CHICAGO -- It’s difficult to find the joy in work when struggling at your craft, as Michael Kopech did during the White Sox 5-0 loss to the Guardians Sunday afternoon at Guaranteed Rate Field.

A more confident and upbeat focus becomes one of the many goals for the right-hander to target over the final two months of this 2023 season.

“Sometimes, you go out there and try to take things lightly, and then a home run or two happens and it’s real easy to get frustrated again,” Kopech said. “[I] try to be even keeled, try not to get too high or too low.

“[I] still remember that it’s a game we get to play for a living. [I'm] still very grateful to be out on the field. Unfortunately, I’m just not getting the results I need right now.”

For the fifth start this season, Kopech walked at least five. He finished with three runs allowed on four hits and five walks with just two strikeouts over five innings and 93 pitches (45 strikes).

Four of those five walks came in the second when he threw 10 straight pitches out of the zone to Steven Kwan, Andrés Giménez and José Ramírez, with the Giménez walk forcing in a run. To Kopech’s credit, he struck out Ramírez to strand the bases loaded and keep the White Sox (43-64) in the game.

That damage started with two outs and Oscar Gonzalez on first. It left Kopech at a loss to assess what happened aside from grinding through the frame with as little damage as possible.

“I’ve got to just find a groove to take one good inning to the next,” Kopech said. “That starts one pitch at a time. Right now, when a pitch gets away from me and I’m looking to fight myself back into it instead of just trusting the stuff. Trust my stuff that I’ll be able to do what I’ve been able to do in the past. Right now, it’s inconsistent.”

“He's just got to go out there and really enjoy pitching and not put so much pressure on himself,” White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. “We've all seen him go out there and just have a lot of fun and be electric. He's an important piece moving forward and we've got to get him to that point consistently."

Kopech ranks second in the Majors with 63 walks over 102 1/3 innings. He also sits tied for fourth with 24 home runs allowed.

Ramírez and Kwan both homered off Kopech (4-10). His average fastball velocity checked in at 93.1 mph, according to Statcast, which was down 2.4 mph compared to the year’s average. At one point in the second inning, Grifol had the training staff check on Kopech with his fastball in the 90, 91 mph range, but received the reassurance he was physically fine.

Sixty of his 93 pitches were fastballs.

“Yeah, I was backing up a lot of sliders. [Throwing] a lot of changeups,” Kopech said. “[I] rely on my fastball as my go-to pitch and unfortunately, they have that report on the other side, too, so I’m trying to get back in the zone with my fastball and they were ready for one.

“When that happens and I’m falling behind, seeking heaters, they’re going to get it every now and then. I’ve got to do a better job of getting ahead and being able to use my secondaries.”

Declan Cronin followed Kopech by allowing a two-run Ramírez home run over two innings. After Sammy Peralta threw a scoreless eighth, Edgar Navarro finished with a scoreless ninth. Cronin and Navarro both made their Major League debuts.

Cronin was a 36th round selection in the 2019 MLB Draft, while Navarro earned much praise from Grifol during his Spring Training work.

“I felt good, I thought it was fun,” said Navarro, who struck out two, through interpreter Billy Russo. “But my heart was definitely beating very very fast.”

“It’s been a goal for a really long time and a lot of work went into it and a lot of people went into it,” Cronin said. “So, feels like the culmination of a lot and also the start of a lot as well. It’s fantastic to be here.”

These young hurlers will have a chance to prove themselves. Kopech will have more chances to find himself on the mound.

“I’m trying to figure things out and not doing a great job putting this team in a good position to win,” Kopech said. “There’s a lot to assess and a lot to figure out.”