Stephen

Kolek

This will be the second time that Kolek has been placed on the emergency medical list for reasons much more important than baseball. The 29-year-old will be away from the club with Jose Cuas taking Kolek’s spot on the roster.

Kolek did not strike out a batter in the ballgame. The right-hander was activated from the paternity list prior to the game and hadn’t pitched since June 21. After cruising through the first inning on nine pitches, he labored through 42 pitches during a three-run second inning. He generated four swings and misses on 51 pitches in the ballgame, posting a CSW of 24 percent. He’ll try to get back on track as he totes a 4.50 ERA and 1.24 WHIP into his final start of the season’s first half on Wednesday against the Mets in New York.

The 29-year-old right-hander will return to start against the Rays in Thursday’s series finale as anticipated. He has been away from the team since making his last start on June 21 as his daughter was born premature and the Royals gave him extra time to be with his family. Kolek sports a 4.15 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and a 34/11 K/BB ratio over 52 innings through his first nine starts on the season.

Kolek has been away from the club on paternity leave since last week after his daughter was born premature. The encouraging news is that everyone in the Kolek family is healthy and doing well. The 29-year-old will be officially activated prior to Thursday’s contest. He hasn’t pitched since June 21.

It’s merely a procedural move since Kolek has maxed out the amount of time he can spend on the paternity list. The 29-year-old’s daughter was born premature last week, and is doing okay, according to Royals skipper Matt Quatraro. However, he’s being given some additional time off to be with his family. It’s unclear when he’ll return to Kansas City’s rotation at this moment.

Kolek was supposed to face the White Sox tonight, but Steven Cruz will open in his place and Mitch Spence, who was called up in his place, will likely get bulk innings. The Royals haven’t indicated whether Kolek might return in time to pitch this weekend.

Kolek had given up two runs or fewer in five of his past six starts. His ERA estimators hinted at regression, and it hit in a major way versus the Cardinals. He allowed three homers in his abbreviated outing, including two off the bat of rookie JJ Wetherholt. Things won’t get easier in his next matchup, a road game against the White Sox.

Kolek walked one and lowered his ERA to 2.68 through eight starts. He has been even better over his past six with a 1.59 ERA since May 17. Kolek’s strikeout rate doesn’t pop, but he generates grounders and limits walks, a formula that can work for longer than ERA estimators indicate. It’s been a very valuable stretch in deeper fantasy leagues where quality pitching is scarce, but managers shouldn’t expect these results every time out. Kolek has another test in his next start against the Cardinals.

Kolek was away from the team for a couple of days due to a family medical emergency, and it was a solid — if unspectacular — outing for the 29-year-old. He was a bit fortunate to only give up the two runs, as he gave up eight hits and a walk while striking out three. Still, the results were once again solid, and Kolek now has a 3.14 ERA and 30/9 K/BB over his seven starts with the Royals in 2026. He’ll be back on the mound Sunday in a matchup against the Astros.

Kolek returns to take the ball for Tuesday’s series opener against the Rangers after spending a couple days away from the club. The 29-year-old has posted a respectable 3.32 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 27/8 K/BB ratio across 38 innings over six starts for the Royals this season.