Witt SLAMS into MVP discussion with 'special' game-winning blast?

CHICAGO -- After a quiet and discouraging seven innings for the Royals’ offense, momentum was building on Monday night after back-to-back home runs brought Kansas City within a run of the White Sox.

And then the Royals’ superstar stepped up to the plate.

“Any time you have a future MVP, [and] front-runner, up at the plate, you expect something special to happen every single time he’s up there,” outfielder Hunter Renfroe said.

“You know something good’s going to happen,” starter Alec Marsh added. “Everybody’s on their feet.”

Almost as if it was inevitable, Bobby Witt Jr.’s fourth hit of the game was a go-ahead grand slam that lifted the Royals to an 8-5 series-opening win over the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field. Any time the Royals seem out of it, on their way to a loss, on their way to more questions about whether this team can sustain a playoff run, Witt wills them to a win.

The 24-year-old shortstop has a hit in 11 consecutive games. He’s hitting .545 (24-for-44) over that span with 12 runs, nine extra-base hits and 12 RBIs. In July, Witt is slashing .488/.505/.857, and no, that last number is not his OPS -- it’s his slugging percentage.

“I’m just playing the game,” Witt said. “I’m not trying to [think about] the streak. I’m just trying to do what I can do and make sure I’m prepared each and every day.”

Or, as starter Brady Singer said after he leapt over the dugout railing when he saw the ball sail into the bleachers on Monday night: “He’s a freak.”

Getting the game to Witt in the first place on Monday, though, was a “Herculean effort,” manager Matt Quatraro said. The Royals trailed by three after Marsh allowed two runs in 4 2/3 innings before Angel Zerpa and Chris Stratton allowed three more in 3 1/3 innings. The offense had nine hits but only two runs -- and had left six on base.

“We were a little dead there,” Quatraro said.

But Renfroe got things started in the eighth with his 11th homer of the year. MJ Melendez followed immediately with his 12th blast of the season.

“That definitely brought some excitement, some energy to the dugout,” Renfroe said. “MJ right after me was huge.”

With two outs, Maikel Garcia singled and stole second. Against reliever John Brebbia, pinch-hitter Adam Frazier got hit in the elbow on the 10th pitch of his plate appearance, and Michael Massey worked a six-pitch walk to load the bases for Witt.

“I felt like he was a little wild with Fraz, so I was really trying to make him get me out,” Massey said. “Throw it in the zone. He missed on a couple, and I was able to get on for Bob.”

Witt was not going to wait around. The first pitch he saw from Brebbia was a low slider at the bottom of the strike zone. Witt was ready and sent it 384 feet for his 19th home run of the year, bringing his RBI total up to 75, tied for sixth most in the Majors.

“I’m just trying to be ready for every pitch,” Witt said. “Because you never know when you’ll get the one. … And those guys put together great at-bats, so I had to do my part.”

Witt was fired up rounding the bases as the Royals' dugout went crazy. And then to top it all off, the shortstop sealed the game with two incredible defensive plays.

First, he set his feet quickly on a sharp grounder in the outfield grass to fire to first base for the first out of the bottom of the ninth. Then he made a diving stop on Andrew Vaughn’s hard grounder in the hole, quickly snapping to his feet and firing to first for the final out of the game and helping James McArthur to his 18th save of the season.

“The first one was impressive,” Quatraro said. “The second one was crazy.

“…The arm strength, the poise, the understanding to get up quickly. All those things you can’t teach. He’s just got that.”

It’s trade season right now, with Tuesday’s 5 p.m. CT Trade Deadline coming up quickly. The Royals are contenders for the first time in several years, and there are upgrades, signaled by the addition of Michael Lorenzen, they can acquire to help this team make a playoff push over the final two-plus months of the season.

Witt gave them another reason to do just that Monday night.

“We did all that with two outs,” Frazier said. “It’s one pitch at a time, one at-bat at a time, and we’re never out of a game. I think we’ve proven that over and over again this year.”