Something isn’t right with Cole Ragans.
The Royals’ southpaw dealt with injuries and took a step back production-wise last season after receiving American League Cy Young votes in 2024, but his start to the 2026 MLB season is downright concerning.
Ragans has a 6.00 ERA through five starts, and there’s reason to believe it should be even higher than that.
The left-hander is still striking out hitters, averaging a punch-out per inning, but he can’t find the strike zone otherwise.
In 17 innings, Ragans has walked 14 batters and posted a 19.6 percent walk rate, which is the second-highest in baseball among hurlers with at least 15 innings pitched this season.
His last time out against the Yankees, Ragans looked completely lost, walking a whopping eight batters in just 4 ⅓ innings in a 7-0 loss.
Hitters appear to be seeing him well, too.
Ragans has allowed 2.57 home runs per nine innings during the opening month of the season, including three during his outing in The Bronx.
He’ll get a shot to get right against the Angels in Kansas City on Saturday.
Led by a resurgent season from Mike Trout, the Angels have been solid at the plate this season, posting a 105 wRC+ through Thursday’s play.
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They’ve been even better against lefties, coming into Friday’s play with a 110 wRC+ and 11 long balls, which is the third-most in the majors, versus southpaws.
Unless Ragans has flipped a switch in the past few days, he and the Royals could be in for another long day.
The play: Cole Ragans Over 1.5 earned runs (-153, DraftKings)
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Dylan Svoboda is a versatile writer and analyst across many sports. He’s particularly knowledgeable about the big three — MLB, the NFL and the NBA.
