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Kansas City Royals Hurler Passes Yet Another Name in Team History

The Kansas City Royals lost to the New York Yankees on Wednesday night, but pitcher Cole Ragans turned in another solid performance on the mound.

Brady Farkas

Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Cole Ragans (55) delivers a pitch against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning at Kauffman Stadium on Sept 6.
Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Cole Ragans (55) delivers a pitch against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning at Kauffman Stadium on Sept 6. / Denny Medley-Imagn Images
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The Kansas City Royals lost to the New York Yankees on Wednesday night, 4-3, in extra-innings. The loss dropped KC to 80-67 on the season. They maintain a 1.5 game lead over the Minnesota Twins for the second wild card spot and are still in good position to make the playoffs for the first time since 2015.

Though he didn't factor into the decision, Royals lefty Cole Ragans delivered another solid start on the mound. The 2024 All-Star went 6.0 innings, giving up just two earned runs on three hits. He walked one and struck out seven.

With the seven punchouts, he passed yet another name in team history.

Per @StatsCentre:

Most single season strikeouts in @Royals franchise history (1969-):
244- Dennis Leonard (1977)
242- Zack Greinke (2009)
211- Cole Ragans (2024 as he collected 7 Ks over 6 innings of work on Wednesday vs NYY)
207- Kevin Appier (1996)
206- Bob Johnson (1970)
198- Steve Busby (1974)

Ragans is 11-9 this season with an impressive 3.32 ERA. Those 211 strikeouts have come in 173.1 innings.

Traded to the Royals at the trade deadline in 2023 from the Texas Rangers, Ragans has become one of the best left-handed starters in the American League. He's 26 years old and should help anchor the Royals rotation for years to come.

The Royals are off on Thursday but will be back in action on Friday night against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park. First pitch is set for 6:40 p.m. ET.

At this time, the Royals haven't announced a starting pitcher.

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Brady Farkas

BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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