Keystone Sox

The way those last two games went in Cleveland, the White Sox must be streaming episodes of the Keystone Kops in the clubhouse, only pratfalls aren’t nearly as funny on a baseball field as they are on a Hollywood backlot. Adam Engel got thrown out at the plate with what would’ve been the tying run in Wednesday’s second game, and Luis Robert turned what could’ve been a monster inning into a mini by failing to see Jose Abreu’s double off the wall in right yesterday. It’s not often someone as fast as Robert gets nailed at the plate trying to score on an extra-base hit. Did I mention Robert was at second base? Wait, there’s more. Robert later was thrown out trying to steal. Oh, and he pulled a groin muscle trying to beat out a grounder in his last at-bat. For those of you keeping count out there, that makes four muscle-related injuries since March: Yoan Moncada; Lucas Giolito; A.J. Pollock; and Robert. Good thing the Sox fired their longtime strength and conditioning coach at the end of last season. Just imagine the injuries they’d have without the new guy. The Kops’ forte was slapstick. With Tony LaRussa, the comedy tends to the absurd, like when he said after Thursday’s game, “We were a lot more ourselves today, we played better. But they outplayed us the whole series. That happens. We took care of our business. It wasn’t good enough. [today’s Trib]” Ha-ha, No, it wasn’t.