KANSAS CITY – As the eighth inning ended Saturday afternoon, eyes were moving between the Royals’ dugout and their bullpen, trying to assess whether a reliever would start warming up and signal the end of Stephen Kolek's outing. Kolek sat on the dugout bench, preparing to climb the steps once more.
Bobby Witt Jr. even peeked over to the bullpen phone in the dugout, wondering if anyone would make the call to get a reliever ready.
Manager Matt Quatraro never moved from his spot in the dugout. The ninth inning belonged to Kolek, who proceeded to retire the Mariners’ side in order and notch his second career complete-game shutout in the Royals’ 5-0 win at Kauffman Stadium. It was Kansas City's first complete-game shutout since Brad Keller on Sept. 13, 2020, vs. Pittsburgh.
“No one said anything to him, so it was like, ‘All right, here we go,’” Witt said.
“I was going to be fighting [Quatraro] to get back out there if he did try and take me out there, but I was glad he let me go out willingly, and very thankful,” Kolek said.
“I didn’t look at him, I didn’t talk to him, I didn’t do anything the whole game,” Quatraro added. “He was clearly in control.”
In control for all 108 pitches, Saturday was Kolek’s game. He was exactly the pitcher the Royals needed on the mound to snap their four-game losing streak, a win they needed badly as they work through a funk that has seen them win just two games in their past 12.
Who better to turn to than Quality Kolek? The 29-year-old right-hander has made nine starts for the Royals since they acquired him from the Padres last summer at the Trade Deadline, and eight of them have been quality. That is, the Royals have quickly learned the kind of pitcher Kolek is, with how his stuff plays and the kind of mindset he deploys on the mound.
“It’s so funny because he’s been with four different teams now,” Royals pitching coach Brian Sweeney said, referencing Kolek’s pro career with the Dodgers, Mariners, Padres and now Royals. “It makes zero sense to me. Maybe the COVID[-shortened] year had something to do with it, but you could see, in my opinion, the value that he can bring to a Major League team.”
Everyone can see it now. Kolek began with an eight-pitch first inning and needed just 41 pitches through four. The Royals’ three-run first inning took the pressure off Kolek – and he just kept on rolling.
He allowed just four hits and didn’t walk a batter until the seventh, erasing it immediately with a double play. The defense behind him was excellent.
Kolek recorded his first strikeout of just two on the day in the eighth inning. Kolek's called strike/whiff percentage was just 24%, but the average exit velocity against him was 86.9 mph, and of the 27 outs he recorded, 12 of them came from balls on the ground.
“He does such a great job of mixing all three fastballs – the cutter, the four-seam and the sinker,” catcher Carter Jensen said. “As a hitter, you’re going up there trying to cover three different fastballs and breaking balls and changeups. He’s just so unpredictable.”
Kolek faced 29 batters Saturday; only seven saw more than four pitches in their plate appearance.
“I find ways to increase the early and weak contact,” Kolek said. “I know where I can go to get those and induce the swings that maybe aren’t the best. … Occasionally, I will try to chase some strikeouts. But I’m not going to go for it right away, because to me, that just drives the pitch count up.
“I’m trying to go deep in these games. I’d rather throw seven shutty than go five with seven or eight punchouts. Going deep in the game, protects the bullpen, I love it. That’s kind of my thing.”
Kolek’s first career shutout came on May 10, 2025, with the Padres. There have only been two other pitchers to debut since 2010 with two shutouts in their first 23 career starts: The Rays' Chris Archer (July 14, 2013; July 27, 2013) and the Mariners' Mike Montgomery (June 23, 2015; June 30, 2015).
Kolek was at 96 pitches at the end of the eighth. It would have been understandable if Quatraro turned to closer Lucas Erceg, who hasn’t pitched since last Sunday against the Cardinals. But with the lead, the amount of rest Kolek had and will have in between starts and how dominant he looked all game, Quatraro wasn’t going to go to Erceg unless two batters reached.
“I was excited as anybody to send him back out there,” Quatraro said. “I wanted to see it, too, for him and for the whole pitching staff.”