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It turns out that Kansas City Royals pitcher Cole Ragans' stay on the injured list will be almost as short as possible.
The left-handed pitcher will start for the Royals on Thursday against the St. Louis Cardinals, according to MLB.com's Anne Rogers. That will mark just 20 days after he went on the 15-day IL.
Ragans last pitched for Kansas City on May 16, allowing four runs in five innings — coincidentally, also against the Cardinals. He went on the IL the next day with a left groin strain. He made a rehab start for Double-A Northwest Arkansas on May 31, allowing five runs on seven hits in 3.2 innings.
Despite the poor numbers, Ragans is ready to rejoin the team. As Royals manager Matt Quataro said before Ragans' rehab start, it's about his lefty getting his work in.
“He’s also continued to throw the whole time so his arm is in a good spot,” Quatraro said, per Yahoo's Jaylon Thompson. “Just hoping he stresses the leg enough to make sure that he is good. He really has been getting on it in the bullpen. Don’t really anticipate anything. He just needs to get back out there on the mound.”
Ragans, who was an All-Star in 2024, got off to a frustrating start to 2025. In nine starts, he struck out 72 batters in only 45.2 innings and had a 6.8 percent walk rate. That contributed to a FIP of just 1.98, yet his ERA was 4.53 and the Royals went 4-5 in his starts.
Adding to his frustrations, the groin ailment has bothered him throughout the season. The Royals skipped one of his starts in April as he dealt with it as well.
Thankfully for the Royals, they've gotten plenty of production from rookie Noah Cameron in Ragans' stead. Cameron has made four starts, pitching to a 1.05 ERA and a 0.818 WHIP. He became only the second pitcher since 1893 to go at least 6.1 innings in his first four starts and allow one run or fewer in each, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
