The Kansas City Royals are enduring another lost season, but one of the few bright spots has been the emergence of left-hander Cole Ragans as the team's No. 1 starter.
Ragans has posted a 2.12 ERA with a 44-to-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his last five starts for Kansas City. The Royals will look to Ragans to remain hot on Tuesday when they continue their three-game series against the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates.
Pittsburgh recorded a 5-0 win over the Royals on Monday behind a stellar outing by Johan Oviedo, who allowed two hits and struck out five en route to his first complete game.
"We just came out flat today as a team," Royals left fielder MJ Melendez said. "I think we could've hit (against Oviedo). Props to him for going all nine. I think it was a battle with ourselves today. We just didn't play how we wanted to."
The Royals are hoping Ragans (5-4, 3.66 ERA) can help snap the team's four-game losing streak when he takes the mound against Pittsburgh.
Ragans matched a career high with 11 strikeouts over six scoreless innings in a 4-0 win over the Oakland A's last Wednesday.
Ragans, who was acquired from the Texas Rangers on June 30, left a strong impression on A's manager Mark Kotsay after allowing just two hits with no walks.
"That was probably one of the best performances we've seen all season on the mound," Kotsay said. "We've seen Ragans before. The (velocity), it definitely spiked. He was 98 to 100 (mph). You face that type of stuff and it's a tough day."
Ragans is making his first career appearance versus Pittsburgh, which quickly fell out of contention after going 20-8 to open the season.
Despite the team's extended struggles, Pirates general manager Ben Cherington offered manager Derek Shelton a vote of confidence while meeting with reporters on Monday.
"We talk about getting better all the time," Cherington said. "I've got to get better. We all have to get better. We all want to win. We all have our jobs to make that happen. And I believe (Shelton) is doing everything he can do to put us in the best position to compete and win."
The Pirates are being led at the plate by third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes, who continued his August surge with four hits, a walk and an RBI on Monday.
Hayes has a team-high 18 RBIs in 23 games this month for the Pirates, who recorded their first win at Kauffman Stadium since July 20, 2015, on Monday.
Pittsburgh has not announced its starting pitcher for Tuesday, but the team is expected to turn to right-hander Luis Ortiz (2-4, 5.37) at some point in the next two games.
Ortiz, 24, has experienced mixed results in 12 games (11 starts) at the major league level this season. He allowed five runs over 3 1/3 innings in a 6-4 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals last Wednesday, but Cherington was encouraged by the outing.
"We're seeing better velocity," Cherington said. "We're seeing glimpses of that stuff that we all remember from last year."
Ortiz has yet to face the Royals in his career.
—Field Level Media