TMZ Sports - Page 50

Indianapolis Colts punter Rigoberto Sanchez says he couldn't be happier to return to practice on Wednesday ... describing the "crazy roller coaster" he's experienced since his recent cancer diagnosis.

As we previously reported, 26-year-old Sanchez underwent surgery for a cancerous tumor earlier this month ... days after feeling "kinda weird" during practice on Nov. 25.

Sanchez says he notified team staffers about feeling off ... and they instructed him to get checked out with an MRI and ultrasound.

That's when Sanchez got the news -- he has cancer.

"It's one of those things that you just never think is gonna happen to you. I never thought it was gonna happen to me either," Sanchez told reporters ... "Because I'm young, and when you're young you think you can do anything and you're going to be fine for a long time."

The crazy part?? Sanchez still got out on the field for Indy's next game against the Tennessee Titans on Nov. 29 ... saying his situation couldn't get any worse and he didn't want to put his team in a bad situation.

"I wasn't about to do that to my team. It's all about the team, you know?" Sanchez said.

Sanchez made his return to the team this week ... and he said he's thankful for the team's support throughout his journey.

"I'm just so grateful to be here with you guys and it's amazing to be back."

Sanchez says he's heard from all his idols -- including leukemia survivor Chuck Pagano -- throughout his recovery ... and he's hoping for the best.

It's been a rough week for NFL superstars in the crapper ...

Just ask Todd Gurley who dropped his cell phone into the toilet while taking a dump and was then forced to make a decision -- retrieve it or not!?!?

Think about it ... Todd is super rich -- he can afford another cell phone! So, should he fish it out and use it again? Or just junk it and get a new one?? Man, this is tough.

But Gurley, thankfully, walked us through the situation in real-time on social media,

It all started Wednesday at 12:34 PM -- "Dropped my phone in the toilet while taking a #2 smh. Shxt happens literally."

So, how did he drop the phone exactly?

"Man I laid it on my lap next thing I know it’s sitting on a like of 💩."

Seven minutes later ... an update.

"I just sprayed my phone with Mrs. Meyer’s cleaner and called it a day lol."

HE FISHED IT OUT OF THE POOP TOILET!! GROSS!!!

Afterward, Gurley reached out to Lamar Jackson, who also made some headlines over an alleged bathroom incident this week.

"Yo @Lj_era8 any tips my dude?"

C'mon, that's hilarious!

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says the NFL is exploring ways to have fans at the Super Bowl -- specifically health care workers.

Goodell fired off a letter to Rob Higgins -- President of the Tampa Bay Super Bowl LV Host Committee -- informing him of the league's plans to reward the front line workers who have busted their asses during the COVID pandemic.

"We are currently discussing with public health officials our desire to invite vaccinated health care workers to the Super Bowl as our guests," Goodell says in a letter obtained by NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

"Subject to their approval and in consultation with your team, we aim to do this in a safe and responsible way."

Goodell says putting vaccinated health care workers in the stands for the biggest game of the year would "help promote the importance of vaccination and appropriate health practices including wearing masks in public settings."

The plans aren't set in stone yet -- but it seems Goodell is optimistic.

He concluded his letter by heaping more praise on health care workers.

"We hope that in some small way, this initiative will inspire our country and recognize these true American heroes as we look forward to a better and healthier year."

James Harden says he wasn't just raging with Lil Baby and hitting Las Vegas hot spots while ditching Rockets training camp ... insisting he was really "training" to prepare for the upcoming season.

The 31-year-old superstar met with the media Wednesday for the first time since showing up to camp on Dec. 8 ... and was immediately hit with all the questions people have been wondering for weeks.

First ... does he still want to be traded out of Houston??

"Right now, I'm just focused on being here," Harden said. "Today was good, yesterday felt really good being out there for the first time since the bubble. I haven't really had an opportunity to do a lot of 5-on-5 work."

"For my first time being out there, I felt pretty good."

Next ... what was he doing in ATL and Sin City when his team expected him to show up to camp??

"I was just training," Harden said.

When pressed on what exactly he was training for, The Beard simply replied -- "The start of the NBA season."

As for why exactly he couldn't do that in Houston with the rest of his teammates??

"Just my personal trainers," Harden said.

As we previously reported, JH was spotted celebrating the rapper's birthday in ATL while his teammates were in Houston to prepare for the season ... gifting Lil Baby a $300k bag, Richard Mille watch and wads of cash.

Harden then took the party to Drai's nightclub in Vegas Sunday, Dec. 6 ... hours after he reportedly told the Rockets he would be at camp earlier that day.

Harden's actions drew criticism from ex-NBA player Stephen Jackson ... who called him out for "chasing rappers" instead of helping first-year head coach Stephen Silas.

Jose Canseco is REALLY pissed at Logan Paul over the breakup with his daughter -- suggesting something scandalous went down behind-the-scenes.

The ex-MLB star isn't spilling all of the tea ... but says the split between Logan and supermodel Josie Canseco earlier this year "left me with a bit of a bad taste in my mouth."

Now, 56-year-old Jose wants to FIGHT the 25-year-old YouTube star to defend his family's honor.

... and yeah, Jose insists this is for real.

"I actually met him when my daughter and Logan came down to Vegas," Jose said this week to Sports Talk Chicago on AM 1530 WCKG.

"He seemed like a very nice young kid -- to me, seemed a bit on the arrogant side. But, then all of the sudden they broke up."

"I gotta give you the final details, they will come up .. but you know, it left me with a little bit of a bad taste in my mouth."

Once Jose floated the idea of boxing Logan on social media back in November, Logan replied, "No problem. I love smashing Cansecos."

Yeesh.

Now, Jose is calling for LP to back up his words ... saying he'll be waiting for him after his exhibition with Floyd Mayweather next month.

"Get ready, this is real. This is not a joke ... If I hit him, he's going down."

Jose also says he's not intimidated by Logan's age and boxing experience -- saying, "Even though I'm 56-years-old, I do have some martial arts and celebrity fighting experience."

Jose even references his 2009 fight against South Korean MMA star Hong-man Choi -- a 7'2" monster who beat down Jose in just over a minute when they squared off.

"After fighting a guy who's 7'2" and 400 pounds, these guys look like shrimps to me," Jose says.

As for his strategy, Jose says he will channel his inner Rocky Balboa ... using 3 words to finish Paul off -- "Blunt force trauma."

Boston Celtics players are outraged at Massachusetts' governor over changes the politician asked for in a new police reform bill ... and they're now pleading with the guy to reverse course.

Seventeen players -- including Kemba Walker, Tristan Thompson and Jayson Tatum -- all penned a lengthy piece in The Boston Globe on Wednesday spelling out their issues with Gov. Charlie Baker's requests.

In the article, Celtics players say they have a major problem with how Baker -- a Republican -- wants to amend a technology portion of a bill that would make sweeping changes to Massachusetts police.

Specifically, the Celtics say they're pissed Baker asked lawmakers to remove a portion of the bill that would bar cops from using facial recognition technology.

The Celtics players say this piece MUST remain in the bill ... claiming officers' use of the tech has led to countless wrongful arrests in the Black community -- and even deaths.

"Studies confirm that face recognition surveillance technology is flawed and biased, with significantly higher error rates when used against people of color and women," the Celtics said in the article.

"This has real consequences. One false match can lead to an interrogation, arrest, and -- especially for Black men -- even a deadly police encounter."

The Boston players added, "Baker’s rejection is deeply troubling because this technology supercharges racial profiling by police."

The Celtics are urging Baker to reconsider ... writing, "The Legislature should return these important regulations to the governor and he should sign the bill."

For his part, Baker said last week his reasoning for wanting to keep the technology available is because it can play an "important role" in solving crimes.

"I’m not going to sign something that is going to ban facial recognition," Baker said.

Took long enough ... but Major League Baseball will finally recognize the Negro Leagues as a part of the Major Leagues.

MLB Commish Rob Manfred said the move will correct a "longtime oversight in the game’s history."

So, what does the distinction mean? A lot, actually.

Every single one of the 3,400 players who competed in the Negro Leagues from 1920 to 1948 will now be recognized by MLB as Major League ballplayers.

"Accordingly, the statistics and records of these players will become a part of Major League Baseball’s history," MLB announced.

It's a huge deal ... some of the greatest players of all-time were relegated to the Negro Leagues because of baseball's racist policy against Black players.

Of course, Jackie Robinson finally broke MLB's color barrier in 1947 ... and several players followed shortly after including Larry Doby, Roy Campanella, Satchel Paige, Willie Mays and more.

"All of us who love baseball have long known that the Negro Leagues produced many of our game’s best players, innovations and triumphs against a backdrop of injustice," Manfred said.

"We are now grateful to count the players of the Negro Leagues where they belong: as Major Leaguers within the official historical record."

MLB honored the 100th anniversary of the Negro Leagues on August 16, 2020 -- with all MLB players, managers, coaches and umpires wearing a symbolic Negro Leagues 100th Anniversary logo patch during that day’s games.

You're a mean one, Mr. Darts Player!!!

Professional Darts Corporation star Peter Wright channeled his inner Grinch for his opening round of the World Championship on Tuesday ... by dying his hair bright green and throwing on a 'fit inspired by the iconic Dr. Seuss character!!

The defending champ made one hell of an entrance at Alexandra Palace in London ... doing some wild dance moves while Pitbull's "Don't Stop The Party" blared over the speakers.

Watch the video. It's super entertaining!!!!

But, the green grandiose entrance didn't affect the 50-year-old's game one bit -- beating Steve West 3-1 to advance to the next round.

Wright spoke about his decision to go full Grinch after his win ... saying, "It's all about trying to make people smile, because we've had a horrible year, people's had a horrible year, lost loved ones. People lost jobs and stuff like that."

He added ... "I just wanted to cheer everyone up. I think I've done that."

BTW -- Wright is known for his eye-popping looks ... from wild multi-colored mohawks to outrageous outfits.

When asked about his critics calling him a "clown," Wright says he simply doesn't pay it any mind.

"I don't care because it's me just trying to make people happy. If I lose, I lose, if I don't, I don't."

It's a pretty wild statement from Wright ... considering the tourney has a $3.37 million prize fund ... so there's money to be made!!!

Omar Vizquel -- one of the greatest defensive shortstops ever -- is under MLB investigation over claims he beat his estranged wife ... but the ex-Cleveland superstar is flat-out denying the allegations.

According to The Athletic, Blanca Vizquel -- who married Omar in 2014 -- left the ex-baseball player in August and filed for divorce a short time later after she claims he was abusive toward her.

Blanca says the worst incident happened in 2016 ... claiming an argument escalated into a physical fight between the couple.

Blanca says she placed dumbbells behind a door to keep Omar away from her after the initial argument began ... but she claims the 5'9", 180-lb 3-time All-Star still barged through and shoved her nonetheless.

Blanca claims she injured her shin and broke nails as a result of the push ... and, initially, she sought to press charges against Omar -- who was arrested and booked for 4th-degree domestic assault as a result of the incident.

But, per The Athletic, Blanca later told prosecutors in a letter that she was changing her story and did NOT want the baseball player to criminally prosecuted. The case was dropped as a result.

Blanca -- who also claims there was a 2011 incident in which Omar was violent with her -- says things never quite got better, explaining everything all came to a head in Aug. 2020.

Blanca says the two got into a heated argument ... and she packed some belongings, called a domestic violence hotline, and bolted to a women's shelter some 10 hours away in Texas.

The Athletic reports she filed for a divorce a short time later.

"I made a decision to leave the house and not come back,” Blanca said. “I didn’t want to feel that feeling where you didn’t know if you’re gonna be safe.”

Omar, though, is ADAMANTLY denying any claims of abuse ... with his attorney saying the former shortstop "flatly denies any allegations of domestic violence.”

Omar himself added, "I don’t have anything to say. This is a divorce and I know she’s really pissed off. There is a lot of things [being said] out there about things supposedly happening behind closed doors, you know. I don't have anything to say about that, either. It’s just a divorce."

MLB officials say they're investigating everything ... and while Omar has not been employed by a team since he managed the White Sox's minor league affiliate, the Double-A Barons, in 2019 -- league officials are saying any punishment would affect a future role he receives in the MLB.

BRO, IT'S NOT WORTH IT!!!

A golfer in Florida risked his own life to retrieve a golf ball off a live alligator's tail -- and the video is wild!!

The man shooting the footage is Kyle Downes -- who was golfing with his brother on Dec. 14 at the Coral Oaks Golf Course in Cape Coral, FL when they stumbled upon the MASSIVE gator.

Kyle's brother noticed a golf ball resting on the tail and decided he was going to try and retrieve it ... so naturally, Kyle whipped out his cell phone and hit record.

You can hear Kyle warn his brother, "It's gonna whip you with that tail dude!!!"

But, his bro soldiered on ... and successfully grabbed the ball as the gator charged into the water.

And, get this, the gator is sorta famous at the golf course -- he's a 10-footer named Charlie ... apparently a local celebrity, according to NBC2.

Fortunately, no one was harmed -- neither the human nor the animal -- but don't forget how dangerous these gators can be.

Just ask Chubbs!!!!

Kobe Bryant told the author of his novel to base one of the important characters on his daughters -- so says the author who reveals, "That was very important to Kobe."

Kobe's new book, "Epoca: The River of Sand," (a novel for young adults) dropped this week -- the ex-NBA star co-authored it with Ivy Claire.

Basically, Kobe had a vision for the story and the characters -- and Ivy was tasked with putting it all together.

Vanessa Bryant loved the final product and conducted a Q&A with Claire on IG this week to explore what it was like for Ivy to work with her husband.

During the session, Vanessa asked Ivy to name her favorite character -- and that's when things got emotional.

"I love Vera," Ivy said ... "who's not the main character or the secondary character. She’s just this amazing athlete who’s competitive."

Ivy continued, "She just embodies pure athletic drive, but she’s also the kindest and the most reasonable and the person who doesn’t have to be told to be a good friend. It just comes naturally to her."

Vanessa noted ... "Vera reminded me a lot of Gigi."

Ivy replied, "We rewrote it for her to look like your daughters. That was very important to Kobe … and she’s supposed to, so I'm glad that comes through."

There's more ... Vanessa and Ivy also revealed a line that removed from the book before it was published because Vanessa didn't feel it was in line with Kobe's Mamba mentality!

"I remember there was one line of this book that said, 'Friends come first, practice comes second' -- and I remember telling you there is no way in hell Kobe would ever agree because he used to always tell the kids, 'Your friends will be there after practice.'"

Ivy said she took the line out at Vanessa's request -- and praised Vanessa for taking such an involved role in the editing process.

Don't worry ... Brandon Moreno's nuts are okay!!

This, after the UFC star took a ferocious kick to the gonads from Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 256 -- a shot that was so powerful Moreno was dry heaving in the Octagon.

It's been 4 days since that insane fight between Moreno and Figueiredo -- an instant classic that was judged a majority draw -- and you can see the bruises all over Moreno's face.

So, we had to ask ... how his "twins" were doing after that ferocious low blow, and Brandon filled us in.

“In that moment, it was very painful. Was very, very painful because he throws a really, really hard direct to there. I don't say it was intentional, but man it was a nasty kick directly to my balls," Moreno says.

"I think this the first time when a referee told me if I wanted to rest a little bit, my first time saying, 'Yes, please I need this moment.'"

Naturally, one of the first things Moreno's wife, Shirley, asked about after the fight was her husband's junk.

"My wife asked me the same, 'Hey, you fine?' Like, 'Yeah baby, no problem.'"

There's more ... Moreno says he doesn't feel any sympathy for Figueiredo after learning his opponent was hospitalized until 2 AM on fight day with a bad stomach infection.

"Before the fight, I don't know anything about [Deiveson] being sick. He was in the hospital, but man, in this world of Martial Arts, that is very normal. I had like two fights in the company, I was very sick to my stomach, but I never said nothing because it's my problem."

In fact, Moreno thinks Deiveson is using the medical situation as an excuse for not winning the fight.

Kevin Holland blasted Jacare Souza's face until he was unconscious ... and now the UFC star says he's coming for Israel Adesanya and all the top middleweight fighters ... starting with Derek Brunson.

TMZ Sports talked to the 28-year-old fighter after his 5th (yes, 5th!!) UFC win of 2020, and the 6'3", 185 lb. striker tells us there's no time for R&R ... he wants to get right back in the Octagon, ASAP, with #7 ranked Brunson.

“I know a lot of people don’t know the name, but Derek Brunson. That's who I want to smack,” Holland tells us.

Why the beef??

"[Derek] said something about slamming me on my head 1 time. I was like, 'Oh, okay. That's how you think we play.' That may be how you play with other wrestlers, but I’m a striker. Know what I mean?," Holland says.

"You think you’re gonna slam me on my head, that’s alright. I think I'm gonna punch you in the head a couple times. I can take a slam. He can’t really take too many punches.”

FYI, Brunson is on a 3-fight win streak ... and recently handed up-and-coming star Edmen Shahbazyan his first loss.

Holland tells us his plan is to beat Brunson, then take out ALL the high-ranked guys in the division ... before ultimately snatching Adesanya's belt.

“So, if I beat Derek Brunson, I’d be number 6. Then I gotta go through 5, 4, 3, 2, champ. Then that’s 6 fights in a year. That’s a good year. Then no one can say [I] didn’t fight tough competition.”

We also asked Holland about 26-year-old phenom, Khamzat Chimaev ... who Kevin called out after beating Souza at UFC 256 on Saturday.

Jerome Bettis is putting on his Superman cape this Christmas ... 'cause the NFL legend is rushing to the rescue after someone allegedly stole a bunch of goods intended for kids in need from a charity.

A rep from Family Resources -- an org. Bettis is helping fundraise for this year -- tells TMZ Sports that at around 9:30 AM Tuesday morning, they realized a TON of gifts had been taken from their headquarters in Pittsburgh.

The rep says everything, from toys to coats to clothes, intended for around 400 victims of child abuse were all gone when officials checked in a conference room.

In total, the rep claims around $1,900 worth of items were taken in the heist.

But, after Bettis learned of the problem Tuesday ... he raced in to help -- offering up some cool gifts to fans on social media in exchange for donations to the charity.

"We can't let the Grinch steal Christmas," Bettis tweeted out on Tuesday -- adding he's now giving away some signed Steelers jerseys to help raise funds for the kids.

A rep for Family Resources says Bettis' shoutout has already yielded tremendous results ... with $2,000 worth of contributions already pouring in Tuesday.

The rep also says Pittsburgh Steelers star Stephon Tuitt is expected to hand over a large check to the org. soon as well.

University of Florida basketball star Keyontae Johnson is in critical condition after collapsing on the court in the middle of a game.

It's terrifying to watch. The game -- Gators vs. Seminoles -- was in timeout. Just before that, Keyontae successfully finished an alley-oop and was celebrating the move from the sidelines.  The team broke its huddle, and as Keyontae walked onto the court he collapsed hard.

His teammates screamed for help and Keyontae was taken off the court by stretcher and was rushed by ambulance to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital.

Keyontae had tested positive for COVID this past summer. It appears one of the side effects was myocarditis ... inflammation of the heart muscle.

He's in critical but stable condition. We wish him well.

"Conor, you're scared. Dana, you're scared. Sign the f**king contract, you idiots."

Jake Paul is pulling out all the stops to book a boxing match with Conor McGregor ... going nuclear on the UFC superstar and Dana White in a wild video on Monday.

Oh, and get this -- the YouTube superstar says his team has offered Conor $50 MILLION to make the fight happen!!

"My team sent you a $50 million dollar offer this morning -- 50 million dollars cash, proof of funds, the biggest fight offer you've ever been offered," Paul says while sitting in his $350,000 Lamborghini.

"But, you're scared to fight me, Conor!! You're ducking me because you don't wanna lose to a f**king YouTuber. You're 0-1 as a boxer. I'm 2-0 as a boxer."

Jake seems to be channeling his inner Notorious throughout the video ... smoking a cigar and holding a glass of whiskey with an Irish flag draped over his shoulders.

While the $50 million number sounds crazy, Paul posted parts of the contract sent to Conor's camp, which says, "Jake Paul has acquired backing for this event who is willing to guarantee a purse of Fifty Million Dollars ($50,000,000.00) for Conor McGregor to participate in this event."

Jake backs up his talk ... pointing out how big of a success his fight with ex-NBA star Nate Robinson was on the Mike Tyson and Roy Jones, Jr. card.

"I just came off the 8th biggest Pay-Per-View event in history but you wanna fight Dustin (Poirier), who has less followers on Instagram than my f**king dog -- that's a fact."

Remember, Jake recently told TMZ Sports he was in talks with McGregor's camp after knocking out Robinson last month ... but Dana told us there was "zero chance" it would happen.

Clearly, Jake got wind of our interview with the UFC honcho.

"Dana White, you're a f**king p***y, too, you ugly f**king bald bitch! You said there's 0% chance this fight happening, but there's 0% chance of you getting some f**king p***y."

We're reaching out to Dana for comment -- stay tuned.