What happened to Cole Ragans? Why Royals ace landed on injured list

The Kansas City Royals will be without one of their frontline starters for the foreseeable future. 

On Friday, the AL Central club announced that left-hander Cole Ragans was placed on the 15-day injured list due to a left elbow impingement. 

Ragans, a 2024 All-Star, exited Wednesday's start after throwing 58 pitches in just three innings. 

"After the game, he said that he felt soreness and tightness in the bottom of his triceps and elbow. He has twice undergone Tommy John surgery but said this felt different," Darragh McDonald of MLB Trade Rumors wrote. "Manager Matt Quatraro said that removing Ragans from the game was precautionary and that he could even make his next start." 

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As it turns out, Ragans' injury was far more serious than Quatraro anticipated. Ragans missed time in 2025 due to groin and rotator cuff strain, leading to just 13 starts with a 4.67 ERA. 

Two seasons ago, in his All-Star year, Ragans emerged as one of the best starters in the AL, as he posted a 3.14 ERA while leading the league with 10.8 strikeouts per nine innings in 32 starts. 

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