Bobby Witt Jr.'s overlooked reality brought to light by Royals manager Matt Quatraro

The Kansas City Royals made the playoffs last year for the first time since 2015 and All-Star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. played a crucial role in his team's qualification to the postseason.

Bobby Witt Jr., who made his MLB debut with the Royals in 2022, had a career-best season last year, earning him his first All-Star selection. His stellar offensive output saw him as one of the three finalists for the American League MVP award, eventually won by New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge with the Royals shortstop finishing second.

Despite his remarkable 2024, Royals manager Matt Quatraro highlighted a key factor overlooked by many. In a conversation with MLB Network Radio, the Royals manager said:

"I think it's easily overlooked with Bobby that he's got three years in a big league, and he's 24 years old. When you step back, you can put him on a pedestal as a superstar, but he's still emerging in my mind. I think with growth he is gonna become mature to understand what the pitcher is trying to do, not trying to force the issue, and probably taking more walks. We've seen growth from year two to year three and taking that base hit to the right when he knows they're not pitching."

He continued:

"He's got the speed clearly, but understanding pitchers and breaks and jumps and pickoffs and all those things, and you know, he's always emerging in the clubhouse too. He's such a steady figure, such a humble guy. I think it's taking time for people to realize how much people look up to him and understand that he is that guy in the clubhouse."

Bobby Witt Jr. is using Royals' 2024 playoff exit as motivation

2024 was a year of accolades for Bobby Witt Jr. as the star shortstop earned his first All-Star selection followed by his first Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Award. He was also named in the All-MLB First Team.

The 24-year-old is taking the postseason elimination from last year as a learning curve, using it as a motivation to pursue playoff spots in the seasons to come.

“It's motivation. That's really all there is to it,” Witt added. “It’s just going to make everyone in this clubhouse want to work harder, and that's what we're going to do. We have an amazing team. I feel like our team was special this year, but we're just going to keep getting better.”

Although Bobby Witt Jr. was pipped to the MVP title by Aaron Judge, the Royals star would be looking to make another bid at the top prize in the 2025 season.