Fastball

Kansas City Royals' Bobby Witt Jr. Gets Company in Baseball History on Thursday

Seattle Mariners star Julio Rodriguez joined Kansas City Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. in baseball history on Thursday.

Brady Farkas

Kansas City Royals' Bobby Witt Jr. Gets Company in Baseball History on Thursday
Kansas City Royals' Bobby Witt Jr. Gets Company in Baseball History on Thursday /
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Kansas City Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. got some company in baseball history on Thursday in the form of Seattle Mariners star Julio Rodriguez. 

Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

20+ HR & 20+ SB in each of first 2 MLB seasons: 

Bobby Witt Jr. 

Julio Rodríguez 

that’s it. that’s the list

It's been an incredible start to the careers of both players, who each debuted in 2022, and will be compared for years to come.

Rodriguez won the Rookie of the Year award in 2022 while Witt Jr. finished fourth. Both players were named All-Stars this past July.

While the Royals have the second-worst record in baseball overall, Witt Jr. has turned into one of the best all-around players in baseball. 

The 23-year-old infielder is hitting .276 with a robust .812 OPS. He's got 23 home runs, 76 RBI and 34 steals while hitting second in the Royals order. If the Royals are going to turn it around and become competitive in the near future, Witt Jr. will be the focal point as to why.

Rodriguez has already helped turn around the Mariners, leading them to a playoff spot in 2022. He has them 0.5 games back of a playoff spot again this season.

Witt Jr. and the Royals enter play on Friday at 39-84 and will take on the Chicago Cubs at 2:20 p.m. ET.

Left-hander Cole Ragans will pitch for the Royals while veteran right-hander Jameson Taillon gets the ball for the Cubs.

Ragans is 3-4 with a 4.21 ERA while Taillon is 7-7 with a 5.71.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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