Kuzul

There was really no other way for Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman and his wife, Chelsea, to find out the gender of their baby than to use the game of baseball to make the big reveal.

Some people have bakeries color the inside of a cake to unveil the gender. But for a two-time MLB All-Star, it only makes sense to combine that concept with an exploding baseball.

Spoiler alert:

Although the Braves “only” have Freddie locked up through 2021, they envision another Freeman enjoying success in Atlanta down the road:

[Twitter]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Poor Anthony Garcia.

The St. Louis Cardinals outfielder was just minding his business in left field during Monday’s spring training game against the New York Mets when all of a sudden he found himself running for cover—because sprinklers had gone off all around him.

There’s no word on whether Shooter McGavin was behind this incident.

[MLB GIFs]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Chicago Cubs players may refer to 38-year-old teammate David Ross as “Grandpa Rossy,” but the veteran catcher showed Friday he is still young enough to make some pretty nice plays.

In the top of the fourth inning, Los Angeles Angels shortstop Cliff Pennington attempted to catch the Cubs by surprise by laying down a bunt at the last second. However, he popped the ball way into the air, giving Ross time to try to make a play.

With a great diving effort, Grandpa Rossy recorded the out.

The play was not over, though. The Angels’ C.J. Cron tried to advance on the play, but Ross was alert and nailed him at second base to end the inning.

While it may look like a simple 2-6 double play in the scorebook, this was no ordinary play.

[MLB.com]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Thirty-eight-year-old David Ross is entering his 15th and final MLB season, and knowing that his retirement is right around the corner, the Chicago Cubs catcher’s teammates are having some fun this spring with the man they affectionately call “Grandpa Rossy.”

It’s just what youngsters do.

On Wednesday, first baseman Anthony Rizzo and third baseman Kris Bryant had to help the cane-using Ross in the clubhouse:

A day later, Cubs players helped the veteran catcher get around easier by giving him his own motorized scooter, complete with a personalized license plate:

Rizzo and Bryant have even gone as far as creating a “Grandpa Rossy” Instagram page to document the retirement tour:

Because why not?

To his credit, Ross is taking this all in stride:

While all of that is just players messing with an older teammate, MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat reported recently that outfielder Jason Heyward—who was Ross’ teammate with the Atlanta Braves from 2010 to 2012 and now with the Cubs—will be footing the bill to give Ross his own hotel suite whenever the team is on the road this season.

[Twitter, Instagram]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

“This is one of the greatest discoveries in the history of our hobby.”

That is how Professional Sports Authenticator president Joe Orlando described one family’s unbelievable find of seven Ty Cobb cards that are expected to be valued at more than $1 million, per the Associated Press (via Sports Illustrated).

To make the story even wilder, the century-old baseball cards were found in an old paper bag.

Cobb, of course, is one of the greatest hitters in baseball history. He spent the majority of his Hall of Fame career with the Detroit Tigers, setting the all-time hits record (4,189), which was ultimately broken by the Cincinnati Reds’ Pete Rose nearly 60 years later.

The family—which wishes to remain anonymous—discovered the Cobb cards in a paper bag at the house of a deceased great-grandfather. After stumbling upon the rare cards, the family took them to a dealer in South Carolina.

One Cobb card alone is highly valuable. Seven cards? That’s hard to fathom.

”I doubted they were authentic because finding seven of these cards at one place at one time seemed almost impossible,” said Rick Snyder (the South Carolina dealer) of MINT State Inc. However, according to the AP, the Cobb cards were examined and appear to be the real deal.

The cards have “Ty Cobb—King of the Smoking Tobacco World” written in green ink on the back:

How rare are Cobb cards? This discovery increased the number of cards known to be in existence by nearly 50 percent.

[Associated Press via Sports Illustrated, Joe Orlando]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Come on, Freddy Galvis. You should know better than to park anywhere near the fields at spring training complexes.

With one swing of the bat Tuesday, Maikel Franco—who hit 14 home runs in 2015—taught Galvis a tough (and somewhat expensive) lesson as to where he should and shouldn’t park his car at the team’s camp in Clearwater, Florida.

Anyone who has been to a spring training complex knows it’s a park-at-your-own-risk deal. At least Galvis has a smile on his face.

[Twitter]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Anyone who thinks pitchers can’t hit obviously hasn’t seen the San Diego Padres’ James Shields with a bat in his hands.

While his career .165 batting average doesn’t jump out at you, the 34-year-old pitcher can send the ball a long way when he gets hold of a good one.

On Monday, the Padres held a friendly team competition based on situational hitting. That’s when Shields got a chance to show his stuff.

Of course, anytime a pitcher blasts the ball, an over-the-top celebration is in order. As everyone learned, Shields’ bat-flip game is second to none.

[MLB.com]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Minor leaguer Brett Phillips has been a hit at Milwaukee Brewers camp so far this spring.

It’s not because of anything he’s done on the field, though. It’s based purely on how he expresses joy.

Phillips’ teammates have found out that the 21-year-old has one of the craziest laughs you will ever hear or see. So, of course, they have to do whatever they can to get him to bust a gut, even if it means having “Mom Joke Mondays”:

Talk about a wild laugh.

The outfielder surely wishes he was turning heads at camp for his play on the field, but there’s still plenty of time for that. For now, he’s having some fun with his Internet notoriety:

For those who were kept up at night by his laughing, Phillips is truly sorry:

[Twitter]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Luxury cars are so last week.

New York Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes spent the first week of spring training putting on his own personal car show at Mets camp, driving everything from a Polaris Slingshot to an Alfa Romeo to a tricked-out Jeep. What was next for the 30-year-old?

A horse. More specifically, a horse named Candy, according to Marc Carig of Newsday:

For what it’s worth, this appears to have been Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard’s idea:

In case you were wondering, Carig also reported that Syndergaard’s horse does not have a name:

The official MLB Twitter account challenged Cespedes this past weekend to top Miguel Cabrera’s golf cart. And you better believe he responded in grand fashion.

[New York Mets]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

After New York Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes showed off his fancy rides in Florida last week, Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon was more than happy to show off his whip in Mesa, Arizona.

His style, however, isn’t quite as flashy as Cespedes’.

On Sunday, Maddon put his Arizona-themed van on display at the Cubs’ spring training complex, even posing for a photo with it. Some big leaguers may desire luxurious sports cars, but the 62-year-old skipper seems perfectly content with a classic.

Here’s a better look at the ride, via Austin Vesely (warning: caption contains profanity):

[Jesse Rogers]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com