Baseball

Former President Donald Trump's "Fight, Fight, Fight!" chant became a rallying cry for supporters following his assassination attempt ... and now, it has made its way to America's pastime -- with an MLB player recreating the moment in the middle of a game.

During Sunday's contest against the New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Taylor Walls smacked a double into right field and cruised to second base. As he turned to his dugout to celebrate, Walls paid homage to No. 45 by raising his fist and mouthing the same words.

The highlight quickly made rounds on social media ... with the MAGA crowd eating it up. Naturally, some people didn't care for it ... pointing out Walls should be more concerned about getting his batting average up -- which currently sits at .160 through 81 at-bats.

Barry Bonds has made history once again ... this time in an auction house -- where a pair of his game-used items sold for nearly a quarter of a million bucks!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... a jersey he wore during Games 3, 4 and 5 of the 2002 World Series fetched a whopping $158,600 last week -- the most expensive Bonds uniform ever sold at auction.

In addition, the bat Bonds used to smack his 60th home run during his record-breaking 2001 season closed at $86,620. If you can't do the math ... that's a staggering $245,220 for the pair!!!

It seems Ingrid Andress' lowest moment on the microphone is actually benefitting her career ... TMZ Sports has learned her music has seen a big spike following her disastrous national anthem performance at Monday's Home Run Derby.

Officials over at SoundCloud -- one of the largest music streaming services in the world -- tell us ... plays on her tunes have gone up around 50 percent since her debacle in Arlington, Texas.

Specifically, we're told her 2019 "More Hearts Than Mine" song has really caught the ear of listeners.

Paul Skenes will be throwing 100 MPH on the mound at the MLB All-Star Game in just a few hours ... but he's already bringing the heat to the event's red carpet -- with Livvy Dunne right by his side!!

The Pittsburgh Pirates ace -- who's slated to start the mid-summer classic for the National League later Tuesday -- arrived at Globe Life Field in an all-white suit with a black tie. His LSU star gymnast girlfriend, meanwhile, turned heads in a beige halter top dress.

The duo was all smiles as they strutted their stuff in front of cheering fans ... and they even stopped to chat with media members -- where Paul made a joke that Livvy doesn't always pick out his outfits.

Move over, "J-Rod" ... Alex Rodriguez has an even better nickname for Mariners superstar Julio Rodriguez -- "The Perfect Player!!!"

The MLB legend bestowed the new pseudonym on the Seattle outfielder during a sit-down interview for Fox Sports Films' "Welcome To The J-Rod Show" -- a new documentary all about Julio's journey to baseball stardom.

Alex -- who played for the Mariners from 1994-2000 -- gushed about Julio as part of the special ... saying there aren't many athletes built better than the 23-year-old two-time All-Star.

Shohei Ohtani appalled some fans on Wednesday after he appeared to celebrate a stolen base with a lewd gesture ... but upon further review, it seems he was simply shakin' dirt.

Take a look at how the Dodgers superstar got up following a slide into second during the first inning of L.A.'s game against the Phillies in Philadelphia ... he sure looked like he was imitating some R-rated bedroom activity.

He ripped off his glove, put it in front of his junk ... and shook it repeatedly as he stared into his team's dugout.

Tampa Bay Rays star shortstop Wander Franco has been formally charged with sexual abuse and sexual exploitation against a minor in the Dominican Republic ... for a relationship he allegedly had with a 14-year-old girl.

Franco, who's now 23, has been under investigation by authorities in the D.R. since July 2023 ... after a complaint was filed alleging he had sexual relations with a teenager.

Wander, according to authorities, has also been accused of human trafficking.

The mother of the child is also included in the indictment ... with prosecutors claiming the mother was paid thousands of dollars by Franco to look the other way, and allow the relationship.

Minnesota Twins star Joe Ryan's crotch must've been on fire during Monday's game ... 'cause the pitcher couldn't help but douse his balls in baby powder right in the middle of the dugout -- and it was all caught on camera!!

The hilarious blooper went down during the top of the 7th inning of the Twins' road matchup against the Chicago White Sox ... when the broadcast followed Carlos Correa back to the bench after hitting a home run.

The intention was to capture CC celebrating with his teammates ... but as an added bonus of sorts, the shot went on just a bit too long -- and showed Ryan casually tugging on his waistband and unloading a bunch of powder on his privates as he had a quick chat with the shortstop.

Paul Skenes' first-ever MLB All-Star Game selection came with an extra surprise ... a pizza party courtesy of his loving girlfriend, Olivia Dunne!!

The star LSU gymnast made the trip to Pittsburgh after partying in the Hamptons for the Fourth of July ... and when she found out Skenes was named to The Show's mid-summer classic, she threw him an impromptu bash.

Livvy showed on her TikTok page that she copped some balloons, a bottle of champagne and some 'Za for the fiesta -- and Skenes was clearly loving it all.

Vanessa Hudgens is giving a special shoutout to her man, Cole Tucker, on his 28th birthday ... taking to Instagram to shower her husband with all the love.

"Happy birthday to my slice of heaven @cotuck 🥳," the actress said to the Los Angeles Angels organization's third basemen on Wednesday. "You make the world a brighter place just by being you, ♥️🤟🏽"

As we previously reported, the two lovebirds got married back in December 2023 ... after Tucker popped the question to the actress earlier that year.

The 35-year-old actress and the ball player have been inseparable since they started dating back in 2020 ... and Hudgens -- who is pregnant with their first child -- has made plenty of appearances at Tucker's games to show her support.

Unfortunately for Tucker, he was recently placed on the temporarily inactive list. The reason for this move by the Salt Lake Bees -- the Angels' Triple-A affiliate -- is not known at this time.

It has been an up-and-down season for the utility player. He started spring training with the Seattle Mariners as a non-roster invite before being assigned to their Triple-A affiliate, the Tacoma Rainers.

A month later, he was released and picked up by the Angels. He saw some big-league action in late April, but the squad designated him for assignment -- then sent him back to the Bees.

No word on how the happy couple plans to celebrate the day ... but we imagine they will be spending some quality time together.

Good news, bad news for Shohei Ohtani -- The good news?? He hit his 27th home run of the season on Tuesday. The bad?? The ball landed right on a little kid's noggin.

The dinger went down during the seventh inning of the L.A. Dodgers' 6-5 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks ... when he took Justin Martinez's pitch over 400 feet and into the right-field bleachers.

The hit had an exit velocity of 112 miles per hour ... and unfortunately, one young fan felt every bit of it -- taking the ball off his forehead as a handful of spectators tried to catch it.

Bradon Nimmo fainted in his bathroom and suffered a gnarly head wound early Monday morning ... but, thankfully, the Mets outfielder says he's going to be OK -- even though he's going to miss some playing time.

The 31-year-old says the scary spill happened in his hotel room at around 5:15 AM -- after he woke up with an upset stomach.

Nimmo, sporting a small bandage on his forehead, told media members just before New York's game against the Washington Nationals on Monday night that at some point, however, he blacked out, hit his forehead on something ... and woke up bleeding.

Orlando Cepeda -- a Baseball Hall of Famer and teammate of the late Willie Mays -- has died ... according to statements from his family and MLB.

The Giants legend passed away at his home Friday according to his wife, Nydia, while surrounded by family and listening to his favorite music. She says the family takes comfort he's now at peace.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred remembered Orlando for his on-field accomplishments ... as well as his role as one of the first Latin American players in the game who paved the way for more inclusion in baseball during the 1960s.

If you're wondering why there will be a bunch Pirates fans suddenly rockin' Paul Skenes and Jared Jones '24 shirts at PNC Park next month ... it's no doubt in part due to Livvy Dunne, who's made the tee a must-have item after wearing it to a game last weekend.

The LSU star gymnast -- who's Skenes' girlfriend -- sported the shirt while at Paul's big June 23 matchup against the Tampa Bay Rays ... and the folks who created it, Baseball Dugout LLC, tell TMZ Sports sales of the garment have exploded since.

We're told that after Dunne showed off the black and gold 'fit on her social media pages ... there was about a 1,400 percent increase in sales!

A baseball fan who went to the College World Series is slamming ESPN for turning cameras on her while she ate ice cream -- because the shot's gone so viral, she's being compared to the "Hawk Tuah" girl.

In case you missed it ... during Monday's national championship baseball game, ESPN cameras zoomed in on 2 women in the stands quickly licking ice cream, racing to finish before it melted in 93-degree heat.

The video spread across social media like wildfire ... with folks leaving some explicit comments about the young women, including lots of "Hawk Tuah" references.