ESPN writer: Bobby Witt Jr. could set a Royals career record in just his first season
The labor negotiations between Major League Baseball and its players have reached a critical stage.
MLB reiterated its Monday deadline for reaching a deal is firm, meaning the start of the season would be delayed unless there is an agreement (or the league ends the lockout).
For Royals fans, that means they might have to wait even longer to see Bobby Witt, Jr., KC’s most-touted prospect in at least a decade.
Assuming there is a full season of baseball, what can we expect from the 21-year-old Witt if he breaks camp with the Royals?
ESPN made bold predictions for the top prospects in baseball, and Bradford Doolittle writes Witt could be considered the best shortstop in Royals history — by just the end of the 2022 season.
Yep, in just one year.
Here is what Doolittle wrote: “While that sounds outlandish to say about someone who has yet to play in the majors, know that it’s a very low bar. The career leader in wins above average for K.C. players who played shortstop at least half the time is Rey Sanchez (4.0 WAA). Assuming Witt gets at least half his turns at short (no guarantee), consider that six rookies have topped that figure in one season since 2001. Witt is good enough to make that seven.”
For what it’s worth, only nine shortstops in Royals history have had a career WAA above zero, according to Baseball Reference’s Stathead database. No. 2 on the list is Freddie Patek (3.5). Nicky Lopez is sixth (0.5).
What are others saying about Witt?
Baseball Prospectus’ PECOTA projections, show Witt with a triple slash of .249/.311/.432 with 16 home runs and 17 steals in 427 plate appearances, the Royals Review blog said.
FanGraphs’ Steamer projections see Witt getting 545 plate appearances and hitting 29 doubles, 24 home runs and stealing 18 bases. His triple slash: .267/.321/.481.
This is CBS Sports’ projections for Witt: 534 plate appearances, a .264 average with 24 doubles and 15 home runs.
This story was originally published February 24, 2022 at 11:19 AM.
