TMZ Sports - Page 50

Dennis Rodman damn near packed President Trump's complete bibliography when he went to North Korea last year ... and then gifted the set to Kim Jong-un.

We got a shot of the 8 books, all translated, the NBA Hall of Famer handed over in June 2017 to North Korea's sports minister, Kim Il Guk. The set includes "The Art of the Deal" and "Time to Get Tough." We're told the sports minister handed them over to Jong-un.

TMZ broke the story ... Rodman's ecstatic his friends, Kim Jong-un and Trump, are getting along. He thinks the books might have greased the wheels for Jong-un to have a change of heart about his dealings with the Prez and America, in general.

Meek Mill is now free to start doing shows outside of Philadelphia ... thanks to his archnemesis, Judge Genece Brinkley.

Judge Brinkley amended the order regarding his bail conditions, and he now has approval to travel outside of Pennsylvania's Montgomery County for scheduled business activities. He just has to submit his travel plans to the probation dept. 72 hours in advance.

The amended order also gives Meek approval to live in Montgomery Co. The original bail conditions required him to live in neighboring Philadelphia County. Meek still has to submit to at least one urine test per month.

The judge signed the new order on Friday, and Meek took advantage almost immediately. We got him out in NYC that night with 76ers owner Michael Rubin ... after they had a biz dinner with Meek's Roc Nation management team.

A Louisville Slugger bat used in an MLB game by Babe Ruth just sold at Goldin Auctions for just under $200,000!!!

Experts have determined the bat was used during Ruth's 1929 and 1930 seasons ... but the exact game (or games) in which it was used is unclear.

Authenticators were able to confirm the details on the bat (weight, length, style) sync up to the bats Ruth ordered from Louisville Slugger during that time period, Goldin says.

The Hillerich & Bradsby hickory bat weighs 37.8 ounces and is 35.25 inches long.

To compare, Aaron Judge's bat is 35 inches long but only weighs 33 ounces.

Goldin says the final price on the Ruth bat was $196,400. The identity of the buyer has not been made public.

There's more ... an authentic contract Ruth signed with the Yankees in 1934 (his final contract with the Yankees) also sold for $282,325!

He signed the contract with his name, "George H. Ruth."

And now ... "Street Fighting Stories with Marlon Wayans!"

This time, Marlon is telling us all about the time someone picked a fight with UFC star Nick Diaz -- and it ended with VIOLENCE!

Marlon was leaving Catch in West Hollywood over the weekend -- where Nick Diaz had also been hanging out -- and it reminded Marlon about the one dumbass who tried to fight the Diaz Brothers in front of him.

"I said 'Brah, you f***ing with the wrong dude.' He goes 'F*** that bro. You don't know me. I'm gonna f*** [him up].'"

Marlon says he TRIED to warn the wannabe tough guy ... to no avail.

"Nick grabbed his ass ... Pop! Pop! Pop! Three elbows. Pop! Pop! Two knees. Fight was over. Blood everywhere."

9:30 AM PT -- Penn and his wife, Dominique, have issued a joint statement through their rep, Denise White, saying:

"There was a verbal disagreement, there was NO physical altercation. The two are in the middle of a divorce and it is a hard time for both parties."

Oakland Raiders star lineman Donald Penn is a suspect in a domestic violence incident ... after he allegedly slapped his wife's butt and then poured a drink on her head.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ Sports ... cops were called to Penn's L.A. area home Sunday evening, but when they arrived ... Penn had already left the scene.

Cops were told Penn was at the house earlier and got handsy with his wife, at one point slapping her butt. Donald's wife took exception to the slap and a vocal argument ensued.

Things escalated and Penn allegedly poured a drink on his wife's head and grabbed his wife by the wrist.

Cops took a report and are currently investigating.

Penn and his wife have had issues in the past when the NFL player knocked up "Bad Girls Club" star Camilla Poindexter ... who then aired out all of their dirty laundry on social media.

Matt Serra says his SHOCKING TKO of Georges St-Pierre at UFC 69 in '07 was the real-life version of a 'Rocky' movie -- ONLY BETTER ... 'cause he knocked GSP's ass out!

Serra -- who's gonna be inducted in the UFC Hall of Fame in July -- talked to TMZ Sports about his iconic win ... one most UFC fans consider the most stunning upset in the history of the sport.

In case you forgot ... Serra -- a heavy underdog -- unleashed a fury of punches on the then-welterweight champ ... forcing "Big" John McCarthy to stop the beating in the 1st round.

"I've always said that I really, truly lived my 'Rocky' movie with that fight." Serra told us.

Waffle House hero James Shaw Jr. -- the man who wrestled an AR-15 out of the hands of a shooter -- got one helluva hero's welcome at the Nashville Predators game Sunday ... and it was awesome!

The NHL team invited Shaw and his family as VIP guests to the playoff game vs. the Winnipeg Jets to thank him for the bravery he showed during the April 22 attack at a Nashville-area Waffle House.

Before the game, Shaw (wearing a shirt that said, "Spread Love") met with Preds coach, Peter Laviolette -- who presented Shaw with his own personalized jersey.

During the game, Shaw was featured on the big stadium screen at Bridgestone Arena and the crowd went WILD!!

As for the game, it was a fight -- but the Predators managed to pull off a 5-4 victory in double overtime.

By the way, Shaw's injuries seem to be doing a lot better. He's no longer wearing the wraps around his hands -- which he had burned by grabbing the piping hot barrel of the gun, after it had fired several rounds, and ripping it away from the shooter.

Donald Trump says Colin Kaepernick would have been A LOT better off if he would have just "honored" the American flag and stood for the national anthem.

Trump didn't mention Kaep by name during his rally in Michigan on Friday -- but it's obvious he was talking about the QB, who remains unemployed.

"We defend our flag and we honor our flag," Trump said ... "and if others honored our flag, they'd be a lot better off wouldn't they?"

The crowd roared and Trump continued ... "We put our hands on our hearts for the pledge of allegiance and we stand for the national anthem."

Again, the crowd went wild.

Ever drink Bud Light out of a dead catfish?

Well, one of the linemen from the Tennesse Titans did Sunday night ... and it was all to help the Nashville Predators win their playoff game.

Taylor Lewan and a bunch of his fellow linemen (along with QB Marcus Mariota) -- were sitting in a VIP section at the game when Taylor busted out the fish and chugged away.

Lewan's teammate, Quinton Spain, ripped off his shirt for moral support.

Of course, catfish is a "thing" with Preds fans -- they always chuck one onto the ice before or during a game. Lewan decided to up the ante.

The plan worked ... the Preds won the game 5-4 over the Winnipeg Jets.

Dana White says the UFC will not mete out punishment for Conor McGregor's bus attack until AFTER the New York City judge issues a ruling ... which means it could take a while.

McGregor isn't due back in court until June 14 -- and Dana tells TMZ Sports he's very interested in how the law treats the Irish superstar.

McGregor is reportedly facing up to 7 years in prison for the April 5 attack in which he threw a dolly at a UFC bus, shattering glass and injuring several UFC fighters.

"He's gotta be punished by the law first," White says ... "Let's see what happens in New York."

As for Conor's fighting future ... White says if he does ever fight Khabib Nurmagomedov, it will NOT go down in Russia.

"If you do a fight that big, you gotta do it in Vegas."

"Khabib will fight in Russia at some point, but it wont be that fight. It's too big. Ya gotta do it in Vegas."

Ali, Marciano, Tyson ... when it comes to great runs in boxing, Floyd Mayweather beat 'em all -- so says Dave Chappelle.

FYI, Dave is a HUGE boxing fan -- and has attended a bunch of Floyd's fights in person.

So, when we saw the comedy legend out in L.A., we had to ask about Mayweather -- and if he supports Floyd possibly jumping into the Octagon.

"I think Floyd had a great record and the greatest run in the history of boxing," Chappelle said ... "I don't know, whatever makes him happy, but I think he did his thing."

Floyd's run was legendary ... he was a champ in 5 different weight classes and made more money than any other athlete on the face of the planet.

Also, his fights have generated more money in PPV sales than any other fighter in history.

Derek Fisher and Gloria Govan aren't just tying the knot, they're blending 2 families together ... which means adjustments need to be made to their house.

The couple has already laid out plans to make more room for their soon-to-be blended fam ... according to L.A. City docs. The 2 got a permit in January for Derek's Tarzana pad to remodel 2 bedrooms, and build an additional bathroom on the second floor.

Fisher's home is already 5,110 sq. ft with 5 beds and 5 baths, but when you take into account he's got 4 kids and Govan has 2 ... the more space (and bathrooms) the merrier.

Estimated cost -- $10k.

Stop riding Kanye West for supporting Donald Trump ... that's the message NBA star Iman Shumpert has for all the haters coming after the rapper this week.

FYI, Shumpert has a Kanye connection -- his wife, Teyana Taylor, is signed to West's G.O.O.D. Music record label and has an album coming out this summer.

So, with the backlash against West in full swing ... we wanted to know where Shumpert stood.

"I'm a Kanye fan," Shumpert said.

"Long before meeting my wife and knowing the relationship to Ye that she has as far as being signed, I have always walked with him throughout the commotion that he makes."

Shumpert says he's cool with Kanye wearing the MAGA hat -- and says it doesn't mean Kanye agrees with EVERYTHING Trump has to say.

He also really liked Kanye's freestyle with Harvey Levin.

There's more ... Shumpert also talked to us about his reality show "Teyana and Iman" (airs Monday night on VH1) and told us why his family has an edge on the Kardashians!

Baker Mayfield knows not everyone is thrilled the Cleveland Browns took him with the #1 overall pick in the NFL Draft -- including Jim Brown -- but he's ready to bust his ass to win 'em all over.

The former Oklahoma Sooners quarterback touched down at LAX -- cowboy hat in tow -- and told TMZ Sports he's not messing around, it's all business from here.

No partying, no giant spending spree ... the 23-year-old Heisman Trophy winner says he's laser focused on training for the 2018 NFL season.

As for Jim Brown and other critics who wanted Cleveland to take Saquon Barkley or any of the other top QBs instead ... Mayfield doesn't seem too bothered -- telling us, "Everybody has their opinions. They're entitled to it."

Dennis Rodman is ecstatic his friends, Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump, are getting along ... especially because he believes he played a big part in bringing the peace.

We spoke with the basketball Hall of Famer about North Korea's newfound friendliness with the U.S. and its historic summit with South Korea ... he tells us it's simply been the result of open communication and good old-fashioned diplomacy.

Rodman also points to his June 2017 visit to N. Korea -- in which he supplied Jong-un with some of Trump's books -- as a catalyst for the dictator's change of heart about the Prez and the American people.

Dennis is clear he doesn't want to take the credit for the good vibes happening right now ... but he can't hide his joy in the role he played.

Jay-Z and Beyonce got super good seats -- imagine that -- as they watched the Golden State Warriors annihilate the New Orleans Pelicans.

Bey and Jay were on the hardwood Saturday at the Western Conference Semifinals in Oakland, CA.  The Warriors dominated the entire game to win the first in the 7 game series by a score of 123 - 101.

BTW ... Steph Curry didn't play because of an injury but he's expected back for game 2 on Tuesday.