Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. is in the mix for the 2026 American League Most Valuable Player Award, landing among the three finalists announced by the Baseball Writers Association of America.
Witt, 26, is joined by Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Junior Caminero and Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez. The winner will be revealed on Nov. 12, and the award will go to a new name after Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani took it in back-to-back seasons.
For Witt, this is another familiar spot in the MVP conversation. He finished second in the 2024 race, then placed fourth in 2025 behind Judge.
His 2026 season gave him a strong case again. Witt hit .281 with 157 hits, 33 doubles, 18 home runs and 54 RBIs while appearing in 143 games and finishing with a 6.7 WAR. He also dealt with back tightness and a right knee sprain that cost him 19 games, but still put together an All-Star season for a Royals club that finished 69-93.
The production came with plenty of impact beyond the box score. Witt swiped 45 bases in 53 tries, his highest total since 2023, and he also helped lead Team USA to the 2026 World Baseball Classic title game.
He is now chasing his first AL MVP award, and if he gets it, he would become the first Royal to win the honor since George Brett in 1980.
Witt could still collect more recognition this offseason, too. Even though he missed out on the Rawlings Gold Glove Award, he is expected to be named a Louisville Slugger Silver Slugger finalist and remain in the mix for the Hank Aaron Award.
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Salvador Perez Just Put The Royals In A Tough Spot
Salvador Perezs 2026 season left the Royals with more questions than they probably expected when they locked him up on a two-year extension before the year began. Even with the pride of captaining Team Venezuela to a World Baseball Classic title before the MLB season, Perez never found a steady offensive rhythm in Kansas City, and his production wound up setting career-low marks by the end of the year.
The bigger issue now is what comes next. Perez still caught in 44 games and filled in at other positions the rest of the way, but the Royals are already weighing whether his role needs to change next season as they try to get more value out of one of the franchises most important veterans. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Infields Gold Glove Push Ended In A Brutal Near-Miss
The Royals had a real chance to turn Gold Glove night into a showcase for their infield, with four players landing among the American League finalists. Bobby Witt Jr., Vinnie Pasquantino, Michael Massey and Nick Loftin all put themselves in position for recognition, a sign that Kansas Citys defense had become one of the more interesting parts of its roster construction.
Instead, the results came back as a clean sweep against them. Witt was trying to extend a two-year run atop his position, but the award went elsewhere, and the same was true for Pasquantino, Massey and Loftin at their spots. For a club that had reason to believe its infield could carry some hardware, it ended up being a brutal near-miss. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Face One Big Winter Decision As Prospect Keeps Rising
The Royals offseason is already starting to take shape in the usual way, with roster questions and prospect buzz sitting side by side. Joel Penfield recently walked through a few possible moves, including a simulated trade for Jake McCarthy and a contract for Randy Arozarena, while also pointing to the bullpen as an area that could use more high-strikeout arms.
Angeibel Gomez is part of what makes the winter conversation more interesting, though, because his Arizona Fall League showing has only added to the sense that Kansas City has another young player pushing his way into the picture. For a club trying to balance immediate upgrades with long-term development, that kind of rise can complicate the decisions ahead in a good way, even if the biggest roster question is still waiting to be answered. [Read more 🡒]