TMZ Sports - Page 50

Darryl Strawberry's not living up to his name ... because according to a new lawsuit, he stiffed a produce company on a massive fruit and vegetable bill -- to the tune of $2,694.

New V&J Produce Corp has filed a lawsuit against Strawberry and his NYC restaurant Strawberry's Sports Grill, claiming it recently made multiple produce shipments to the establishment worth a total of $2,694.

According to the lawsuit, V&J has made several attempts to recover what it's owed ... but Strawberry has yet to pay up.

V&J is now suing for the full sum, plus $500 in attorneys' fees ... a total of $3,194. That's a lot of produce.

NFL star Aaron Hernandez has NOT been identified as a suspect in the shooting of Alexander S. Bradley ... but that could change ... cops tell TMZ.

We broke the story ... Hernandez has been sued by Bradley, who claims the New England Patriots tight end shot him in the face and left him to die back in February.

Cops tell TMZ ... ever since the incident, Bradley has been extremely uncooperative with investigators -- and has refused to identify his assailant ... until he pointed the finger at Hernandez in his lawsuit, which he filed last week.

So what does it mean for the investigation? The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Dept. tells us ... it doesn't mean much.

In fact, we're told cops have no plans to meet with Hernandez ... and have neither named him a suspect nor a person of interest in the shooting.

And why not? With an uncooperative witness and no hard evidence ... it's a safe bet investigators don't feel they have a strong enough case to go after the NFL star.

Of course, plans could change ... but for now, it seems unlikely Hernandez will be prosecuted.

2:45 PM PT -- Cops tell TMZ, Hernandez has NOT yet been identified as a suspect in the shooting, but that could change.

11:55 AM PT -- According to police reports, obtained by TMZ, the victim was discovered outside of a John Deere store in Riviera Beach, FL on Feb 13 around 6:48 AM.

The manager of the store, who found Bradley, says the victim was bleeding from his head and one of his hands.

According to the police report, Bradley instructed the John Deere employee to call 911 and warned -- "Tell them to hurry -- I'm gonna bleed out."

When the employee tried to ask Bradley if he knew who shot him, Bradley replied, "I'm done talking -- it hurts too bad."

Emergency responders raced to the scene -- but when they arrived, Bradley was being difficult ... refusing to cooperate and being "rude" to personnel.

Eventually, cops say Bradley identified his attackers as being "both Hispanic and black males."

According to the police report, he never identified Hernandez by name.

10:34 AM PT -- Sources connected to the case tell us ... Bradley's legal team only dismissed the case because there was an error in the paperwork ... and they FULLY plan to REFILE the lawsuit TODAY.

We're also told ... Bradley will argue that the bullet initially struck him in the arm and continued traveling through his body until it struck him in the face .... blowing out his eyeball.

New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was sued earlier this month for allegedly shooting a man in the face following an altercation at a Miami strip club ... TMZ has learned.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Florida on June 13 -- five days before investigators searched the NFL star's Massachusetts home in connection with a homicide investigation that appears to be unrelated.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Hernandez and Alexander S. Bradley went to Tootsie's Cabaret in Miami on February 13, 2013 ... and during the outing, the two men got into an argument.

Bradley claims ... After the dispute, both men left the club -- and got into the same car which was heading to Palm Beach. During the ride, Aaron allegedly aimed his weapon at Bradley ... and the gun discharged, striking Bradley in the face.

Bradley claims he suffered major injuries from the gunshot ... including the loss of his right eye.

Bradley also claimed he required major surgery to reconstruct his face ... which required plates and screws. Bradley also claims he suffered damage to his right hand and arm, which also required surgery.

There's more -- Bradley claims Aaron was not licensed to carry a firearm in the first place.

Bradley demanded more than $100,000.

But just 4 days after Bradley filed the lawsuit, the case was DISMISSED.

We reached out to Aaron's people for comment -- so far, no word back.

Serena Williams isn't exactly apologizing for the incendiary comments she allegedly made about the Steubenville rape victim ... because she's not entirely sure she said them, at least that's the way it seems from the BS statement she just released.

Williams came under fire this week over an article printed in Rolling Stone ... in which the tennis superstar is quoted as saying, "[the Steubenville rape victim] shouldn’t have put herself in that position" on the night she was raped at a high school party.

But moments ago, Williams issued a statement on her website -- in which she takes NO responsibility for the comments ... and suggests she may not have ever said them at all.

"I am currently reaching out to the girl’s family to let her know that I am deeply sorry for what was written in the Rolling Stone article. What was written – what I supposedly said – is insensitive and hurtful, and I by no means would say or insinuate that she was at all to blame."

When the Heat and the Spurs went into OT during last night's dramatic Game 6 of the NBA Finals ... Dwight Howard was busy eating dinner -- telling TMZ he didn't have the stomach to watch.

Howard hit up Crustacean in Beverly Hills last night -- at the very same time LeBron and Co. were taking on Tony Parker and the rest of San Antonio.

Sources inside the restaurant tell us ... The L.A. Lakers star (at least for now) was nowhere near the TV during the game ... and focused on dinner with his buddies the entire time.

On his way out of the restaurant, Dwight explained why he chose not to watch -- telling us, "I'm not watching ... I'm not playing so ain't no need to be [watching]."

He added, "I don't want to see nobody win a championship."

49ers QB Colin Kaepernick is totally jacked up for next season -- after losing the Super Bowl this year -- showing off his beefy man arms in a black tank top today during a sunny stroll in L.A.

Chad Johnson headbutted ex-wife Evelyn Lozada so hard during their infamous domestic dispute last year, she was left with a massive bloody gash on her forehead -- and TMZ has obtained photographic evidence.

The photos were taken by Davie Police in the Florida emergency room where Evelyn was transported following Chad's attack on August 11th, 2012. According to police, the forehead laceration measured 3 inches.

TMZ broke the story ... Johnson was arrested for domestic violence shortly after the explosive argument at his Jupiter, FL mansion. Evelyn filed for divorce three days later.

Following the arrest, Chad pled "no contest" to the domestic violence charge and was sentenced to 12 months probation and domestic violence classes.

Chad was thrown back in the slammer last week after slapping his lawyer's backside during a sentencing hearing.

He was released again yesterday following a probation violation sentencing hearing. During the hearing, the judge called the head gash photos "horrific."

Former NBA superstar Allen Iverson has returned his kids to their mother ... and insists he was NEVER holding them hostage in the first place ... at least that's what A.I. claimed in court last week.

We broke the story ... Iverson's ex-wife filed court docs insisting Allen had all 5 of their kids holed up at an Atlanta hotel and refused to hand them over to their mother on the designated swap date.

But TMZ has learned ... Allen appeared in Fulton County court in Georgia last Wednesday and told the judge his ex-wife had full access to their kids during their stay at the hotel ... and therefore he wasn't doing anything wrong. We're told Tawanna also testified that she could have picked up the children from Allen but didn't want to drive 45 minutes to his location.

After A.I.'s testimony, the judge decided the former Philadelphia 76ers star didn't deserve to be thrown in jail -- despite his ex-wife's request before the hearing. The kids -- ranging from ages 3 to 16 -- were returned to their mother following the hearing.

In fact, sources connected to the case tell TMZ ... Allen and his ex have worked out some of their issues ... and she has already allowed Allen to spend more private time with the kids.

So far, no comment from either side.

Chad Johnson has just been released from jail in Florida for slapping his attorney on the ass last week -- and get this ... on his way out, he called his judge a "blessing in disguise" for throwing him back in the slammer.

It's pretty remarkable -- Chad says he's THANKFUL for the time he's had in the pokey the last week, telling reporters, "I had a lot of time to reflect. A lot of time to think about where I've been, where I am now, and where I'm going."

But the craziest part ... he says, "A lot of people have tried to get me to slow down in life. Coaches, my agent, my lawyer. And there was one person that was able to do it. And that was my judge Ms. McHugh."

He added, "Little does she know, I love her to death. Basically what she's been is a blessing in disguise."

Which is crazy because practically everyone else on the planet felt like she overreacted big time.

It's the stuff that caused a war between Kobe Bryant and his parents -- a collection of the NBA star's tacky jewelry, shoes and jerseys -- and now it's officially up for auction.

A diamond-encrusted NBA Championship ring complete with the words "Bling Bling" engraved on the side ... prototypes of Kobe's shoes ... Bryant's high school jersey -- it's all up for sale.

As we previously reported, Kobe sued his mom to prevent her from selling the memorabilia ... claiming she had no ownership rights to the merchandise.

But Pamela Bryant -- along with her husband Jellybean -- fought back ... claiming Kobe had gifted the stuff to them over the years and they had every right to sell it.

Last week, the two sides hammered out a settlement agreement ... in which Kobe allowed his folks to sell off 10% of what they had originally tried to auction ... and the items are pretty interesting.

US Open winner Justin Rose -- the first English golfer to win the tournament in 43 years -- definitely isn't Jewish ... because he celebrated his historic victory last night with the least Kosher meal of all-time.

The owner of The Gypsy Saloon in West Conshohocken, PA, tells TMZ, 32-year-old Rose and his crew dropped by last night after he took the title -- beating out Phil Mickelson by two shots -- and ate "like a king."

We're told the kitchen had been closed for hours by the time Rose and his team got there, but the owner fired everything back up just for the new champ ... dishing out heaping plates of lobster mac and cheese, strawberry and caprese salad, calamari, wings, NY strip steak, chicken, pasta, and eggplant rolls.

No surprise, we're told Rose was in great spirits the entire meal -- chatting up the waitresses and other customers -- and the champagne did flow.

We're told Rose was with a party of 6 (including his wife) and the bill came to $550 ... plus a "very generous" tip. The trophy didn't leave his side for a second.

As for Tiger Woods ... dude didn't even crack the top 10.

Terrell Suggs is no punk bitch ... and tells TMZ if Vladimir Putin ever tried to jack his Super Bowl ring (a la Robert Kraft) ... he'd MAN UP and get it back.

The Baltimore Ravens badass was leaving Boa in Hollywood this weekend ... when we asked how he would react if he was in Kraft's shoes when the Russian prez reportedly strong-armed the New England Patriots owner out of his ring during a 2005 encounter.

(FYI -- Putin's people swear Kraft offered the ring as a gift. Suuuuure.)

"I would get it right back," Suggs said ... "He would give me MINE back for sure."

When we insinuated that Putin was "kind of a scary guy," Suggs shot back -- "That's OK. I know a lot of scary guys."

Whether you're one of the top men's soccer players or the best women's tennis player on the planet, a ribbed set of abs makes the game a little easier.

Here's Cristiano Ronaldo and Serena Williams, tanning their toned bodies separately in Miami this weekend.

Game, set, match.

Chad Johnson will be a free man TODAY ... because the judge who sent his ass to jail has agreed to release the former NFL star, 1 week after the infamous butt slap.

Johnson appeared in a Florida courtroom today ... where he faced off with Judge McHugh -- the judge who tore him a new one after he slapped his attorney's ass in open court during last week's hearing.

Johnson was brought into the courtroom wearing handcuffs ... and from the moment the hearing began, the judge blasted Chad for his history of disrespectful behavior.

But after the scolding, the judge agreed to release Johnson today -- but extended his probation by one month ... meaning he won't be in the clear until October 16.

During today's hearing, the judge also revisited the 2012 domestic abuse incident involving his ex-wife Evelyn Lozada -- and said what he did to her was "horrific."

Story developing ...

Former NBA star Allen Iverson has abducted his own children ... so says his ex-wife, and now she's begging the court to force Allen to give them back.

Tawanna Iverson just filed legal docs, claiming Allen recently asked for permission to take their five kids on a short vacation to Charlotte, NC from May 22nd-May 26th (and Tawanna agreed) but when May 26th rolled around, the children hadn't been returned.

The kids range in age from 3 to 16 years old.

In the docs, Tawanna says she tried to set up an exchange on June 4th at a neutral location -- a nearby Target store -- but A.I. never showed up.

Tawanna -- who has sole legal and primary physical custody of their children -- now believes Allen never took their kids to Charlotte at all ... and is currently keeping them at a Sheraton hotel in Georgia.

Tawanna claims she's especially concerned because Allen's an alcoholic who drinks around their kids.

She now wants the court to force him to return the kids ... and punish him as well, even suggesting the judge lock him up in jail.

It's not the first time she's tried to get Iverson locked up ... she had previously begged the court to send him to the pokey for allegedly not paying more than $40,000 in child support.

George Lucas thinks he won an "NCAA" award for his movie "Red Tails" ... which is incredible since he neither rebounds nor shoots well from the paint.

Lucas was accepting his first Emmy for his animated series "Star Wars: Clone Wars" ... when he TRIED to reference the NAACP award he won earlier this year for his WWII drama about the Tuskegee Airmen.