KC Royals: The Top 5 Kansas City speedsters, Part 2

No. 3: Jarrod Dyson (2010-2016/2021), the KC Royals’ own “Mr. Zoombiya.”

Of course, Jarrod Dyson, “Mr. Zoombiya” himself, makes our Top 5. It would be impossible to not even think of him as a prominent speedster in KC Royals’ history. Dyson’s trademark “That’s what speed do” epitomized his club’s exciting 2014-15 seasons.

Dyson has 179 stolen bases so far in his Royals career, which the club extended when it brought him back before this season started. Being caught only 31 times gives him an 82% success rate, a higher ranking than Amos Otis’ 73%.

Through his limited playing time this year, Dyson has registered a sprint speed of 28.9 feet per second. During his 2015 season, he recorded a 29.5 sprint speed, ranking behind only Paulo Orlando within the KC organization. In an interview with Fox Sports in 2014, Dyson mentioned that he ran a 4.2 40-yard dash in college.

Relying on Baseball Savant, Dyson’s 2021 speed metric alone ranks him in the 90th percentile. Considering he’s had only 49 plate appearance this year, that is quite a remarkable number. He placed in the 97th percentile in 2015.

Dyson’s season-high in stolen bases was 36 in 2014. He also swiped 34 bags in 2013 when he played only 87 games, and 30 in both 2012 and 2016. With a .679 OPS and a .984 fielding percentage, Dyson is a force to be reckoned with not only when he gets on base, but in the outfield as well—just like Amos Otis.

And who could forget Dyson’s steal of third base that helped set up the tying run in the bottom of the ninth inning of the 2014 Wild Card game against the Oakland A’s? Fox Sports: MLB sure didn’t:

https://twitter.com/mlbonfox/status/1277049073594445829?lang=en

But for all of Dyson’s speed, there are still two KC Royals who top him.