Because the 2025 Draft approached, there was normal settlement that Mississippi excessive schooler Konnor Griffin probably had the most effective all-around set of uncooked instruments in the complete class.
However the emphasis was on uncooked. There have been holes in his swing, some scouts mentioned. That led to swing-and-miss considerations. Certain, he was thrilling and athletic, with 4 instruments getting at the very least a 60 on the 20-to-80 scouting scale — that is plus — however the one device that’s sometimes the important thing, the hit device, was questioned. He had No. 1 decide kind of upside, however these worries about his bat-to-ball expertise resulted in him touchdown with the Pirates at No. 9 general.
The Pirates did not swing and miss on the decide, and Griffin hasn’t executed a lot of it both, far surpassing any expectations for {the teenager} in his first style of professional ball. He started the yr at Single-A, completed it at Double-A, and in between, made an unprecedented climb to the highest of MLB Pipeline’s Prime 100 Prospects listing. And for these monumental efforts, Griffin picked up kudos as Minor League Hitting Prospect of the 12 months and made the Minor League Debut of the 12 months on the third annual MiLB Awards Present on Monday evening.
Griffin was chosen because the Hitter of the 12 months, edging the Tigers’ Kevin McGonigle (DET No. 1/MLB No. 2) and the Cardinals’ JJ Wetherholt (STL No. 1/MLB No. 6). His numbers present precisely why he gained the hitting award whereas additionally beating out pitchers Trey Yesavage (TOR No. 1/MLB No. 25) and Griffin Herring (COL No. 9) for debut honors.
The Pirates aren’t typically aggressive with highschool draftees, however Griffin pressured their hand with a robust Spring Coaching to start Opening Day with Single-A Bradenton, and he produced in any respect three stops throughout his marketing campaign. In 122 complete regular-season video games, Griffin hit .333/.415/.536 and arguably obtained higher with every promotion, with an OPS of .932 with Bradenton, .942 for Excessive-A Greensboro and .960 in 21 video games with Double-A Altoona.
“The one objective I had in the beginning of the yr was to make the Futures Sport,” mentioned Griffin, who crossed that off his bucket listing in July. “However as soon as I obtained to Excessive-A on the midway mark, I used to be like, ‘Let’s proceed to do what we’re doing and possibly get the possibility to play in Double-A. It ended up figuring out.”
Griffin completed the yr with a 165 wRC+, which led all Minor Leaguers with greater than 400 plate appearances (McGonigle had a 182 wRC+ in 397 PA). Griffin additionally turned in a 20/60 season — 21 homers and 65 steals to be exact — simply the second time a Minor Leaguer has pulled off that feat for the reason that early Nineteen Eighties. (Jonatan Clase did so within the Mariners group in 2023.)
So Griffin clearly belongs within the dialog relating to the most effective seasons turned in by a young person within the Minors in current reminiscence. Alex Rodriguez went from A-ball to the large leagues at age 18 in 1994, posting a .953 OPS with 21 homers and 20 steals over 114 video games throughout his fast climb by way of the Minors in his personal professional debut.
Mike Trout had a .918 OPS in his first full season of professional ball in 2010, performed largely at age 18, then upped that to .958 the next yr en route to creating his huge league debut forward of his twentieth birthday. Extra just lately, Ronald Acuña Jr. wowed everybody at age 19 by enjoying throughout three ranges in 2017 and delivering a 20/20 marketing campaign. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit .381 with a 1.073 OPS in 95 video games at age 19 in 2018, whereas Jackson Holliday raced by way of 4 ranges, ending with a .941 OPS on the identical age in 2023.
Griffin’s 2025 season stands up when in comparison with all of those, and his strategy improved alongside along with his numbers as he ascended the Pirates’ ladder. Some seemingly small mechanical modifications along with his load and hand placement in his setup on the plate unlocked his means to faucet into these instruments all yr lengthy.
“It is cool to look again, it felt like eternally in the past, again being in huge league camp,” Griffin mentioned about his first full season that started in February. “I give a number of credit score to being in huge league camp. I discovered how you can be a professional. I grew over the Low-A video games I used to be there, that helped me develop as a participant. There have been some challenges, however I used to be in a position to overcome them. The identical means for each step I’ve taken.”
COMPLETE PIRATES PROSPECT COVERAGE
These additional steps have Pirates followers salivating over the prospect of Griffin’s arrival in Pittsburgh, and there is little doubt the timetable has been sped up after this marketing campaign. With individuals across the sport pointing to the group’s pitching energy and the sensation the large league roster simply wants a couple of extra bats to make it a aggressive group, the concept of seeing Griffin at the very least compete for a job subsequent spring — when he’ll nonetheless be 19 years previous, by the way in which — does not sound so far-fetched. Maybe some brake-pumping might be employed, although even these wanting to verify he is put ready to succeed long run cannot deny what Griffin completed in 2025.
“I believe we have to be actually cautious about it, truthfully,” Pirates normal supervisor Ben Cherington mentioned just lately. “He is had a exceptional season. He is 19 years previous. He’ll be 19 subsequent April nonetheless. … That implies that — whereas he is had a exceptional season, we’re clearly extremely excited that he is a Pirate — there’s nonetheless extra to study.
“This can be a participant that is actually vital to the Pirates. It is vital to him too, that he is set as much as have the longest, greatest profession attainable for him. Now we have some affect on that when it comes to how we information the subsequent months, years of his entry into the large leagues, nonetheless lengthy that takes. … Typically there are uncommon younger gamers that do not observe all the principles. We simply do not know but the place that is going to take us.”
The when, and never if, about all of it’s simple to get enthusiastic about. And greater than something, past the eye-popping numbers and the instruments, what actually amazed the Pirates brass was how their prized prospect dealt with and ready for all the pieces.
“I believe the factor that has stood out about him is, to the very finish of the season … is his need to maintain getting higher to the final day of the season and displaying up [on the final day of his season] eager to work on one thing,” Cherington mentioned. “Having most of his offseason mapped out and all that’s an encouraging signal for a 19-year-old.”
