KANSAS CITY -- Alec Marsh is not a superstitious person, but after using Jonathan Heasley¡¯s glove during a dominant start in Game 1 of Saturday¡¯s doubleheader against the Rays, he might have to find a way to repay his teammate.

Marsh struck out a career-high 11 batters in the Royals¡¯ eventual 6-1 loss at Kauffman Stadium, tossing his first career quality start by allowing two runs in six innings. The right-hander needed to borrow Heasley¡¯s glove because Marsh¡¯s old ones were too small and harder to hide the ball.

Marsh¡¯s new gloves are on their way to Kansas City, so Heasley offered his own until then.

¡°But if that¡¯s the result, I might have to buy him something as a thank you,¡± Marsh said.

After Marsh mowed down Rays hitters, lefty Cole Ragans followed suit with a solid outing in his Royals debut. The centerpiece in the trade that sent Aroldis Chapman to Texas on June 30, Ragans allowed one run in five innings in the Royals¡¯ 4-2 loss in Game 2.

¡°Today felt like my debut all over again,¡± Ragans said. ¡°All the nerves, excitement, adrenaline. It was nice to get out there.¡±

Saturday marked the first games back from the All-Star break and offered a glimpse at what we can see from the Royals in the second half -- opportunities. And the two 25-year-old rookie starters took advantage.

¡°It was exciting. Both of them threw the ball well,¡± manager Matt Quatraro said. ¡°That was probably Marsh¡¯s best [start], obviously results-wise but also best stuff. And for the first time seeing Ragans, I definitely wasn¡¯t expecting [98-99 mph] velo. The way he carried himself, the conversations in the dugout, the way he was composed -- it was good to see.¡±

Whether the Royals won or lost on Saturday isn¡¯t going to matter for the big-picture development of this franchise. What does matter is how the young players improve: How they played Saturday, how they play for the next 2 1/2 months and how they play in 2024 and beyond.

Marsh¡¯s composure remained steadfast throughout his outing but especially when he faced trouble. After allowing a solo homer and a double in the third inning, Marsh struck out Wander Franco and got a flyout to end the inning without further damage done.

In the fifth, Marsh followed another solo homer with his only walk of his outing. Before facing Franco again, Marsh took a beat behind the mound, simply to breathe.

¡°I was thinking about the home run the whole time,¡± Marsh said of Lowe¡¯s walk. ¡°Especially because that home run was all on me. It was the only time I shook Salvy all game. I wanted a changeup. If I get it over a couple more balls to the right, probably a different result. ¡­ I was just more upset at myself than anything. But after I walked that guy, I was like, ¡®Hey, it¡¯s over with. We¡¯ve got to get back in there and get us back in the dugout.¡¯¡±

Small things like that can be improved, especially given Marsh¡¯s overall attack mindset on Saturday. He generated 15 whiffs on 51 swings -- 29% -- including nine on his fastball. He also got three whiffs on his slider, a pitch he said he tinkered with during the All-Star break while he was back in Arizona.

¡°Mixing some grips and stuff like that. It was really cool to see the results happen right away,¡± Marsh said. ¡°I think the adjustment from pitch to pitch is exciting, too, because that¡¯s something that I struggled with in the past. Now once you get to a higher level, you need to make those adjustments right away.¡±

Ragans averaged 97.5 mph with his fastball and maintained that high velocity throughout his outing, maxing out at 99.8 mph. He worked around two walks in a scoreless first inning and allowed the only run in the third, when Franco doubled and scored on Randy Arozarena¡¯s single.

The Rays whiffed 11 times against Ragans -- 25% of the swings they took against him.

¡°Had the two walks, obviously don¡¯t like those, but worked through it and calmed myself down,¡± Ragans said. ¡°After that, I felt like I filled it up a little bit more.¡±

Ragans, who served as the 27th man for the doubleheader, was returned to Triple-A Omaha after Game 2, and it¡¯s unclear what the Royals' rotation will look like when Zack Greinke returns from the injured list.

But after Saturday, one thing is clear: Both Marsh and Ragans have earned more chances to start in the second half.

¡°That¡¯s what you play the game for,¡± said Bobby Witt Jr., who homered in Game 1 and doubled in Game 2. ¡°The opportunities you get, you can¡¯t take them for granted, but you have to capitalize whenever it comes to you. You have to go up there -- whether you¡¯re at the plate, on the mound, in the field -- and try to do your job for the team. Play the game pitch by pitch and not worry about the rest.¡±