Bobby Witt Jr. continues to power Kansas City and keep the Royals in American League playoff contention with his bat.

The young shortstop was leading the Royals with a .344 average entering Kansas City’s three-game interleague series this weekend with the Chicago Cubs at Kauffman Stadium. Following Thursday’s 8-6 home loss to Arizona, Witt was batting .696 (16-for-23) since the All-Star break.

Witt’s hitting tear follows an appearance at the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, held July 16 at Globe Life Field. He went 0-for-1 in the American League’s 5-3 loss to the National League.

Witt was among four Royals who played. Like Witt, catcher Salvador Perez came in as a reserve position player. In addition, pitchers Cole Ragans and Seth Lugo each recorded a scoreless inning. 

Before the All-Star Game, Witt finished second in the T-Mobile Home Run Derby, held July 15, also at Globe Life Field. He advanced from the first round to the semifinals with 20 homers – third among eight contestants. 

Witt then reached the finals by outslugging Cleveland third baseman Jose Ramirez 17-12. He fell 14-13 to Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernandez in the finals.

After struggling early, Witt found a groove late to pull within one homer of Hernandez with one pitch to go. Witt drove his final pitch to deep center field, where it hit the bottom of the wall to the left of the 410-foot sign.