KC Royals: Bobby Witt Jr. grabs another big award

The KC Royals and their fans have plenty to look forward to in the future, especially the major league debut of Bobby Witt Jr., the club’s No.1 ranked prospect per MLB Pipeline.

Witt had a phenomenal season across stints at Double-A and Triple-A. He began the year with Northwest Arkansas, where he slashed .295/.369/.570 with a .939 OPS and 16 home runs and 51 RBIs before being promoted to Triple-A. With the Omaha Storm Chasers, Witt slashed .285/.352/.581 with a .933 OPS, 17 home runs and 46 RBIs. Overall, he posted a .290/.361/.575 line.

Defensively, Witt had a .975 fielding percentage. He spent most of his time at shortstop with both the Naturals and Storm Chasers, recording a combined 213 assists, 101 putouts, and 45 double plays with eight errors on the year.

Witt’s stellar season is bringing him several accolades. He was selected to play in the midseason Futures Game and the Royals’ organization recently named him its George Brett Minor League Hitter of the Year and Omaha’s Player of the Year. And now, he’s been named Baseball America’s 2021 Minor League Player of the Year:

KC Royals prospect Bobby Witt Jr. barely missed out on a phenomenal feat.

What’s also amazing about Witt’s 2021 season is that he came so close to a 30-home run, 30-double, 30-steal season. He was able to check off two of the boxes with 33 home runs and 35 doubles, but his 29 steals came up short.

But he actually had a 30th steal…for a little while. He stole what would have been base No. 30 Thursday night, but when the game was called because of rain, his stats were canceled along with it. He didn’t get another stolen base in the final two games of the Storm Chasers’ season.

Still, his 30-double, 30-home run season is an impressive feat and could foretell what fans may see from him if he makes his major league debut as anticipated come 2022.

Fans will also see a young man who is just as humble as a few Royals we already know. Upon being named the club’s Minor League Hitter of the Year, Witt was quick to commend his fellow teammates for their fantastic season. As he told mlb.com’s Royals beat writer Anne Rogers:

"“Seeing George Brett’s name on it and then seeing all the other guys in our organization and what they did—MJ Melendez, Nick Pratto, the list goes on and on. I wish everyone could be on that award. It’s truly an honor.”"

An honor it indeed is, and a deserving one that reflects Witt’s incredible promise and potential.

Being named Baseball America’s 2021 Minor League Player of the Year is the latest proof of the great season No. 1 KC Royals prospect Bobby Witt Jr. had.