The Kansas City Royals are training with a former U.S. Olympic superstar from KCK

Maurice Greene sprinted into the spotlight at a young age.

The Kansas City, Kansas native starred at Schlagle High School before capturing worldwide acclaim as a U.S. Olympic sprinter. By the late 1990s, Greene was the world’s fastest human.

Greene shattered world records, running a 9.79-second time in the 100-meter dash at the 1999 World Championships in Seville, Spain. He also won Olympic gold, earning two at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.

At his peak, Greene was nearly impossible to beat. He blazed a trail that only a fire extinguisher could catch.

Greene, 49, retired in 2008 and has since turned to coaching. He resides in Gilbert, Arizona, and shares his knowledge in track and football at the nearby American Leadership Academy.

Now, he’s also teaching running technique to the Kansas City Royals.

On Friday, Greene visited the Royals’ morning workout in Surprise. He worked with a small group of players after the team session. The group included Bobby Witt Jr., Drew Waters, Kyle Isbel, Nelson Velasquez and MJ Melendez.

The goal: Get better on the basepaths.

“They just contacted me and just told me that some of them need to learn how to run,” Greene said of the Royals. “And to help them, especially stealing bases, and things like that. I just tried to let them feel the right positions and just teach them the right running techniques.

“If we can get a tenth faster, that’s a tenth they don’t have to worry about getting thrown out.”

Greene began working with several of the team’s players in November. He instructed them through multiple drills aimed at refining their running motion.

Greene replicated those drills Friday afternoon. He worked the group through cone drills. The players focused on body alignment and staying balanced through each step of the run.

At times, Greene guided them with such phrases as, “Elbow in front of you,” and, “Cycle through, higher off the ground.”

The group also worked on resistance training. Greene utilized resistance bands to strengthen their explosiveness and foot speed.

“I try to teach them to run with power, especially when they are getting off,” Greene said. “It’s giving them resistance so they really drive through their steps and really use a lot of power. And that helps you be explosive the first couple of steps. That’s most important.”

The Royals seemed to enjoy the training session. Witt, working with Greene for the second time, said he’s added some new tools to his arsenal. Last season Witt stole 49 bases but was caught stealing an MLB-high 15 times.

“It’s huge and it’s showing that the organization is going out of their way to try to help us,” Witt said. “We could be just doing sprints and whatever.

“But figuring out the good techniques also helps prevent injuries. We’ve had guys that had hamstring stuff or whatever it is. Just proper running helps prevent that. It’s good to have.”

The Royals see baserunning as an organizational pillar. Last season, KC ranked third in the majors with 163 steals. Five players had 10 or more and Dairon Blanco and Maikel Garcia each topped 20.

Speed and defense are important in spacious Kauffman Stadium. Royals first base coach Damon Hollins believes better running technique can also help players improve their fielding angles.

“It’s all relevant to what they do every day, whether it’s infield or outfield,” Hollins said. “I think the most important thing is keeping our guys healthy and teaching them that running form.

“As a former player, I never worked on my running form. So to have guys come out here and try to get better with their form, it’s only going to benefit on the field and sustain longevity throughout the season.”

The Royals plan to continue working on their base-running skills. Hollins shares metrics and data points the organization finds most important. The Royals use such data to simulate pitch packages and pitch grips.

For instance, how a pitcher holds the baseball might signal potential stolen-base outcomes. A pitcher shifting his weight helps create a “look” on the basepaths. From there, it’s all about keying in on the perfect moment — the ideal situation in which to steal.

Waters, who stole 16 bases and was caught stealing five times in 2023, hopes the Royals’ approach and Greene’s expertise will lead to more success on the basepaths this season.

“Anytime you can, you know, get the extra base, you’re not only helping the team score,” Waters said. “Everybody likes stealing an extra base.”

Greene is excited to see how the training sessions translate. The Royals will step into their own 162-game race on March 28, opening the season against the Minnesota Twins at Kauffman Stadium.

“The next step is to go perform now,” Greene said. “We’ve been working for quite a while now. It’s just getting their quick twitch muscles firing, get some reaction times going and they can get out there and perform.”