MLB Notebook: Here come the Yankees

We’re into the month of August, and now that the trade deadline has come and gone, teams are getting set for the push to the postseason. With that comes plenty of news and notes from around Major League Baseball, and here are some of the top stories!

Scherzer Debuts in Dodger Blue

Max Scherzer was shipped west by the Washington Nationals and made his first start for the reigning champs Wednesday at Dodger Stadium. He was as effective as ever, throwing seven strong innings and recording 10 strikeouts in a 7-5 win over the Houston Astros.

While the Dodgers would be in the playoffs if they began today, they remain 3.5 games behind the San Francisco Giants in the NL West and would need to battle as a wild card team.

Here Come the Yankees

Much has been made of the Bronx Bombers and their struggle to rise far above .500 for most of the season. However, the Yankees have caught fire of late, winning seven of their last nine games to improve to 58-49.

New acquisition Anthony Rizzo has been a big part of the success, as he’s gone 8-for-20 with three homers since being traded by the Chicago Cubs. There is, however, still work to do, as New York trails Tampa Bay by six games in the AL East standings.

Rendon Out For the Year

Despite the success of Shohei Ohtani, it’s been a long year for the Los Angeles Angels, who have played most of the season without superstar Mike Trout. Wednesday brought more bad news, as Anthony Rendon was ruled out for the rest of the 2021 campaign.

He’ll finish the season with a career-low .240 batting average, and his OPS of .712 is his lowest such number since 2015.

Going for the Gold

It’s not technically an MLB news item, but Team USA is still in contention for a gold medal at the Olympics. A 3-1 win over the Dominican Republic Wednesday pushed the Americans to the semifinal round, where they clobbered South Korea 7-2.

The U.S. is now just one more win away from a gold and will face Japan in the finals.