KANSAS CITY ROYALS TOP 10 PROSPECTS
1. BOBBY WITT JR., SS
AGE: 21. B-T: R-R. HT: 6-1. WT: 185. DRAFTED: HS—Colleyville, Texas, 2019 (1st round). SIGNED BY: Chad Lee
TRACK RECORD: The son of 16-year major league pitcher Bobby Witt, Bobby Jr. has been around the game his entire life. He blossomed into a regular at premier national showcases while at Colleyville (Texas) Heritage High and shined on the national stage when he won the high school home run derby in Washington prior to the 2018 All-Star Game. He won the High School Player of the Year award in 2019 and was drafted second overall by the Royals. He signed for a franchise-record $7.789 million. Witt made his pro debut in the Rookie-level Arizona League and was slated to head to full-season ball in 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic canceled the minor league season. He spent the early days of the pandemic working out with major and minor league players near his Texas home, joined the Royals for summer camp in July, spent the remainder of the season at their alternate training site and finished up at instructional league camp at Kauffman Stadium.
Witt projects as a premier starting shortstop with five impact tools. He struggled a bit in his pro debut and raised concerns about how much he swung and missed, but that’s now a distant memory after he began getting more aggressive in his approach. He showed signs of turning the corner at 2019 instructional league and took a big jump in 2020 while facing more advanced pitchers. Witt’s hit tool is borne through plus bat speed and a short,
