Final Score MIA 1 | KCR 4
Overall Record 43-37 (3rd Place, 9 GB)
Winning/Losing Pitcher
- W: Cole Ragans (5-5, 3.03 ERA)
- L: Roddery Munoz (1-3, 5.80 ERA)
- SV: James McArthur (13)
Royals Player of the Game
Cole Ragans – 6 IP, 4 H, ER, 3 BB, 11 K
Ragans was absolutely lights out in this start against the Marlins. It is one of the best Ragans starts we have seen so far. The most insane part of this outing is he induced 26 whiffs and had a 37 CSW%. The 26 whiffs is the most by any MLB pitcher on one game this season. Just electric. The Royals really needed a start like this from Ragans to help get them back on track. He had everything working. The fastball looked gerat. He added two inches of downward movement on his changeup. Just out of words on how good this start was.
Key Highlights
The offense showed up! It is a miracle. It was a home run party for the Royals. Vinnie Pasquantino and Salvador Perez kicked it off with back-to-back solo home runs in the bottom of the fourth. Kyle Isbel drove in a run at the bottom of the fifth, and Hunter Renfroe capped off the scoring at the bottom of the sixth with a solo home run of his own. Outside of the home run party, the big news offensively was that the Royals had Michael Massey back, and CJ Alexander debuted at third base. This pushed Maikel Garcia to second base. Massey went 1-for-4, and Alexander went 0-for-3.
After Ragan’s dominant start, the ball was handed over to the bullpen, which has struggled lately. Stratton, Schreiber, and McArthur locked down the win. Stratton pitched the seventh, giving up no runs and striking out one. Schreiber pitched a full inning as well, striking out two and earning his 16th hold. McArthur struck out one in the ninth and notched his 13th save. You couldn’t ask for more from a bullpen that has had its issues lately.
Summary of the Next Game
The Royals will head into the second game of the series with the Miami Marlins tonight. Seth Lugo (10-2, 2.42 ERA) will take the mound against Yonny Chirinos (0-0, 3.60 ERA). Chirinos is an arm the Royals have had success against in the past. They’ll look to take a series win today with a W.
