Kansas City Royals

Bobby Witt Jr. - Scouting Report


Rank History
Year Team Position Team Rank OFP
2021 KC SS 1 60

Grades Update: May 2021
OFP Role Hit Power Field Arm Run
60 70 55 60 60 60 60

May 2021 Report

Evaluator: Tyler Henninger

Age: 21 yr
Height: 6-1
Weight: 200 lbs
Hits/Throws: R/R
Acquired: 2019 Round 1
RuleV: 2023

Physical Description: Compact frame. Live, athletic body. Has overall body strength with some muscle development. Will get stronger with development. Frame has strength with room to add weight.

Hit: Slightly open stance. Hands just above the letters. Upper body upright. Slight bend in knees with feet shoulder width apart. Quiet hand load, minor barrel tilt load. Minor leg kick timing mechanism, doesn't raise high. Short, compact swing. Aggressive approach. Plus bat speed on a slight uppercut path. Continues to improve lift in swing. Shows ability to use whole field. Lots of torque and power in swing. Average bat to ball skills, some swing and miss. Shown continued improvement. Good barrel control, frequently squares up balls. Needs to continue to make more contact, but should square enough balls up to be at least an average to above-average hitter. Grade: 55

Power: Plus raw power, game power still developing. Needs to hit more balls in the air to fully tap into power, but shows continued improvement. Major pull-side pop. Has ability to drive the ball to all parts of the park. Hits them high and far. Needs to continue to add lift in swing and make contact more consistently, but plus power is well within reach. Grade: 60

Field: Makes the routine play and more. Shows good action with glove. Above-average body control. Soft hands, catches the ball well. Shows instincts, good first step and reads. Above-average lateral speed, covers a lot of ground both ways. Has ability to make highlight reel play. Grade: 60

Arm: Plus arm with good mechanics. Accurate. Usually on target with carry through the bag. Ability to throw on run and from multiple angles. Quick transfer and release. Can make throw from hole. Easily playable at SS. Grade: 60

Run: Plus runner. Quick out of the box with accelerating speed underway. Exciting on the basepaths, has good instincts. Will make things happen. Takes the extra base when possible. Definite base stealer potential. Grade: 60

Overall: Witt offers potential that not many prospects can. His power/speed potential, along with the ability to hit for average or better and play an advanced shortstop makes him a potential impact player. Witt features a short, compact stroke that allows him to find the barrel often and hit a lot of balls hard. The swing and miss continues to get better, which should allow him to be a productive bat. The raw power is impressive, especially to the pull-side. He has shown the ability to tap into it during games on occasion, but will need to continue to make more contact to fully tap into it. With the glove, Witt is just as impressive. He shows good actions with quick hands. His speed allows him to cover ground both ways. The arm profiles well for shortstop with the ability to throw from multiple angles and on the run. It is strong and accurate. Witt is an exciting base runner with good instinct. He makes things happen and takes extra bases often. Witt has above-average to plus potential with all five tools. He is an excellent athlete who moves well and continues to get better. There is definite impact player potential.

OFP: 60
Role: 70 - Impact Player; Perennial All-Star
Risk: Moderate