Royals 'Power-Speed Savant' Could Match Shohei Ohtani's 50-50 Season, Report Says
The Kansas City Royals were idle on Thursday, but elsewhere in Major League Baseball, history was made.
Shohei Ohtani, the Los Angeles Dodgers' incomparable designated hitter (and soon-to-be starting pitcher), stole his 50th base of the season and hit his 50th home run in the same game against the Miami Marlins. He created the 50-50 club, a barrier never tested in the sport's existence.
Imagining another season like Ohtani's happening soon is difficult. But since the MLB rules changed to favor stolen bases, there's at least a slim chance someone else could challenge the 50-50 mark someday. Might a Royals superstar be the one to do it?
David Adler of MLB.com believes that's the case. He listed Royals superstar shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. as the most likely active player to join Ohtani in the 50-50 club someday.
"Witt is 24 and already one of the most dynamic power-speed superstars in baseball. He just posted back-to-back 30-30 seasons, something only eight different players in MLB history have ever done (Ryan Braun, Alfonso Soriano, Vladimir Guerrero, Barry Bonds, Ron Gant, Bobby Bonds and Willie Mays are the others)," Adler said.
"And Witt is the only player in MLB history with 80-plus homers and 100-plus steals in his first three big league seasons. The sky is the limit for the Royals' young MVP candidate, who's now both one of the best hitters in baseball and maybe the single fastest player in the game."
The tougher part of getting to 50-50, from Witt's perspective, would definitely be the home runs. He stole 49 bases in 2023, so he's in the ballpark on that front. But jumping from 32 home runs, which he has this season, to 50 is no small task.
There's a reason Ohtani's achievement was one of one. 50-homer bats come around once in a generation for an MLB team, if that team is lucky. But also having elite speed and baserunning instincts? Unheard of.
But at this point, there's no reason to put anything past Witt. If anyone besides Ohtani in the game today can find a way to get it done, Witt is that guy.
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Jackson Roberts is a former Division III All-Region DH who now writes and talks about sports for a living. A Bay Area native and a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Jackson makes his home in North Jersey. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, Patriots, and Warriors, and he recently added the Devils to his sports fandom mosaic. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding "Kansas City Royals On SI," please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org