A Kansas City Royals leader returned to the lineup for Monday night’s series- and homestand-opening game against the Washington Nationals at Kauffman Stadium.
Superstar shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. rejoined the Royals’ batting order after missing Sunday’s game due to back stiffness.
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The Royals delayed posting the starting lineup late Monday afternoon as Witt underwent some pre-game testing with the training staff. Witt completed a series of drills and felt comfortable he’d be able to hit and field his shortstop position at game speed.
“It was a much better day than we could’ve hoped for,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “He came in, did his prep work, moved around and felt good.
“KT (Royals head athletic trainer Kyle Turner) took him through some throwing and agility stuff. He felt good and then he went to hit and felt better than he even did getting started. So we are really encouraged and there is no hesitation there.”
Witt initially felt his back stiffen up Saturday morning. He was able to play later that night against the Twins in Minneapolis, but the Royals took a cautious approach Sunday.
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Witt was available off the bench for the series finale at Target Field but did not play.
“I think there is always an opportunity to use him as a pinch-hitter,” Quatraro said, “but we were going to stay away from him yesterday.”
Witt has powered the Royals’ offense this season. He is hitting .284 with 17 home runs and 65 RBIs. He leads the majors with 37 doubles while logging 30 stolen bases and 71 runs scored in 116 games.
Witt was to bat second in Monday’s lineup against the Nationals. The Royals recently moved new acquisition Mike Yastrzemski into the leadoff spot, with former leadoff man Jonathan India shifting down in the order.
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The Royals could’ve used Witt’s bat on Sunday. KC finished 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position and left 15 men on base against the Twins. With the loss, the Royals finished their nine-game road trip under .500 (4-5).
Now, KC begins a 10-game homestand at Kauffman Stadium. It includes three games against the Nationals and three against Chicago White Sox. The Royals will also welcome the Texas Rangers to town for four games.
The Royals have a chance to surge up the American League Wild Card standings. Currently, KC (58-60) is four games behind the New York Yankees (62-56) for the third and final AL wild-card spot.
Witt’s return adds a significant boost to the Royals’ lineup. And they need it if they want to return to the postseason for a second straight year.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source sports.yahoo.com ’
