This story was originally published by Dead Spin
Losing in the final of Monday’s Home Run Derby seemingly hasn’t knocked Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. off course.
After going 3-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs Friday in his first game since the All-Star break, Witt will look to stay hot Saturday night when host Kansas City continues a three-game set with the Chicago White Sox.
Before the break, Witt was on fire. He hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games of the first half, going 21-for-48 (.438) with four homers, 10 RBIs and 12 runs during that span.
Then came the Home Run Derby, in which Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernandez went deep 14 times — one more than Witt in the final round. Witt appeared in the All-Star Game the following night — a 5-3 American League victory — and struck out in his only at-bat.
But Witt put together his seventh multi-hit performance in 12 games this month on Friday, leading the Royals to a 7-1 win over Chicago in the series opener.
“He’s a special player,” Kansas City left-hander and fellow AL All-Star Cole Ragans said of Witt. “He’s a superstar. He’s one of the faces of the game of baseball. … He just wants to win and play hard. And that’s what he does.
“I think it rubs off on all of us. That’s what makes him even more special.”
Brady Singer (5-6, 3.20 ERA) wants Witt to continue to deliver at the plate Saturday, when the right-hander is scheduled to make his 20th start of the season.
Singer was roughed up his last time out, taking a loss against the Boston Red Sox last Sunday after giving up four runs on eight hits in 2 2/3 innings.
In 14 career appearances against the White Sox, Singer is 3-3 with a 4.00 ERA.
Right-hander Jonathan Cannon (1-3, 4.41) will oppose Singer. He has faced Kansas City once, yielding one run and three hits in five innings while settling for a no-decision on April 17.
Cannon allowed four runs on seven hits in six innings of relief in his most recent outing, a loss against the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 12.
At 27-72, the worst record in the majors, Chicago is playing for next season. The White Sox have lost five straight games and eight of their past nine.
One player Chicago expects to have in the mix for the foreseeable future is infielder Brooks Baldwin, who made his major league debut on Friday. The 23-year-old started at second base, hit out of the eight-hole and went 1-for-3 with a single to get his first career hit out of the way.
Aside from the speed of the game, Baldwin said he has yet to notice any major differences between the majors and minors.
“It was a lot of fun being out there for the first time,” Baldwin said. “It’s the same exact game I’ve always been playing. Things are a little bit faster, so you kind of have to slow the heart rate down and let the game come to you.”
Tommy Pham led the White Sox with a double and a single on Friday. He will look to extend his hitting streak to five games on Saturday.
–Field Level Media
