[0] WRAPPED IN GARLAND WHITE SOX GET THE JUMP ON ANGELS CHICAGO 6, ANGELS 5.

Byline: Gordon Verrell Staff Writer

The Angels' ``Christmas in July'' promotion Thursday night at Edison Field went over about like you'd expect.

Duh.

The Angels, it turned out, were in far too much of a giving mood - three errors, a passed ball, allowing an astounding 18 hits - and the Chicago White Sox, a good many of whom are fuzzy-cheeked enough to still believe in Santa Claus, ate the cookies, drank the milk and were squarely on target to regain their distinction of the winningest team in baseball.

The White Sox, who started the day with a 62-39 record, same as the Atlanta Braves, beat the Angels 6-5 before 24,394.

The Angels were trying to avoid their third loss in a row, which would match their longest losing streak of the season, while the White Sox, runaway leaders in the American League Central, were attempting to win for only the second time in seven games.

Both managers, the Angels' Mike Scioscia and the White Sox' Jerry Manuel - who undoubtedly are 1-2, or 2-1, for the A.L. Manager of the Year derby - turned to a couple of youngsters on the mound in hopes of getting back on the right track.

Scioscia went with 25-year-old Brian Cooper, and Manuel started right-hander Jon Garland, at 20 the youngest pitcher in the big leagues.

Garland, who prepped at Kennedy High in Granada Hills, got by far the best of it.

Cooper was knocked out in the fifth, after surrendering Chris Singleton's two-run homer that jolted the White Sox on top, 6-0. Cooper also gave up a two-run homer in the fifth to Herbert Perry and, in all, was tagged for 10 hits in just 4 2/3 innings.

Cooper, who made his big league debut against the White Sox last September - and won, 14-1 - has allowed six home runs in his last 18 2/3 innings.

Meantime, Garland restricted the Angels to just three singles and no runs the first four innings.

``He's not the type to go overboard,'' Manuel said of Garland. ``This is his first time in California (while with the White Sox), and I'm sure he has lots of family and friends coming to the game. He'll handle it.''

Garland certainly handled the Angels well early on.

But in the fifth his control faltered - he walked the first two batters - and, along with an error by shortstop Jose Valentin on a double-play grounder, singles by Adam Kennedy and Darin Erstad, the Angels came away with four runs to scramble back into the game.

Erstad knocked in two of them, his 74th and 75th RBI of the season, only seven shy of his career best two years ago.

Garland got his touch back in the sixth, a 1-2-3 inning.

``There's some sense of it, sure,'' Manuel said beforehand, when asked if he had concerns over his youthful pitching staff.

``I'm not so concerned as I am cautious. There's still a lot to be done, a ways to go.

``We've never been here (this far in first place) before . . . there's no history. With youth what you get is the unexpected. It brings energy, but it also brings the unexpected.''

Like the fifth inning, when the Angels suddenly had Garland on the ropes. But they couldn't get in the knockout punch, and Garland left after six innings with a two-run lead.

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Photo: (color) White Sox baserunner John Valentin heads for third after errant throw allowed him to take an extra base on a steal.

John Hayes/Associated Press