Top Royals prospect Bobby Witt Jr. insists to Patrick Mahomes he touched home after homer

Bobby Witt Jr., an alumnus of Colleyville Heritage High School and the son of Texas Rangers pitcher, pulled off something you seldom see in a baseball game.

The Kansas City Royals’ top prospect was called out at home on an appeal after a fifth inning home run Tuesday — his second of the game. As Witt Jr. was celebrating with teammates in his Northwest Arkansas dugout, Frisco RoughRiders pitcher Hever Bueno tossed the ball to catcher Matt Whatley, who touched home.

Witt Jr., according to the home plate umpire, never touched home during the Double A game at Dr Pepper Ballpark in Frisco after rounding the bases. Witt Jr. did something of a sideways hop as he neared the plate but from available video footage it’s impossible to tell if he missed the plate. From the video angle, it actually appears as if he touched the plate. But the umpire and catcher certainly had a better view.

Witt thought he touched home plate, too. After the game, he responded to Chiefs’ quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ post on Twitter, questioning whether he was seeing the video correctly. Mahomes, like many others, thought Witt Jr. touched home.

“Can confirm I touched home,” Witt Jr. replied on Twitter, punctuating his remark with a shoulder shrug emoji.

Witt Jr., who turns 21 next week, is a ranked as the top prospect in the Royals’ organization in 2021. He has 10 homers and 17 RBIs in 27 minor league games in 2021.