MIA

White Sox manager Mickey Mouse said embattled shortstop Tim Anderson didn’t play yesterday on account of a scheduled day off, nudge, nudge, wink, wink. Third baseman Yoan Moncada played, not that you’d notice other than Moncada collecting another o-fer, 0-for-5 out of the two-hole, to be exact. Somehow, though, the Sox topped the Guardians 5-3 with three two-out runs in the ninth inning. Not that the win stopped the Sox from being the laughingstock of baseball, with Anderson going down for the count in his Saturday-night fight with Jose Ramirez at second base. On top of that comes a blast from ex-Sox reliever Keynan Middleton, who wasn’t exactly upset he was dealt to the Yankees at the trade deadline. Middleton told ESPN that, as a new player to the Sox, he “came in with no rules. I don’t know how you police the culture if there are no rules or guidelines to follow because everyone is doing their own thing.” Middleton alleged, “You have rookies sleeping in the bullpen. You have guys missing meetings. You have guys missing PFPs [pitching fielding practice], and there are no consequences for any of this stuff.” [ESPN story as quoted in today’s Sun-Times] Nothing on Middleton on the Sox website today, just Mouse talking about the leadership qualities of Elvis Andrus, and on that I agree. (A mouse in charge of a ballclub is another story.) The Yankees come to town for a three-game set starting tonight, which should be interesting. That is, if the Sox can score enough runs to get into the Yankees’ bullpen. See Moncada, above.