Every boy dreams of starting a career like Witt Jr. did.  He was Rookie of the Year, followed by three top 10 MVP finishes (7th, 2nd, and 4th), then followed by two All-Star seasons winning a Golden Glove Award AND a Silver Slugger Award.

Bobby Witt Jr.'s Breakthrough 2024 Season

Key Stats and Highlights

In 2024, Bobby Witt Jr. lit up the boxscore every night with a little of everything.  He didn’t hit the most home runs or steal the most bases, but he did lead the league in batting average and hits.  He batted .322 with 32 home runs while scoring 125 runs, driving in 109, and stealing 31 bases as a shortstop.  These are MVP numbers for fantasy baseball players.  

Five-Category Dominance

The argument for Bobby Witt Jr. in 2024 was that he played shortstop and stole 31 bases, making him a five-category threat.  In almost any other year, that would be important, but you see, Aaron Judge was in the American League as well.

Royals Team 

Bobby Witt Jr. plays for the Kansas City Royals, which makes it more difficult for him to deliver the kind of counting numbers that his competitors do.  The New York Yankees slugger, Aaron Judge, who won the award, had a prolific lineup that ranked 3rd in the league in runs scored, only behind the NL West teams, the Dodgers and Diamondbacks.  The Royals were 13th, scoring 80 fewer runs than the Yankees.

Aaron Judge Was Healthy

Aaron Judge,with the protection of Juan Sotobatting behind him in a prolific New York Yankees lineup, delivered dominating numbers to win his second MVP award.  He led the league in 10 of the main offensive categories, including home runs, runs batted in, on-base percentage, and OPS, and had a WAR of 10.8.  No one else was winning the MVP but Judge.  

The only thing that stops Aaron Judge from winning AL MVPs is injuries…or a 25-year-old season for the ages from one of the most talented young shortstops that we have ever seen.

The MVP Push Entering 2026

As we enter 2026, what is possible for the young superstar?  He has all the talent, and as we have written in the SMART System, power comes at 25 for players with more than 1000 Major League at-bats.  Let’s look to see if that is true for Bobby Witt Jr.

Fences Moved In & Lineup Review 

You cannot evaluate players who might win the MVP without considering how their team can help.  Now, players can win on bad teams like The Hawk, Andre Dawson, did in 1984.  Yeah, over 40 years ago.  Now there have been others, but it is rare that the team and ballpark don’t help players out.

As we chronicled, Kansas City is moving the fences in about 10 feet.  We reviewed how this could help Bobby Witt Jr.’s home run totals.  To recap quickly, Kaufman Stadium had a 17% right handed home run rating against the average stadium.  Bobby Witt Jr. bats right-handed, and that will go up drastically.  

There are 13 doubles and four triples that would have been home runs, plus the confidence that brings as well.

His lineup is not great, although Maikel Garcia has made huge strides, and Vinnie Pasquantino is solid; it is not like having Soto and Judge behind you.

Witt also leads off, which crushes his runs batted in totals and ultimately affects the decisions of the voters.

Looking for more help with your 2026 Fantasy Baseball Draft? Check these top 20 positional rankings:

• Top 20 Starting Pitchers
• Top 20 Relief Pitchers
• Top 20 Catchers
• Top 20 First Basemen
• Top 20 Second Basemen
• Top 20 Third Basemen
• Top 20 Shortstops
• Top 20 Outfielders
• Top 20 Designated Hitters

Ceiling Projections & Other Contenders

Right now, we can see that the betting lines and the public moving those lines believe what we just wrote about Aaron Judge, as he is 3 to 1 to win the American League MVP.  Bobby Witt is close at 5.5 to 1.  Cal Raleigh is the only other player to be less than 10 to 1 at 8.5 to 1.  There are two dark horse candidates in Jose Ramirez and Nick Kurtz, each at 15 to 1. 

Of course, Witt will need his ceiling projections to be able to beat all these star talents.  

With the fences in, he should see a better average and more pop.  With his age at the power pop year, we could see more pop too.  Batting leadoff hurts.  Let’s go with a .321 batting average with 45 home runs, 100 runs batted in, 120 runs scored, and 41 stolen bases.  That is what he would need to do to win an American League MVP.

No one can count on injuries, but Aaron Judge will have to miss time to have the voters not see him as what he is, the best right-handed hitter in baseball.  

Conclusion

While no one should wager against Aaron Judge, as that is hoping for an injury, the combination of the fences being moved in, the young Royals behind Bobby Witt Jr. in the lineup getting significantly better, and his age being when power pops up a level in Major League baseball players, could bring him home the hardware in 2026.

People Also Ask:

Q: Is Bobby Witt Jr. an MVP candidate in 2026?
A: Yes, he is a consensus top contender.

Q: Bobby Witt Jr. fantasy rank 2026?
A: He is a top-5 overall pick and SS1 positionally.

Q: Witt Jr. 2025 stats?
A: 30+ HR, 40+ SB, .300+ AVG.

Q: Royal's team context for Witt fantasy?
A: Their strong lineup boosts Witt's counting stats.

Q: When to draft Bobby Witt Jr. in 2026?
A: He's a first-round lock and in the top five overall.

Q: Witt Jr. dynasty value?
A: He's an elite long-term asset.