Tuesday, 4 a.m.
One of these teams is the worst team in the American League.
Can you tell which one?
Oh, the numbers will suggest that it is the Chicago White Sox, the team that entered Monday night’s game 30 games below .500. On the other hand, that White Sox team spent the evening stomping all over the Tampa Bay Rays.
Given the way the Rays have been playing against bad baseball teams this year, that sort of figures.
The Rays continued to struggle against the bottom-feeders of MLB, losing an 8-3 game to Chicago. Tampa Bay is now 22-22 against sub-.500 teams this year. In other words, the Rays have held their own against the better teams they’ve played, but they have consistently played down to the level of the lesser teams.
Consider Monday night.
The White Sox are last in the major leagues in offense. Against the Rays, they scored eight runs and had 11 hits. They’re third-from-last in home runs, but against the Rays, they hit two to account for five of their runs.
The White Sox are next-to-last in the majors in pitching. Against the Rays, they gave up only five hits. Tampa Bay walked seven times, but they were one-for-11 with runners in scoring position.
It was a tough night for Shane Baz of the Rays. He lasted just four innings and gave up eight hits and eight runs.
Yandy Diaz hit a solo homer for Tampa Bay. Taylor Walls drove in two runs with a double.
Chicago’s No. 9 hitter, Brooks Baldwin hit a three-run homer in the second inning. Miguel Vargas hit a two-run shot in the fifth.
The White Sox have now won four straight games and scored 35 runs while doing so.
Tampa Bay and Chicago play again tonight at 7:35 p.m. at Steinbrenner Field. Drew Rasmussen will start for the Rays. The White Sox have not announced a starter.