Royals' Bobby Witt Jr. Seemingly Avoided Disaster With Latest Injury

Kansas City Royals All-Star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. exited the team’s June 7 win over the Minnesota Twins with what was officially dubbed “right knee soreness.”

Witt Jr., 25, didn’t miss any games after that, however, so it seemed to be a crisis averted.

But a chill went down Kansas City’s collective spine when Witt Jr. suffered a Grade 1 MCL sprain in an otherwise jubilant 14-6 win over the St. Louis Cardinals last Thursday, June 18, and he has subsequently missed three games.

Royals manager Matt Quatraro provided a positive update, relatively speaking, when meeting with reporters before the team’s 2-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday.

“We're hopeful that in the next couple of days he’s available,” Quatraro said, per the Kansas City Star’s Jaylon T. Thompson.

“Bobby Witt Jr out of the lineup again but was on the field ‘initiating baseball activity’ today,” longtime Royals broadcaster Joel Goldberg relayed. “He wore a brace and threw, ran, took ground balls and hit for the first time since injuring his knee. Training staff said it went well but too early to give a time line for a return.”

The Royals sit at 33-46, the fifth-worst record in MLB, so there is absolutely zero reason to rush back Witt Jr., the face of the franchise for the next decade.

But, tangentially, it is a bummer if Witt Jr. misses substantial time because he has been in position to win his first American League MVP award. Witt Jr. became the odds-on favorite after New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, the reigning back-to-back AL MVP, was sidelined indefinitely on June 5 due to a rib injury. As of this writing, Houston’s Yordan Alvarez is the new favorite.

Witt Jr. is hitting .294/.368/.465 with 10 home runs and 32 RBI. He leads MLB with 28 stolen bases and his 88 hits rank fifth.

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This story was originally published June 22, 2026 at 8:00 PM.