Michael Kopech needs Tommy John surgery

More bad news hits the Chicago White Sox as top prospect Michael Kopech needs Tommy John surgery. After his disappointing start against the Tigers on Wednesday, Kopech told the team that he felt tight before the start.

He visited the doctor today and a UCL tear was found. The team will look for a second opinion, but they expect Kopech to have surgery. This will cause Kopech to miss all of the 2019 season.

This is incredibly disappointing for White Sox fans as they may need to wait even longer for the team to be in contention for the playoffs.

Kopech’s Season

Through four starts with the White Sox, this season Kopech has a 1-1 record with a 5.02 ERA, 15 strikeouts and two walks over 14 1/3 innings. Although the ERA has ballooned after his bad start against Detroit when he felt tight before the game.

Prior to that, he was pulled from two games early and had two innings and three innings pitched respectively. He did not give up a run either of those two outings.

Kopech’s best start in those four appearances was against Detroit on August 26. Kopech went six innings allowing seven hits and one earned run. He finished with four strikeouts as well.

The White Sox will continue to monitor the situation and hopefully, Kopech can return stronger and better than ever. Kopech is the White Sox second best prospect overall.

Kopech’s impressive second half of the season helped get him called up. He finished in Triple-A with a 7-7 record with 170 strikeouts over 126.1 innings pitched. This resulted in a 3.70 ERA in 24 starts with the Knights in 2018.

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