Compare and Contrast

Why do the Yankees have the best winning record in the AL and the White Sox the worst? All you had to do was look at the pitching matchup yesterday to get your answer. The Yankees always go for broke and are willing to risk signing players who don’t work out. The organization goes big because it doesn’t want to go home come the postseason. That’s why they signed Carlos Rodon to a six-year, $162 million contract before the start of last season. Rodon responded with an injury-plagued 3-8 record and 6.85 ERA. No doubt, in the world of Reinsdorf, picking up Mike Clevinger looked like a great bargain in comparison. Not this year. Yesterday afternoon in the Bronx, Rodon notched his fifth win of the season, giving up two runs in six innings of work. Chris Flexen wasn’t nearly as lucky for the Sox. Flexen struggled through four-plus innings, giving seven runs, all earned, in a 7-2 win for the Bombers and a three-game sweep of the series. The Yankees also went out and acquired outfielder Juan Soto in this, his walk-year. With Soto’s 37 RBIs already, I doubt if they’re complaining. For some reason, they took a pass on Tommy Pham. More crumbs for the bums, you could say.