Bobby Witt Jr. is back in the AL MVP conversation.
The Royals shortstop was named a finalist for the award, putting him alongside Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Junior Caminero and Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez. The Baseball Writers Association of America will determine the winner.
Witt, 26, has already been in this spot before. He finished second in the 2024 AL MVP race and came in fourth in 2025, trailing eventual winner Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees.
This year, Witt put together another strong all-around season. He hit .281 with 157 hits, 33 doubles, 18 home runs and 54 RBIs while appearing in 143 games. His 6.7 WAR underscored just how much he contributed on both sides of the ball.
Perla Paredes of MLB.com laid out Witt’s case, and the numbers back it up. Among qualified AL shortstops, Witt led the group in batting average (.281), slugging percentage (.441) and doubles (33). He also finished with 94 runs scored, a .359 on-base percentage and an .800 OPS.
The power numbers were lighter than in some of his previous seasons, but Witt showed a different kind of growth at the plate. He drew a career-high 67 walks, topping his previous best of 57 from 2024.
And while Alvarez and Caminero each blasted 42 home runs, Witt gave his MVP push another edge with his defense at shortstop.
Elsewhere in the Royals system, Carson Roccaforte picked up a minor league gold glove award.
Roccaforte, the Royals’ 2023 Competitive Balance Round B selection, turned difficult chances into routine outs and flashed plenty of highlight-reel defense along the way. Across two levels, the 24-year-old logged 320 putouts, added 13 outfield assists and finished with a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage.
He becomes just the second Naturals player in club history to win the honor, joining Nick Pratto, who took it in 2021 with a .998 fielding percentage at first base. Other Naturals who won MiLB Gold Gloves before reaching Northwest Arkansas include infielder Michael Massey in 2021 and left-hander Frank Mozzicato in 2024, both of whom earned the recognition with High-A Quad Cities.
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Bobby Witt Jr. Just Strengthened His Case In A Huge Royals Debate
Bobby Witt Jr. has spent the last three seasons making the Royals biggest individual argument for them, and now he has another line on his resume to match the production. The Baseball Writers Association of America named Witt a finalist for the 2026 American League Most Valuable Player Award, a recognition that fits the way he carried Kansas City across 143 games while again setting the standard for AL shortstops on both sides of the ball.
The debate around Witt is no longer about whether he belongs in the conversation, but how high he can climb in it. He stole 45 bases and continued to pair impact offense with elite defense, and his latest finalist nod extends a remarkable run that has seen him finish in the top five of AL MVP voting in each of the past three seasons. [Read more 🡒]
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For Kansas City, it is the kind of setting that can add a little extra buzz to a prospect's fall. The derby includes preliminary rounds before the bracket narrows toward a final, and the field of eight comes with its own set of recent performance notes and home run numbers, making this more than just a novelty event for the players involved. [Read more 🡒]