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White Sox cap forgettable Friday with 5-2 loss to Angels

Not a good day for the White Sox.

Before playing the first of three games against the Angels Friday night at Guaranteed Rate Field, news broke that rising star Michael Kopech likely needs Tommy John surgery and is out until the 2020 season.

"Tough news," starting rotation mate Carlos Rodon said. "Luckily he's young. He's 22 and the kid works really hard. Tough break when you first get called up and that happens. It happens. You just have to roll with it."

Rodon came back strong from shoulder surgery, returning to the Sox's roster on June 9. But after a string of nine straight quality starts, Rodon has slipped in his last two.

The left-hander never got on track in the Sox's 5-2 loss to Los Angeles at Guaranteed Rate Field.

"No fastball command," Rodon said after allowing 4 runs on 6 hits and 5 walks in 4⅔ innings. "I mean, the first inning went pretty good. I wish the whole game went that way. Just no feel for nothing."

Returning to the lineup after missing four straight games with right knee discomfort, Avisail Garcia was 2-for-2 with a home run. He also walked and was hit by a pitch as the White Sox's designated hitter.

"We're going to continue to use him and see if he's comfortable enough to manage the discomfort," manager Rick Renteria said. "But he wants to play. We're going to have to be very mindful of how he's doing and give him an opportunity to kind of recover a little bit. He's going to have good days and bad days like everybody. It's just the normal wear and tear of the body."

Next arm up:

Like everybody else, manager Rick Renteria was blindsided by Friday's news on Michael Kopech needing Tommy John surgery.

"Very tough for all of us," Renteria said.

Renteria is not yet sure who is going to take Kopech's spot in the starting rotation.

Dylan Covey is the obvious option. The right-hander made 17 starts before being moved to the bullpen when Kopech joined the Sox on Aug. 21.

Hector Santiago is another candidate to start over the final three weeks of the season.

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