Mesmerizing prospect Bobby Witt Jr. could be forcing Kansas City Royals’ hand
At least when it comes to spring training vibes and an abundantly productive offseason atop an apparently intriguing foundation, the 2021 Royals radiate ample reason for optimism.
On a day when they blasted four home runs in a 10-3 Cactus League victory over Oakland at Surprise Stadium, third baseman Hunter Dozier counted some of the ways something to love might be bubbling up here.
Considering the depth of a lineup he reckons has no weak spot, he rattled off the names of Whit Merrifield, Adalberto Mondesi, Sal Perez, Carlos Santana and Jorge Soler.
Then he matter-of-factly added …
“Then you have a freak like Bobby Witt, who’s doing what he’s doing. I mean, yeah, this lineup is fun.”
Forgive Dozier’s presumption, which may or may not be entirely premature.
Because for all the other good stuff percolating here, the 20-year-old Witt continues to mesmerize teammates, club executives, onlookers and fans keeping score at home. And even some combinations thereof.
Shortly after Witt on Monday lunar-launched a ball some 484 feet to the left-field concourse for this second home run in three days, Royals minority owner and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes retweeted a video of the blast with three rocket ship emojis attached and tagging Witt — with whom he shares a personal trainer, Bobby Stroupe.
Perhaps reflecting a subconscious effort to remain restrained about Witt, manager Mike Matheny later tried to keep a straight face when he said, “It was all wind; it was blowing really hard. That’s what I told Bobby.”
With a smile, he added that Witt had indeed “found the barrel” of the bat.
But that enticing raw power is just a fraction of Witt’s game, a game that has some believing he’s ready for the big leagues now.
And his riveting display this spring surely has Royals officials seriously contemplating how soon he will be ready for prime time despite having not played in a minor-league game since he appeared in 37 Rookie League games in 2019 after the pandemic scuttled the 2020 minor-league season.
Add it all up, and the Royals seem to be facing what might be considered a pleasant dilemma.
Because even if they would naturally prefer to err on the side of patience rather than overexpose him at this age with scant professional experience, he is, in fact, forcing the issue.
If it seems most gaudy and obvious at the plate, where through Friday he was eight of 24 (.333) with six RBIs, and generally punishing the ball, it’s broader and deeper than that.
It’s in his speed, his glove, his power to all fields and pure sense of the game. Even his contagious aura and maturity, at least in part primed by being the son of a major-league pitcher, Bobby Witt.
All of that and then some, evidently.
Asked what jumps out about him this camp, 24-year-old Brady Singer pointed to the uncanny combination of skills “the kid” has.
“I think the 15 tools that he has (are) unbelievable,” he said.
Bearing in mind that in baseball parlance, a complete player is one with five tools, that’s some toolkit.
Applied in the composite, it makes him seem somewhere between precocious and a phenomenon in the making.
“He does something every game that surprises you,” said Dozier, who along with Perez and Santana also homered on Monday. “Yeah, it’s going to be fun to watch that kid.”
Kid or not, like so many others, Dozier sees in him the makeup of someone who “seems like he’s been in the big leagues for a long time.”
He will be, in fact, sooner or later.
It still appears improbable that he would start the season with the team, and at this point he figures to begin the year at an upper-level minor-league affiliate. The Royals think long-term and are inclined to avoid rushing him, and certainly there is no harm in seeking more seasoning for him.
But they also know there is a difference between being hasty and stifling somebody who could help them win now and has all the earmarks of being a rare sort of force wherever he might be deployed. He has played second, third and shortstop this spring and potentially could appear in the outfield on occasion.
Dozier is set to start the season at third, Mondesi at short and Nicky Lopez likely to be the regular at second.
But Dozier also is versatile enough to play all over the field, and it also could be an important few months for Lopez to assert himself after hitting .228 in 548 plate appearances the last two seasons.
In short, there are plenty of scenarios in which Witt could become a factor soon.
If the Royals get off to a good start but see a place he could help, that might make for a smooth, relatively pressure-minimizing way to ease him in.
If they struggle early, that would make for a more urgent need but a more demanding debut.
For the moment, anyway, they don’t have to decide anything.
They can keep it simple and in the moment and keep putting him in more positions to prove himself.
Chances are, though, they’re going to keep witnessing the makings of a budding star.
As Matheny described what he’s been observing, he said the Royals have been “waiting to see something that needs some alteration.”
But to this point, anyway, he acknowledged that’s primarily been in such little things as tweaks in understanding backup responsibilities and positioning on cutoffs and relays.
Even in that context, he added, “He’s the kind of player you tell him one time and you don’t have to tell him again.”
He’s also the kind of player who so far is telling the Royals something over and over — something that makes for another subplot to follow in the months to come of a season with plenty to anticipate as it is.
This story was originally published March 9, 2021 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Mesmerizing prospect Bobby Witt Jr. could be forcing Kansas City Royals’ hand."