KC Royals News: Local TV broadcasts, J.J. Picollo on Ragans' deal, Pasquantino says Royals 'want more' in 2025

With the team's first full-squad workout behind them, the Kansas City Royals are preparing for their first spring training game, slated to take place on February 20 against the Texas Rangers. Coming off their first playoff berth since 2015, the Royals have big goals for the season ahead, but there's still plenty to get done before Opening Day.

From local television broadcast dates to future long-term deals, here is a Royals news roundup for February 19.

KC Royals News: KCTV5 and KSMO announce list of Royals games to be broadcast this season

On February 4, the Royals announced a new partnership with Gray Media to simulcast 10 regular-season games on local television stations KCTV5 (CBS) and KSMO (MyNetwork) this year, and now, the list of specific games to be broadcast has been confirmed. According to KCTV5, the first game to air will be Kansas City's matchup with the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday, April 6, which will mark the first time the Royals have broadcast games on local television since 2007.

While the Royals' initial press release on the partnership stated that all broadcasts this season would be of Sunday games, it now seems there will be one Monday game on May 26. Seven of the 10 games will be available to watch on both KSMO-TV and KCTV5, with the remaining three games — April 13, May 18, and June 1 — only available on KSMO-TV.

In addition to the games broadcast on local television, the Royals' recent deal with Diamond Sports Group means fans will be able to watch regular-season games via the FanDuel Sports Network app and Amazon Prime Video this year, though both will require an add-on subscription.

KC Royals News: Vinnie Pasquantino says Royals "want more" in 2025

After the team's historic comeback from a 106-loss season in 2023 to a playoff berth just one year later, the Royals are going into 2025 with big goals — and first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino is confident they can pull off another strong season.

Speaking to MLB.com's Anne Rogers at spring training, Pasquantino commented on the Royals' 2024 campaign, as well as expectations for 2025.

"I think we always knew we were good enough, and now we understand that, ‘OK, that’s us now.’ We’ve been there," Pasquantino told Rogers. "We want more. ... I think it’s one of those things where we have a good understanding of who we are, and we’re really excited about it."

KC Royals News: Recent contract with Cole Ragans keeps door open on long-term deal

The Royals surprised fans on February 14 with an early contract extension for starter Cole Ragans, seemingly proving the front office is taking the team's future seriously, and they see the young ace to be an important part of that. The three-year, $13.25 million contract will cover this season plus Ragans' first two years of arbitration-eligibility (2026-27).

"I think it represents safety on both sides," Royals general manager J.J. Picollo told MLB.com's Anne Rogers on February 15. "And that’s a good thing for the Royals, good thing for Cole. We're really happy for him."

Since Ragans isn't eligible for free agency until after the 2028 season, he will still have one more — potentially very expensive — year of club control once the contract expires at the end of 2027. That is, unless another much larger extension is struck before then.

"The best thing about [the new deal] is that it doesn’t remove the ability to talk about [a long-term extension] in the future, because we still have a long time," Picollo told Rogers at spring training. "... I shared with Cole: 'This doesn’t mean we’re closing the door on anything long term. This just gives you the ability to have peace of mind every day when you come to the field. So don’t read into this at all that we’re not thinking about anything long term.' That’s certainly something we’ll consider."