Bobby Witt Jr. and the Kansas City Royals, next up for the Twins, present an AL Central threat

Adley Rutschman was the consensus No. 1 pick heading into the 2019 draft. A catcher with his offensive potential was too rare a prospect for Baltimore to pass up. But there was a five-tool player with the potential to become a franchise shortstop lined up right behind Rutschman.

And Kansas City, holder of the No. 2 pick, selected him.

Five years later, Bobby Witt Jr. has become a Royal pain to the Twins.

No one saw Kansas City contending for a postseason berth this year. No one saw Witt being in the AL Most Valuable Player conversation. Both have happened.

While the Twins have been looking up at Cleveland in the AL Central standings all season, they also have to contend with Witt and the Royals. So, as the Guardians leave town following their four-game series at Target Field, there’s no letup as Kansas City arrives for three games. The Twins have six games left with Kansas City and will have four left with the Guardians after the weekend.

Witt has become everything and more as a professional, which prompted the Royals to sign him to an 11-year, $288.7 million contract extension in February. Witt promptly went out and played like a superstar. He enters Sunday leading the majors, by a comfortable margin, with a .347 batting average, 100 runs, 164 hits and 285 total bases. He was ridiculous over a 31-game span heading into the weekend, batting .464 with 10 home runs, 31 RBI and a 1.313 on-base-plus-slugging percentage.

The Yankees’ Aaron Judge, Paul Bunyan with a bat, seemed to be the favorite for MVP honors. Witt has made it a legitimate debate.

After Witt belted two home runs against Boston on Wednesday, Red Sox manager Alex Cora had seen enough to promote Witt as one of the future faces of baseball. “That kid is special,” he said. “The way he conducts himself, the way he plays the game, it’s a joy from our dugout. I hate it, but I love it. I think the game is in good hands.”

The Twins are 5-2 against the Royals this season, but Kansas City had a better trade deadline than the Twins, adding hard-throwing relievers, starting rotation depth and infield help. That helps a staff led by veteran Seth Lugo, who is having a career year. Witt is the fulcrum of the Royals offense, but catcher Salvador Perez remains a threat at the plate and has hit more home runs in Target Field than any other opposing player. Kansas City’s plus-96 run differential is better than both the Twins (plus-56) and Guardians (plus-74).

Witt and the Royals have earned their spot in this playoff race and present a problem for a Twins team that can’t get its key players off the injured list.

Witt is batting .414 against the Twins this season and .290 against them in three seasons. He is the best player in the division and might be the best player in baseball not named Shohei Ohtani. He’s locked up by a long-term contract and is in position to wreck AL Central pitching for years while making the Royals, who won the World Series in 2015, relevant again.

Like most teams, the Twins had Witt high on their draft board in 2019. He had all the tools coming out of high school in Colleyville, Texas: the ability to hit, hit for power, run, field and throw. His range at shortstop is outstanding. Twins scouting director Sean Johnson believes Witt has become an even better runner as he has developed. He leads the majors with a sprint speed rating of 30.4, so Johnson is correct in his assessment.

Witt’s career WAR of 12.8 already is higher than all but one first-round pick from the 2018 draft (Nico Hoerner), every first-rounder in 2017 and all but one first-rounder in 2016 (Will Smith). Witt will be a perennial 30-homer, 30-steals player and could become the best Royals player since George Brett.

Good luck with that, Twins.

“A great player. Great makeup,” Johnson said. “That’s why he could be a thorn in our side for years to come.”