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Today’s Headlines
99 meets 693
Monday’s NL Central clash between the Cubs and Cardinals was a numbers game for St. Louis fans. In the end, the decisive digits were 1-0 — as in, a shutout W that helped the Cards extend their division lead. But along the way, a little magic was sprinkled in. It began with this seventh-inning blast by none other than Albert Pujols, which gave a lead to the team and one step closer to 700 for Albert.
No. 693 for The Machine! pic.twitter.com/lML3bMFgxY
— MLB (@MLB) August 23, 2022
Incredibly, Pujols latest hot streak is actually one of the best of his storied career. Fresh off being named Co-NL Player of the Week, he just keeps racking up bullet points for the history books:
they don't call him "The Machine" for nothing 🤖 pic.twitter.com/51MaZWneke
— Cut4 (@Cut4) August 23, 2022
Pujols’ shot nearly overshadowed another brilliant accomplishment: a complete-game, 99-pitch “Maddux” shutout by Jordan Montgomery:
Jordan Montgomery with a Maddux, throwing 99 pitches in a shutout! pic.twitter.com/zUUjLV33i0
— MLB (@MLB) August 23, 2022
He’s been lights-out since joining the Cardinals at the trade deadline, but the sub-100-pitch SHO was the first of Montgomery’s career.
Subway Series Takes Off
The game of the night on paper was in the Bronx, where two 75-plus-win squads teed off for the first of two games. The struggling Yankees managed to get on the board early against Max Scherzer and the Mets, and they made it 2-0 on this key blast by a fella named Judge:
#AllRise for No. 47! pic.twitter.com/QvnXhQ5Ce6
— MLB (@MLB) August 23, 2022
Domingo German was excellent for the home team, but he did serve up this seventh-inning blast to Daniel Vogelbach that cut the lead back to one run:
Daniel Vogelbach makes 'em pay with a 2-run bomb 💪@Mets | #MLBNShowcase pic.twitter.com/1C172ygVru
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) August 23, 2022
The Yanks ultimately came away with a 4-2 win, as Jonathan Loaisiga came through for the save in the ninth. They’ll need to win again today in order to even up the season series, but it won’t be against Jacob deGrom.
A Max Extension
The Dodgers were busy on Monday, and not just battling the Brewers. The front office signed veteran infielder Max Muncy to a one-year contract extension with an option for 2024. The deal will keep Muncy in Dodger blue for at least one more year, delaying his impending free-agency.
“It means everything to me.” – Max Muncy, who is wearing a new shirt in addition to his extension. pic.twitter.com/pDGd67n1eL
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) August 22, 2022
Muncy has been hot of late, posting a 223 wRC+ in August. The Dodgers are banking on seeing more of that in the future from the former All-Star.
Best Moments from Yesterday
Only nine games went down on Monday, but we still got our fair share of enjoyable moments. Some of them even happened on the field!
Twins’ Outs are Triplets
For the second time this season, the Minnesota Twins turned a triple play. Check out this beauty turned by Jose Miranda and Carlos Correa:
🚨 TRIPLE PLAY 🚨 pic.twitter.com/Up9rAH10cJ
— MLB (@MLB) August 23, 2022
The triple-killing was the 17th in Twins franchise history, and the second consecutive from the same team in Major League Baseball this season.
The Little Things
Atlanta handed the Pirates a 2-1 defeat on Monday, but for one fan, they granted another memory entirely. Bally Sports captured this sweet moment between Ronald Acuna Jr. and a young fan:
The smallest gesture can make a fan for life 🥹 pic.twitter.com/Asd2hXwKFg
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) August 23, 2022
You can bet his friends will be hearing about that one today.
Double the Trout, Please
Mike Trout came through in the clutch last night, tying the game in Tampa with this RBI single:
.@MikeTrout RBI: ✅@Angels: On the board: ✅ pic.twitter.com/fCPelLuH36
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) August 23, 2022
But upon closer inspection, something much more interesting happened here. Trout actually hit the ball twice on that swing, altering its trajectory:
https://gfycat.com/uniqueimperturbablegoose
Unsurprisingly, the Angels still lost.
Worst Moment from Yesterday
This Guy
Ballpark food and drink etiquette can be a contentious subject, but hopefully we can all agree that this sort of behavior is unacceptable:
Life sentence. No parole.
(via NewYorkNico / IG) pic.twitter.com/Y24wnYmdbc
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) August 23, 2022
Injuries
- Aaron Ashby hit the 10-day IL with shoulder inflammation, knocking him out until September.
- Bryce Harper is set to begin his rehab assignment at Triple-A on Tuesday. Woo!
- After missing his last start in Pittsburgh, Nathan Eovaldi is now headed to the 15-day IL with neck/shoulder soreness. Josh Winckowski is taking his place on the roster.
Articles You Should Read
The Yankees’ summer slump, explained — Mike Petriello, MLB.com
Randall’s 1st year playing baseball culminates with her reaching LLWS — Anna Laible, MLB.com
Little League Classic: What happens when major leaguers live out their Williamsport dream — Dan Connolly, The Athletic
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