MLB rumors: Are Royals willing to give Bobby Witt Jr. a $200 million contract extension?

Bobby Witt Jr. is going to be needing a big extension in the near future, but are the Royals willing to hand him a massive contract?

The Kansas City Royals are in the middle of a full-fledged rebuild, as evidenced by the fact that they have missed the playoffs for the past eight seasons. While things aren't looking great for the Royals right now, they do have a potential building block on their roster in star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. The problem is that he is going to need a mammoth new contract soon that Kansas City may not want to give him.

Witt took a massive step forward in the 2023 campaign (.276 BA, 30 HR, 96 RBI, 49 SB, .813 OPS), and at just 23 years old, he looks like one of the top young stars in the game. But as is the case with every great player in the MLB, they want to make the best bang for their buck, which is why the Royals don't seem to be too willing to hand Witt that massive contract just yet.

“After free-agent shortstops Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Correa and Dansby Swanson agreed to contracts for a combined $957 million last offseason, the Royals’ chances of signing Bobby Witt Jr. to a monster extension seemed rather slim. They still might be. But the club is at least entertaining the idea of approaching Witt, according to a source briefed on the team’s plans but not authorized to discuss them publicly. An extension for Bobby Witt Jr. would likely cost the Royals more than $200 million.” – Ken Rosenthal, The Athletic

Should the Royals sign Bobby Witt Jr. to a long-term extension?

An extension for Witt isn't something the Royals have to worry about just yet, but the longer they wait, the more expensive he likely will become. Witt can't hit free agency until 2028, so the Royals have him under team control for at least four more seasons, which gives them time to figure out whether or not Witt is a star worth building around.

The answer should be clear to Kansas City that Witt is a stud, but with the money involved on a deal for him, it's not that simple. The Royals have time on their side, but the longer wait, the bigger Witt's price tag will be, which is why it may just be better for them to bite the bullet and hand him his massive extension this offseason. Unfortunately, that seems unlikely to happen.