Kansas City Royals: What to expect from Cole Ragans

Trade season has begun, as the Kansas City Royals have flipped Aroldis Chapman to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Cole Ragans and Roni Cabrera. Cabrera has been assigned to the Dominican Summer League, his second season in the league. Ragans, meanwhile, has spent some time in the big leagues the last two seasons, with poor results. Still, there are some promising numbers there for Ragans.

What do Kansas City Royals fans need to know about Cole Ragans?

Coming in to the 2023 season, Ragans showed up with significantly more fastball velocity, averaging 96.1 mph on his fastball, up from 92.1 mph in 2022. Some poor batted ball luck on the fastballs have held back the success of the new weapon. Looking at Ragans’ overall state line, batted ball luck has undercut the true talent of Ragans. While his actual ERA is an unsightly 5.92, his expected ERA is a mere 4.25.

The lefty was drafted 30th overall in 2016 by the Rangers, missing three full seasons from 2018-2020 due to injury and the pandemic. Originally developed (and debuting) as a starter, Ragans has made all 17 of his appearances out of the bullpen this season. With the Kansas City Royals in the midst of a rebuild, it makes sense for Ragans to be developed as a starter. A legit four-pitch mix is underscored by some command issues, which have surfaced more this season than in 2022.

The fastball velocity is tantalizing, and left-handers that throw this hard tend to get more chances to prove they can stick. Ragans’ fastball increase is due in large part to his work with Tread Athletics, a training company based in Charlotte, NC. Notable Tread athletes include Clay Holmes and Mitch Keller.

Now, instead of making an impact with Texas, Ragans will become a cog in the seemingly endless Royals rebuilding efforts. With a base of a strong fastball and solid breaking balls, Ragans should find a key role on the next Royals’ contender. Not bad return for a rental in Chapman.