Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. grew up idolizing Dustin Pedroia
Dustin Pedroia retired from baseball after 14 years as a member of the Boston Red Sox. The former four-time All Star, four-time Gold Glove Award winner walked away from the game after injuries derailed his career.
Pedroia had a huge impact on the game in Boston and his teammates across the game. Former teammate and Red Sox third baseman Will Middlebrooks referred to Pedroia as a “different breed”.
Red Sox legend David Ortiz told WEEI’s Rob Bradford that the former second baseman “showed the whole planet it wasn’t about height, it was about balls.”
“I can say so much about Dustin,” said Ortiz. “It got to the point while I played that I asked myself one day who would be a player that you would buy a ticket to see because it was worth it to watch him play for nine innings? And my answer was Dustin Pedroia.”
Pedroia also impacted players growing up who are now breaking into the league.
Current Royals shortstop and third baseman Bobby Witt Jr., grew up idolizing Pedroia. He also grew up a huge fan of Yankees icon Derek Jeter. Witt Jr. struggled to pick a side during the their heated rivalry.
The Texas native wears No. 17, a combination of both No. 15 and No. 2 as his way to pay homage to both baseball greats.
“Growing up I always liked [Dustin] Pedroia and [Derek] Jeter because of the way they played the game and the way they did things on and off the field! I try to model my game after big leaguers no matter who they are I like to take bits and pieces from each one and include them into my game,” said Witt in an article with Fansided.
When Pedroia announced his retirement from the game lasts season, Witt Jr. took to his Twitter to tweet about No. 15.
Witt Jr. made his major league debut this past season, playing in 150 games for the Royals. The 22-year-old enjoyed a good first year offensively hitting .254 with 150 hits, 31 doubles, 20 homers, 80 RBIs and a .722 OPS.
The Royals love the player they have in Witt Jr. and are excited to see him blossom into an All-Star caliber player. The young future superstar grew up idolizing two of the game’s best players. It will be something to watch if Witt Jr. can bring his own laser show to Kauffman Stadium for many years to come.
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