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After a lengthy absence, Los Angeles Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon was back on Monday during a series-opener at home versus the visiting and reigning World Series champions Texas Rangers.
Rendon missed a total of 68 games before resurfacing in the Rangers game. A hamstring injury sustained by Rendon forced the Angels to put him on the 60-day injured list, but he's now back ready to provide what he can for the Halos, who are lagging way behind the race to the top of the American League West division.
Despite the dire situation of the Angels, Rendon can still feel happy that he's finally back in action.
“Long time coming,” Rendon shared prior to the start of the Rangers game, per the Associated Press (h/t ESPN).
“Ready to keep on going and finish the second half strong,” Rendon added.
A strong second half from Rendon and the rest of the Angels is what Los Angeles needs if it is to sniff a spot in the 2024 MLB playoffs.
The Halos, who lost to the Rangers in the series opener to the tune of a 9-4 score, are fourth in the AL West standings with just a 43-48 record. They are 11 games out of first place in their division and 12.5 games outside of the wild-card picture in the American League.
Rendon made his presence felt at the plate in his first game back, as he had an RBI single in the seventh inning to give the Angels their last run of the night. Overall, Rendon went 1-for-4 with zero walks and no strikeouts. Not too bad for someone who went straight to big-league action from injury without doing any rehab assignment.
“It's not going to take him long. He looks like he is about ready at least swinging the bat,” Angels manager Ron Washington commented after seeing Rendon play for the first time after nearly three months of absence.
It is an adventure for the Angels when it comes to Anthony Rendon
Rendon started the 2024 MLB season on a brutal hitless streak, going 0-for-19 with just a walk in his first 20 plate appearances. However, Rendon was able to turn things around and silence his critics a little bit by going 20-for-56 with three RBIs and a .426 BABIP in his next 63 plate appearances before suffering the hamstring injury during an April 20 game versus the Cincinnati Reds.
Overall this season, Rendon, who will be splitting his time between third base and designated duties in the meantime, is slashing .266/.322/.304 with just a 77 OPS+. He has yet to hit a home run, but for now, he'll have to focus on getting acclimated again to live MLB competition.
Anthony Rendon was an expensive acquisition by the Angels in 2019 when he put pen on paper for a seven-year, $245 million contract.
Before he took his talents to Los Angeles, Rendon spent his first seven years in the big leagues wearing Washington Nationals colors. He got an All-Star nod with the Nats in 2019 and won a World Serie with them in the same year.
However, good health and consistency at the late have become hard to come by for Rendon the moment he decided to move out west. Rendon has yet to play in more than 58 games in a season with the Angels.
Having lost seven of their last eight games, Rendon and the Angels will aim to have a respectable finish at least to the first half of the season, with six games left on their schedule before the All-Star break.
