KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Bobby Witt Jr. knew the ball was gone the moment it left his bat.
Only later did the young Kansas City Royals star realize what kind of company it allowed him to join.
The two-run shot in the eighth inning against Texas on Tuesday night merely padded the lead for Kansas City, which went on to a 5-2 victory. It was the fifth straight win for the Royals, who closed to within 2 1/2 games of an AL wild-card berth.
But it also was the 100th career homer for Witt, making him the youngest in franchise history to reach that mark. He made it at the age of 26 years, 66 days, or more than a year earlier than Carlos Beltran when he accomplished it during the 2003 season.
“I want him up there every inning,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “I mean, you look at the lineup and you’re trying to figure out, ‘How many times can we get to the plate? How many guys can we keep on base for him when he does come to the plate?’
“I mean, that’s an immense amount of pressure on a younger player to understand that’s how everybody feels about him,” Quatraro said. “But he has the physical ability, the makeup and the mental capacity to handle it.”
The latest no-doubt shot, which came off Texas reliever Cole Winn and landed an estimated 449 feet to dead center field, made Witt only the fourth player with at least 100 homers and 100 stolen bases through his first four big league seasons. The others are Julio Rodríguez, Darryl Strawberry and Bobby Bonds — some pretty select company.
Witt also become one of six shortstops in the last 95 years to hit at least 100 homers through his age-25 seasons. That list of luminaries includes Alex Rodriguez, Cal Ripken Jr., Francisco Lindor, Carlos Correa and Hanley Ramirez; of those players, only Rodriguez and Ramirez also had 100 steals by the time they were 25 years old.
“It was special,” Witt admitted, “just seeing the kind of names on the list or whatever they showed. But now, it’s just kind of on to the next. It was special. We enjoy it. And now it’s just onto the next game.”
They keep getting more important for the Royals, who have won five straight and seven of their last eight. They head into the third-game of their four-game set against the Rangers on Wednesday night with a chance to inch closer to a wild-card spot, and they proved last year that they could do some postseason damage if they can only get in.
Witt continues to be the catalyst of their second-half surge, too. He’s hitting .291 with 18 homers and 69 RBIs.
“It’s special when he goes out there,” said the Royals’ Seth Lugo, who allowed just two runs on three hits while pitching into the seventh inning Tuesday night. “I’ve been saying it for two years: He goes about his business the same way. He doesn’t get up or down on himself. He’s a master of consistency. That’s what he does.”
Witt also happens to be a slick fielder with a Gold Glove in his trophy case.
But at the plate is where Witt has become a bona fide star. He led the majors with a .332 average last year, when he hit 32 home runs, stole 31 bases and finished with 109 RBIs. And while he may not quite replicate the average, homer total or RBI numbers in this campaign, he already has 32 stolen bases while getting caught just seven times.
“There’s not too many guys that get to 100 (homers),” said Vinnie Pasquantino, who also homered Tuesday night. “And the fourth player in MLB history with 100 stolen bases? It’s not a list I’ll ever be on. I mean, it’s kind of unbelievable.
“He’s one of the best players in the league for a reason,” Pasquantino said. “A superstar.”
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