The Cubs’ Anthony Rizzo remembers learning that he was in remission as if it were yesterday. Friday marked the eight-year anniversary of that date, and coincidentally, it’s the same day that Major League Baseball chose to raise awareness of pediatric cancer.

Carlos Rodon made it to the big leagues so quickly that he’s had to make his adjustments on the fly, and on the big stage. Over the past month, he’s begun to lean more heavily on his changeup, and he’s found tremendous success by doing so.

The September surge is a rare and beautiful sight to behold, for all but the rosters and fan bases of the team that gets toppled. That’s why we celebrate the comeback kids and the feint hope they provide for every club on the outside looking in when the calendar flips to that frantic final month.

You can almost see October from here, and isn’t that what makes September special? That’s especially true of a season in which 18 teams are still in serious contention for one of the 10 postseason berths. Let’s look down the road at these final few weeks and predict who the newsmakers will be.

Phillies No. 29 prospect Alberto Tirado was among the top prospect performers in the Minors on Thursday.

Pure sorcery.

September couldn’t come quickly enough for the Marlins. After a rough August, they were eager to flip the calendar, and they got off on the right track in the new month, holding off the Mets for a 6-4 win on Thursday night at Citi Field.

Odd as it may seem, it’s possible to contend that the Giants received a decent pitching effort Thursday night in their 5-4 loss to the Chicago Cubs.

The players listed in this piece could provide help for fantasy owners in need of stolen bases during September.

Center fielder Byron Buxton’s journey from Rochester to Minneapolis on Thursday was far more dramatic than that one sentence would suggest — a journey that began in Rochester at 3:15 a.m. and ended with him hitting a three-run homer in his first at-bat back with the Twins in Minnesota’s 8-5 victory over the White Sox.

The Pirates received Minor League pitchers Jake Brentz and Pedro Vasquez from the Mariners on Thursday, completing the Aug. 6 trade that sent reliever Arquimedes Caminero to Seattle.

Before Thursday’s game, Cubs manager Joe Maddon was asked whether he has been more impressed by Addison Russell’s offense or his defense this season. Russell answered for his manager with two outs in the seventh inning, smacking a two-run single to lift the Cubs to a 5-4 victory over the Giants and spoil Jeff Samardzija’s return to Wrigley Field.

In the White Sox version of man biting dog, Jose Quintana did not turn in a quality start during Chicago’s 8-5 loss Thursday night at Target Field, ending Minnesota’s 13-game losing streak.

Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw will pitch in a Minor League rehab game for Class A Advanced Rancho Cucamonga, most likely on Sunday, according to a baseball source. The club hasn’t confirmed the news.

Yasiel Puig is returning to the big leagues. The Dodgers are planning to recall the outfielder this weekend, a source told MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick. The club has not yet confirmed the report.

These are the unintended consequences of the moves a team makes or doesn’t make.

Sometimes, the answers are closer than they appear.