Kansas City Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. joins MLB’s exclusive 30-30 club: how he did it

Bobby Witt Jr. got a fun text message from Kansas City Royals teammate Brady Singer on Thursday.

Singer, who is sidelined on the 15-day injured list, pleaded with Witt to wait one more game before hitting his 30th home run of the season.

The reason: Singer wanted to be in attendance to witness Royals history.

“It was pretty funny and we were laughing at that a little bit ago,” Witt said.

Witt delivered against the New York Yankees on Friday night at Kauffman Stadium, reaching an illustrious milestone as the Royals opened their final series of the year with a 12-5 win.

The Royals’ young star became the 45th member of Major League Baseball’s exclusive 30-30 club: 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in a season.

“He’s been special,” said Royals pitcher Jordan Lyles, who earned the victory Friday. “Obviously, at the plate and with stolen bases, that’s very impressive. And defensively, I didn’t know he was this good. What is that, 30 (homers) and counting on 50 (steals)? You don’t say those numbers often.”

Witt’s also the first Royals player to record a 30-30 season.

He hit the historic home run in the seventh inning. He drilled an 88 mph offering from Yankees reliever Keynan Middleton. The ball traveled 423 feet with a 104 mph exit velocity.

“It felt good off the bat,” Witt said. “I saw it in the air, the way the ball was carrying to left tonight. It’s pretty special to do it in front of the home crowd.”

Witt became the third big-leaguer to join the 30-30 club this season, following outfielders Ronald Acuña Jr. (Atlanta Braves) and Julio Rodriguez (Seattle Mariners).

The number of 30-30 seasons in MLB history now stands at 64.

“It was exciting,” Royals catcher and captain Salvador Perez said. “I think more than one guy prayed for him to get No. 30. He deserves it, as you guys know what kind of player he is. He is the best shortstop ever for the Kansas City Royals to get to that number.”

Until this season, Baltimore Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins was the last player to achieve a 30-30 season. He became the 42nd player to record the mark, doing so in 2021.

Witt is the fifth shortstop to produce such historic numbers, following Barry Larkin, Alex Rodriguez, Jimmy Rollins and Hanley Ramirez.

“You’d think that was Game 7 of the World Series,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said of the celebration that ensued after Witt hit home run No. 30. “People are just so happy for him. “Everybody has been anticipating it and waiting for it. It was very cool.”

The Royals have benefited from Witt’s epic moments this season.

He hit a walk-off grand slam against the Minnesota Twins on July 28. He also recorded an inside-the-park home run against the Seattle Mariners on Aug. 14.

But Witt sat on 29 homers for a long time. He admitted he sometimes felt selfish for chasing the milestone homer.

That didn’t change his mentality at the plate.

“There were some at-bats where I felt selfish,” Witt said. “Whether it was either trying to or not trying to. Just trying to know the situation. If it happens, it happens. Just trying to take it one pitch at a time.”

This is Witt’s second major accomplishment of the year. He became the first player in major-league history to record at least 20 home runs and 30 steals in each of his first two seasons.

Witt also flirted with a 30-30 season in the minor leagues. He had a stolen base taken away when a game was called due to inclement weather. He finished with 33 homers and 29 steals across multiple levels that season.

“I remember in Triple-A, I was one away,” Witt said. “(It was) a stolen base. “I said the first time to do it would be in the big leagues and it would be pretty cool.”

So what’s next for Witt? He could become the fourth MLB player to record a 30-50 season. He needs only one more steal to join Eric Davis (1987), Barry Bonds (1990) and Acuña Jr. (2023) on that even more exclusive list.