Ranking the top 5 moments from Witt's historic '24 season

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KANSAS CITY -- Bobby Witt Jr. didn't win the American League Most Valuable Player Award, but a second-place finish to Aaron Judge’s otherworldly offensive season doesn’t diminish Witt’s historic 2024 campaign.

It’s the highest a Royal has finished in MVP voting since George Brett finished second in 1985, five years after he won Kansas City’s only MVP Award.

A Royal has cracked the top 10 in MVP voting just five times since the turn of the century, and Witt now represents two of those after a seventh-place finish in 2023. Salvador Perez finished seventh in ‘21, Lorenzo Cain finished third in '15, and Carlos Beltrán finished ninth in '03.

Witt did some incredible things this year, on display every night and even more unrecognized because it’s what we’ve come to expect from him. Here are five memorable moments from Witt’s ‘24 campaign:

1. Go-ahead grand slam
The Royals had their way with the White Sox this year (12-1), but one of their most emphatic wins came on July 29, when a meager offensive effort suddenly burst open with a six-run eighth inning.

At the center of the comeback was Witt’s go-ahead grand slam, part of a four-hit night for the shortstop. He sent a first-pitch slider from John Brebbia out to left field and the Royals onto victory at a crucial time of the season.

“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,” Hunter Renfroe said that night.

2. 30-30 history
Here’s the thing about Witt when it comes to making history: He really doesn’t show any interest, publicly at least, in his individual accomplishments if the Royals lost that night. When Witt became the first shortstop with multiple 30-homer, 30-steal seasons on Sept. 17, he shrugged when asked about it after a 3-1 loss to the Tigers. Granted, it was in the midst of what would be Kansas City's second of two seven-game losing streaks in September, and Witt was frustrated.

“It’s pretty special any time you get to be the first,” Witt said quickly that night. “But it’s now over. Now we’re on to tomorrow.”

Witt made franchise history in 2023 as the first Royal with a 30-30 season and became one of only six shortstops to have a 30-30 season in MLB history. In ‘24, Witt also became the first player -- regardless of position -- with multiple 30-30 campaigns through his age-24 season. He finished ‘24 with 32 homers and 31 stolen bases.

3. Red-hot in July
The grand slam in Chicago came at the end of a sizzling July for Witt. He earned July AL Player of the Month honors after wrapping up a month unlike any we’ve seen in nearly 100 years.

Witt finished the month with 44 hits and a .489 average. The last player to at least match those marks in a calendar month was Lou Gehrig in June 1930. The .489 average was not only the best in any month in Royals history, but the 13th best in any month in all of baseball since 1906 (minimum 90 at-bats).

Of the 23 games Witt played in July, he was held hitless in one of them.

Witt’s July included seven home runs and an MLB-best 1.353 OPS. He became the first Royal to earn Player of the Month honors since Billy Butler in September 2009.

4. An electric triple
On June 7, Witt fueled a comeback for the ages. Trailing the Mariners by seven after the first inning and by eight entering the bottom of the fourth, Kansas City steadily built a comeback and was trailing by one when Witt stepped to the plate in the bottom of the ninth.

In a two-strike count, Witt ripped a game-tying triple that brought a raucous crowd at Kauffman Stadium to its feet. He scored the walk-off run moments later to cap the epic rally.

The triple Witt smoked to the left-field corner, the way he raced (flew?) from home to third in 10.98 seconds, and the look he gave the Royals’ dugout as he slid safely into third base -- this is a moment that will be on Witt’s highlight reel for years to come.

5. Basket-catch double play
There are so many defensive gems we could highlight here. How many throws from deep in the hole did Witt make to get an out at first? This one. This one. What about this one?

But on June 14 -- Witt’s 24th birthday -- he made an over-the-shoulder catch in shallow left-center field for one out against the Dodgers … then turned quickly to double off Teoscar Hernández at first base for a double play.

Not many players make that catch, let alone make the turn and throw for the double play. Bobby Witt Jr. is not like many.