KANSAS CITY -- For the second time in the last three weeks, Cole Ragans left a start early with left groin tightness in the Royals’ 10-3 loss to the Cardinals on Friday night at Kauffman Stadium. He was subsequently placed on the 15-day injured list on Saturday.
The ace threw his final fastball of the night in the sixth inning at 89.5 mph, well below his 95.5 mph average this season. He came into the I-70 Series opener with his heater averaging 95.5 mph, which caused everyone in the Royals’ dugout to be on alert when he was far from that number in parts of the fifth and sixth.
“Everybody saw it,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “Salvy [Perez] was pointing it out, we saw it. Even a couple pitches in the fifth. But it just tightened up on him, so he couldn’t really get down the hill.”
Masyn Winn tagged Ragans for a single to begin the sixth, which sailed over the left-hander’s head and into center field. Ragans made a sudden movement with his body to reach up and try to catch the ball, but he did not appear to be in any visible pain. He exited after speaking with Quatraro and a trainer -- a meeting at the mound which originated because of that velocity dip.
“Definitely [could tell] in that last inning,” said Vinnie Pasquantino, who hit a career-long 448-foot home run into the fountains in right-center field in the fourth inning. “I mean, I hear a fastball in my ear and it’s reading his changeups, and they’re like 88 [mph]. You kind of know something is going on. But up until then, no. I thought he looked pretty sharp.”
It’s been a frustrating start to the season for Ragans, who exited a start with cramps against the Guardians on April 13, before having to skip a start on April 30 due to a mild left groin strain.
“Kind of the same as last time,” Ragans said. “Just stiffened up on me a little bit in the fifth, and then just didn’t get loose in the sixth. I just couldn’t use my legs. Obviously, it affects anything rotation, lower half.
“Not able to be myself out there, have my best stuff. Very frustrating.”
The Royals’ pitching plans were already thwarted pregame when it was announced that Seth Lugo will skip his turn in the rotation while he deals with inflammation in his right middle finger. The bullpen had to cover four innings on Friday, and now Kansas City will rely on Noah Cameron in his second big league start to provide much-needed length on Saturday.
The Royals also placed Taylor Clarke on the paternity list, leaving the club down two starters and a reliever by the end of the Friday night. With Kyle Wright, who was recalled from his rehab assignment this month with right shoulder fatigue, and Alec Marsh, who experienced a setback in his rehab, not close to a return, Ragans’ injury could force Kansas City’s depth to be tested.
Luinader Avila (No. 19 prospect) and Jonathan Bowlan, who transitioned to a reliever this offseason, are potential arms on the 40-man roster if Ragans misses any time. Thomas Hatch and Chandler Champlain (No. 20 prospect) are also at Triple-A Omaha.
It's a potentially difficult spot for the Royals, who rely on the pitching staff -- which has MLB’s second-best team ERA (3.16) -- to win a majority of games. The fact that Kansas City now has question marks about two starters who finished in the top four of the AL Cy Young Award voting a year ago is not lost on a lineup which has scored the fourth-fewest runs (157) in the big leagues.
“Just have to approach every day as a new day, and just try to find a way to put up a crooked number anyway you can,” Pasquantino said, who is hitting .297 with three homers in May. “I think in that aspect, it’s disappointing that Lugo can’t make the start, but I know we got guys coming and we got a lot of confidence in those guys. And yeah, we just got to do a better job offensively putting up crooked numbers.”
Ragans has recorded an out in the sixth inning just twice in his nine starts. He failed to get an out in the sixth just eight times over 32 starts a year ago. But still, the Royals need him on the mound every five days -- and Lugo, too -- if this team is going to reach its potential.
“Clearly we want those guys out there when we can, right?” Quatraro said. “Having Cameron making his second start, that’ll be good. We have a lot of confidence in him, but we want Cole and Lugo to make as many starts as we can. But we will figure out what to do if they can’t go.”