After feeling discomfort during a throwing session, Royals left-hander Cole Ragans is headed for testing, manager Matt Quatraro told reporters, including Jaylon Thompson of the Kansas City Star. Ragans is working his way back from an elbow impingement. His rehab process has already been paused once due to renewed elbow stiffness.
“Cole woke up yesterday, not feeling as well arm-wise,” Quatraro said, relayed by Thompson. “So, when he came out to play catch yesterday, he had to cut it short. So we’re going to get him some more testing in the next couple of days.”
Ragans has been out since early May. He made one rehab appearance on May 23, tossing 4 1/3 innings with Triple-A Omaha. He “did not recover well” from that outing, Quatraro said at the time. Ragans hasn’t been back on the mound in a competitive setting since then.
The latest setback for Ragans puts a return before the All-Star break in doubt. He’d likely need multiple rehab starts to round back into form, and he doesn’t sound particularly close to pitching in an actual game. The additional testing could dictate next steps for the lefty.
Ragans made a career-high 32 starts in his first full season with Kansas City in 2024. Injuries have marred the last two seasons. Ragans missed a few weeks with a groin strain in 2025. He returned for one start, then went right back on the injured list with a rotator cuff strain. The shoulder injury cost Ragans three months. He did come back for three encouraging starts to close the year, racking up 22 strikeouts across 13 innings. Ragans has been limited to eight starts this season.
Kansas City is dealing with several absences in the rotation. Left-hander Kris Bubic is out with elbow soreness. He made a rehab start earlier this week, but experienced shoulder discomfort after the outing. Righty Seth Lugo is on the seven-day concussion IL after taking a Brandon Nimmo liner to the forehead. The Royals added Stephen Kolek and Luinder Avila to the rotation with Ragans and Bubic out. The club has yet to sort out a replacement for Lugo. They don’t have an off-day until next Saturday, so they’ll need to find someone to fill the spot. Mitch Spence could be an option to return to the big-league team, though he’s struggled at Triple-A.
Photo courtesy of Jay Biggerstaff, Imagn Images
