Trey Songz and Jeezy
Hakkasan -- Steve Aoki
Omnia -- Calvin Harris
JEWEL -- J. Cole
Hard Rock -- Amber Rose, YFN Lucci and Allen Iverson

SATURDAY (after the fight):
Drai's -- Chris Brown
XS Nightclub -- The Chainsmokers
Hakkasan -- Travis Scott
Marquee - DJ Mustard
The LIGHT -- Rick Ross
JEWEL -- Jamie Foxx
Rehab Beach Club -- Diddy
Encore Beach Club at Surrender - Conor McGregor

It won't be cheap if you want in with the celebs -- especially in VIP. One example ... a table at Diddy's party ranged from $1,500 to 20k, depending on location.

UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture knows exactly what it's like to fight Brock Lesnar -- and thinks Jon Jones can beat the guy ... if he works on one very important part of his game.

Couture and Brock threw down back at UFC 91 in 2008 -- with Lesnar getting the W with a 2nd round TKO. It was a pretty great fight.

Now, with Jones calling out the former UFC heavyweight champ after UFC 214 -- Randy's passing along some of his fight knowledge ... and thinks Jon has all the tools to tame the Beast.

NBA Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas says he no beef with Isaiah Thomas ... and no this isn't a 'Good Will Hunting' moment, he's talking about the NEW Isaiah, the one who tore it up for the Celtics last year.

Our camera guy spotted the original IT at LAX and broke some bad news to him, the news being that when "Isaiah Thomas" is Googled, the new model comes up first.

(Point of Information: No, Isiah Thomas and Isaiah Thomas are not related).

So the question ... is the vintage version a little salty about the handle jack?

Answer? NO. Thomas says he loves his namesake (it's true, the younger version was named after the older) and told our guy he's thrilled the name is living on.

Arthur Jones is lean, mean and ready for an NFL return after shedding 25 freakin' pounds in 3 weeks ... and he's telling TMZ Sports how he got it done.

Arthur -- Jon Jones' older bro -- is a 6-year NFL vet who's currently a free agent ... but that hasn't stopped him from stayin' in game shape.

Matter of fact -- better than game shape.

Jones -- who recently had hernia surgery -- decided to switch up his eating and workout habits shortly after the procedure ...  swearing off all animal products and hittin' the yoga studio.

A.J. even gives us his ideal NFL landing spots ... and spoiler alert, one team already has a Jones on the D-line.

Usain Bolt's not going out with a bang ... the legendary sprinter just lost his final 100m race.

Bolt ended his individual track career with the bronze in the men's 100m sprint at the World Athletic Championships in London ... losing to longtime rival Justin Gatlin and another American, Christian Coleman.

The race had a photo finish, but in the end Bolt's 9.95 seconds was .03 seconds slower than Gatlin, who took home the gold. Coleman's time was 9.94.

For Gatlin, it's been a long time coming -- he guaranteed he would beat Bolt back in the 2016 Olympics ... and we know how that turned out.

As for Usain ... the "Fastest Man Alive" still holds the world record in the event at 9.58 seconds and won 3 straight Olympic golds in the 100m and 200m.

Now we know Cristiano Ronaldo enjoys giving his smoking hot pregnant girlfriend some supporting love taps ... and she enjoys providing him with beautiful scenery.

The football star and his expecting gf, Georgina Rodriguez, cozied up on a luxury yacht in Ibiza last week ... clearly enjoying each other's company.

Dear Kevin Durant,

Not everyone in Oklahoma hates your guts. In fact, one of the most powerful people in the state is welcoming you back with open arms ... Senator Jim Inhofe.

"Kevin Durant would be welcome back in Oklahoma any time he's willing to come and I want to be the first one he calls," Sen. Inhofe tells TMZ Sports.

"He took care of the victims of our tornadoes. He took care of families. Took care of little kids. So, he has a heart and he's not a bad ballplayer."

KD wasn't exactly the most well-liked guy in OKC after ditching the Thunder for the Golden State Warriors. Plus, his feud with Russell Westbrook didn't help either.

Tyron Woodley ain't feelin' the love after his fight at UFC 214 ... but the champ's got one badass, crazy-hot chick in his corner.

We talked to Mia Kang outside Trinity Boxing Club in L.A. -- and the S.I. model/aspiring fighter told us Tyron's haters are OUT OF THEIR MINDS ... 'cause Woodley did exactly what he was supposed to against Demian Maia.

Mia LOVES that T-Wood fought smart to keep his belt ... even if Dana White and some fans didn't.

Speaking of Dana ... the UFC honcho might wanna meet with Mia soon -- cause she's ready to throw down in the cage!

But does that mean Mia's hangin' up her bikinis? She broke it down for us.

If you thought Shannon Briggs was gonna sit on his ass during his ban from boxing, you were DEAD WRONG, 'cause the champ is making use of his time by starting his own sports agency.

Briggs got slapped with a 6-month suspension last month after testing positive for elevated levels of testosterone, a violation under world anti-doping standards.

We talked to Shannon, and he told TMZ Sports he deeply regrets disappointing all his fans, but that doesn't mean he's gonna wait for the world to pass him by.

"I just did a huge deal with an entertainment fund, and now we're gonna have Let's Go Champ Sports & Entertainment."

Shannon says he's gonna sign all types of athletes: boxing, basketball, football, even cricket, and says he has $200 mil dollars worth to back the venture.