The Daily Sweat: Angels hope Shohei Ohtani's heroics continue vs. scuffling Yankees
Even with questions about his future lingering, Shohei Ohtani continues to come up huge for the Los Angeles Angels.
Ohtani, the star two-way player, has been the subject of trade rumors as his impending free agency looms, but that had no impact on his performance at the plate on Monday vs. the New York Yankees. Ohtani went 3-for-4 in a come-from-behind victory, including launching the game-tying, two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh.
Ohtani’s home run, his league-leading 35th of the season, tied the game 3-3. The Angels went on to win 4-3 in 10 innings.
The Angels are in a precarious position. They were well within striking distance of a playoff berth for much of the first half until they lost nine of 10 going into the All-Star break. Now 47-48 on the season, they sit nine games back in the American League West and 5.5 games back in the AL wild-card standings.
The organization has to make the choice of whether to offload Ohtani in the midst of a historic season. The Aug. 1 trade deadline is fast approaching, but the tenor of those discussions could turn quickly if the Angels can start winning some games.
Could Monday night’s dramatic win be the spark the Angels need? The series with the Yankees continues Tuesday in Anaheim.
The Yankees are also off to a rough second-half start. They dropped two of three in Denver to the lowly Colorado Rockies before blowing the lead in Monday's loss to the Angels.
Despite those struggles, the Yankees are slight favorites at BetMGM in Tuesday’s showdown. With Domingo Germán on the mound, the Yankees are -115 on the moneyline, with the Angels listed at -105. The Angels will counter with lefty Patrick Sandoval.
What else is going on in MLB?
There are a lot of fun series happening in baseball.
The teams with two of the best records in the American League — the Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers — will continue their series in Arlington. The Rangers took the first game of the series 3-2 on Monday, thanks to a wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth. The Rangers are -140 favorites on Tuesday, with the Rays listed as +115 underdogs.
Elsewhere, the Baltimore Orioles host the Los Angeles Dodgers in what feels like a litmus test of sorts for the surprising O’s, who are just a game behind the Rays in the AL East. Baltimore had a 4-1 lead on Monday before the Dodgers posted a five-run sixth that included a grand slam by Chris Taylor to ultimately win the game for L.A. How will Baltimore respond? The O's are -125 home favorites Tuesday, with the Dodgers listed at +105.
Other intriguing meetings Tuesday include the start of two series featuring National League contenders. The Atlanta Braves are set to host the Arizona Diamondbacks, while the Philadelphia Phillies host the Milwaukee Brewers. The Braves are -200 favorites. The Phillies are -210.
Lookahead to the British Open
The 2023 British Open is set to begin Thursday at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club.
Rory McIlroy is currently the betting favorite at BetMGM with +700 odds. McIlroy is listed ahead of Scottie Scheffler (+750), Jon Rahm (+1200) and last year’s winner, Cameron Smith (+1600), atop the odds board.
Additionally, Brooks Koepka and Viktor Hovland are both listed at +2000, while Patrick Cantlay, Rickie Fowler and Tommy Fleetwood are all +2200 to win the Open.
