Fastball

Kansas City Royals' Star, Milwaukee Brewers' Youngster Leading the Way in Impressive Category Early on in 2024

When it comes to running fast and hitting the ball hard, almost nobody is better than Kansas City Royals' star Bobby Witt Jr. and Milwaukee Brewers' rookie Oliver Dunn.
Brady Farkas|
Apr 26, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (7) hits a triple
Apr 26, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (7) hits a triple | David Reginek-USA TODAY Sports

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Milwaukee BrewersKansas City Royals

When it comes to hitting the ball hard and running fast, almost no one is better than Kansas City Royals' star Bobby Witt Jr. and Milwaukee Brewers' rookie Oliver Dunn.

Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com on social media:

qualified players in 90th percentile or better in both hard-hit rate and sprint speed so far this season:

Bobby Witt Jr.
Gunnar Henderson
Fernando Tatis Jr.
Oliver Dunn

For Witt Jr., that's kind of expected, given the season he had in 2023 and his previous prospect expectations, but for Dunn, that's elite company to be in.

The former 11th-round pick of the New York Yankees made his debut at the outset of this season and is hitting .211 with a homer, five RBI and two stolen bases. Given that so much of offense these days is about traits though, if Dunn keeps hitting the ball hard, then his luck will eventually start to turn.

As for Witt Jr., the 23-year-old is hitting .306 so far with four homers, 14 RBI and seven stolen bases. He stole 49 bases a season ago and is the centerpiece of the Royals organization.

The Royals are currently 17-10 and are one of the best stories of the early going of the season. They lost 106 games a year ago. Witt Jr. and his teammates will play again on Saturday night against the Tigers. First pitch is 6:10 p.m. ET.

As for Dunn and the Brewers, they'll take on the New York Yankees on Saturday night at 7:10 p.m. ET. The Brewers won Game 1 of the series on Friday.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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