KC Royals beat AL Central-rival Twins 4-1. Here are 3 takeaways from the series

The Kansas City Royals picked up a much-needed victory against the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday afternoon at Target Field.

The Royals earned a 4-1 win behind the pitching of All-Star Cole Ragans. The southpaw turned in another quality start as the Royals avoided a sweep against their divisional foes.

“Cole really stepped up big and limiting them to one run,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “You know, (we got) just enough offensively, some good at-bats.”

Ragans picked up the win and Bobby Witt Jr. and Paul DeJong hit home runs as the Royals improved to 66-55.

Here are three takeaways from the Royals’ series in Minneapolis:

Three series takeaways

• Ragans steps up as stopper:

The Royals entered this pivotal American League Central series with their top starting pitchers available ... but Brady Singer and Seth Lugo turned in disastrous starts. The Twins outscored the Royals 21-6 in the games they started.

Ragans needed to turn in a positive outing if the Royals were to salvage a win in the series finale.

“His stuff was outstanding and we saw swing-and-miss on the changeup,” Quatraro said. “We saw good velo and he was consistent throughout.”

Ragans tossed seven innings and allowed one earned run Wednesday. He evaded danger in the fifth inning by pitching out of a bases-loaded jam.

“Hard ball hit back at me,” Ragans said. “You know, it knocked the breath out of me for a second, but all good. “And (I) just tried to execute my pitches and trust the guys behind me.”

• Royals’ offense quiet:

The Royals struggled to score throughout this three-game series. There were a few bright spots, such as Bobby Witt Jr. hitting his 24th home run, but not enough to overcome the Twins.

Minnesota didn’t utilize its best starters this week. Noted Royals nemesis Pablo Lopez started Monday evening, but the Twins also found success with young pitchers Zebby Matthews and Louie Varland.

“Every game counts the same at the end of the year,” Quatraro said. “We clearly came in here to try and win a series and we didn’t do that. But, take the next best alternative and move on.”

Matthews picked up his first win in his major-league debut Tuesday and Varland allowed three runs across six innings Wednesday.

“Varland threw the ball really well,” Quatraro said, “but (we had) good enough at-bats to put the four runs on the board.”

The Royals indeed did enough to win Wednesday, but usual run-producers Vinnie Pasquantino and Hunter Renfroe weren’t much of a factor this week.

Both have been slumping: Pasquantino snapped an 0-for-21 with an RBI double and Renfroe is currently mired in an 0-for-24 skid.

• Bullpen reinforcements on the way:

The Royals announced that right-handed reliever John Schreiber was expected to begin a rehab assignment with Double-A Northwest Arkansas Wednesday.

Schreiber is a key piece of the KC bullpen. He has been sidelined with a right-knee patella tendon injury. He received an injection and treatment for the knee over the last week, threw a few bullpen sessions and now will get a chance to face live competition again.

Schreiber was placed on the 15-day injured list July 29. Fellow reliever Hunter Harvey, who is dealing with mid-back tightness, remains on the injured list.

Playoff outlook

The Royals entered their mid-week series in Minneapolis looking to gain ground on both the Twins and Cleveland Guardians in the AL Central.

The Royals (66-55) and now trail the Twins (67-53) by 1.5 games for second place in the division. The Guardians (71-49) were playing host to the Chicago Cubs later Wednesday at Progressive Field.

“I mean, we want to win every day,” Ragans said. “Sometimes it works out and sometimes it’s not our day.”

In the AL Wild Card race, the Royals maintained a slim lead over the Boston Red Sox (63-55) and Seattle Mariners (63-57).

Paul DeJong hits 20th home run

The Royals got a major lift from veteran third baseman Paul DeJong Wednesday.

Acquired just ahead of the trade deadline from the Chicago White Sox, DeJong finished 3-for-4, a triple shy of the cycle.

“I absolutely knew I needed a triple,” DeJong said. “But with my speed at this stage in the season, that was going to have to be a miracle.”

In the sixth inning, DeJong hit a solo homer off Varland that extended the Royals’ lead. He drilled a 94.9 mph fastball that traveled 435 feet. DeJong now has 35 extra-base hits this year.

“I was really excited to get the start,” DeJong said. “I wanted to be in there and help my team today. And, especially on this 12:00 game after we lost the two, I just knew we had to have a little bit extra intensity today. I thought that’s really what we did.”