Royals All-Star Gets $100 Million Contract Update From ESPN Insider

The Kansas City Royals may not be looking four years into the future, but you can be certain their ace is.

Cole Ragans had a roundabout journey to Major League Baseball superstardom. He had two Tommy John surgeries after being picked by the Texas Rangers in the first round of the 2016 draft, then was traded to the Royals at age 25 at the 2023 trade deadline.

Ever since, Ragans has been shoving, making his first career All-Star team in 2024 and putting up a 3.10 ERA and 369 strikeouts in 51 starts as a Royal. It's been an impressive rise, but the late start to his career leaves his future partially in limbo.

Ragans signed a three-year, $13.25 million extension this winter to buy out his first two arbitration years. But he's got to have his eyes on the winter of 2028, because that will be his chance, good health provided, to earn the contract that secures generational wealth for his future descendants.

On Tuesday, ESPN insider Jeff Passan projected Ragans to earn at least $100 million on his next contract.

"The fear of Ragans' injury history -- back-to-back Tommy John surgeries and more than three years without throwing in a professional game -- will always hang over his future," Passan wrote.

"His brilliance over the past two years can't be overstated, though, and as long as his left arm remains intact, Ragans will merit inclusion in this group."

Ragans missed one start with a groin strain at the end of April, but the fact that he's otherwise been healthy since arriving in Kansas City is a great sign. And all that time missed in the minors does mean he has fewer high-stress innings on his arm than most big-leaguers, which could bode well for his longevity through his arbitration years.

Ragans will be an interesting debate for the Royals to ponder. Should they keep him long-term? Try to work out another extension that buys out a couple more seasons? Or simply be content with having him under cheap control for the next four years and take their chances on losing him at age 31?

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