Pirates top prospect Konnor Griffin’s MLB debut: What to know

Connor Griffin is headed to the majors!

pittsburgh pirates Are I am calling top prospect In the game before Friday’s home opener against baltimore orioles.

Still a teenager for the next three weeks, the 19-year-old shortstop is expected to become MLB’s first teenage position player since juan soto Debuted in 2018.

There has been a lot of hype surrounding Griffin this spring, but how good is he? What should fans expect from him early on and in the years to come? And what does his debut mean for Pirates? Let’s dig in.

How good is Griffin?

griffin is the best Possibility Baseball has seen that over the years.

He’s a plus-plus runner with a plus-plus arm and, over the past year, he went from probably profiling as an average defensive shortstop who could eventually move to an above-average defensive shortstop in the outfield. He also has electric bat speed and plus-plus raw power powered by his 6-foot-3, 222-pound frame.

I compared Griffin going into the 2024 MLB Draft San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr.. – Especially because of the idea at the time that Griffin could move to the outfield like Tatis. It has become common to hear now bobby wit jrName taken as primary comp. Even at this age, Griffin’s combination of bat speed and performance is somewhat reminiscent of Ronald Acuna Jr.., who debuted in the big leagues at the age of 20.

Griffin has all the tools, size and pedigree to truly be a superstar and the list of ranked players with these tools, this performance and the possibility of making his big league debut at this age is filled with stars and Hall of Famers. Griffin isn’t a sure thing because no one is, and almost all of these players needed work early in their big league careers, but all the elements are there to justify getting quite excited here.

I created an algorithm over the winter to consider age, level, and park-adjusted performance; Exit Velo; pace; protect; And age vs. level to help sort out all the Statcast-style data for position players in the minor leagues. Griffin beat out the second-best prospect (Detroit’s) by this measure. kevin mcgonigalThe consensus No. 2 prospect in baseball and the starting AL Roy favorite) by over 25%. 2nd and 3rd (St. Louis’ JJ Weatherholt) separated by 3%, and third and fourth (Seattle’s). colt emerson) separated by 1%. you get the idea.

If Griffin is an immediate star, could the Pirates get a bonus draft pick?

Yes. Griffin has been called up early in order to qualify the Pirates for a possible promotion incentive selection if he wins Rookie of the Year or finishes in the top three in MVP voting before arbitration (presumably Griffin’s first three seasons), as he will receive a full season of MLB service if he wins this entire season. Additional selection will take place immediately after the first round. last yearThe kansas city royals Witt’s MVP finish resulted in the 28th pick and, in 2024 draftThe Arizona Diamondbacks (31st pick) and the Baltimore Orioles (32nd) were awarded RBI wins for Corbin Carroll and Gunnar Henderson, respectively.

Notably, the Pirates could not qualify for PPI selection after Paul Skenes’ Rookie of the Year win because he was not called up early enough to get a full year’s service, but upon winning the NL Rookie, he was granted a full year’s service. Pittsburgh was smart to avoid a repeat of that situation, but it’s also an easy call with position players because there aren’t innings limits to think about.

Additionally, there have been reports of griffins and pirates Talking about a possible contract extension If he had signed it before being promoted the entire spring and the Pirates would not have been eligible for selection. The idea behind the rule is for teams to call up players when they are ready, not when the team sets their salary. Griffin could sign a deal after his debut and the Pirates could still get the pick if Griffin gets the finish needed for the hardware.

Where did the griffin come from?

Griffin was a longtime elite prep candidate at Mississippi and the first ranked player from his draft class to reach the national stage. Even after being reclassified from the 2025 draft class to the 2024 draft, he essentially retained that top spot until draft time.

He was in the consensus top tier of players ahead of the 2024 draft (it was give or take with 10 players) but required a swing adjustment that scared off some teams. i gave place to griffin seventh in that class and he finished ninth overall, earning the eighth highest bonus and becoming the first high school player).

Nick Kurtz Before winning AL Rookie of the Year last season, he was also in the top tier of players and was fourth overall while earning the sixth-largest bonus. Other stars that could materialize from this 2024 draft class: Chase Burns, jack caglianoneTravis Bazana and Weatherholt were also at that top level carson benz and Trey Yesways were the 19th and 20th overall picks, respectively. But Griffin and Kurtz appear to be the early stars of this class.

Griffin made swing adjustments shortly after signing, then had one of the spectacular full-season pro debuts in prospect history last season, hitting .333/.415/.527 with 21 home runs and 65 stolen bases in 122 games at both the A-ball level and Double-A as a 19-year-old. Combine that with his gaudy numbers in five Triple-A games to start this season and Griffin has one of the most unmatched minor league track stat lines of all time, should his minor league career come to an end.

It’s been a little lost in the hype surrounding his rise, but Griffin was also a really good pitching prospect. Going into the draft, I compared to that To jack flaherty on the mound (who was also a remarkable two-way prep prospect) and I think Griffin still could have gotten at least $2 million if he had never swung a bat in his life. He has one of those elite tool sets that you can put on any draft prospect for the next few decades, along with Bo Jackson, Josh Hamilton. bryce harper And Justin Upton.

Are there any concerns about Griffin’s play?

They are quite limited, but it is important to pay attention to them. Griffin’s approach at the plate is to cause damage and especially hit the ball hard. The loft in his swing and his ability to pull/lift to reach that power in games are spot on, while he relies more on his power/bat speed than direction/loft to deliver extra-base hits. This was also a similar criticism of Vlad Jr. junior caminero In a single step; This is more critical, but worth mentioning.

Because of this approach, his bat-to-ball ability is good, not great, and his pitch selection is also fine, but not elite. Since Griffin is so young and has played only 26 regular-season games above A-ball (and only 24 big league spring training games), there may be some growing pains in converting his big raw tools into production. His soft skills batting against advanced pitchers could be so good right now. Once the league gets scouting reports on his tendencies in a few weeks, I’d expect a bit of a meltdown.

The separator here is the time Griffin adjusted his swing plane shortly after being drafted. Scouts still complain to me that their team ruled Griffin out of consideration in 2024 too early because of swing questions, so I tried to find out how and why he did so and whether this applies to other prospects with similar concerns. The answer was some version of this take: Griffin has elite tools and is also an elite worker who takes coaching well and integrates suggestions quickly. No one, not even Pittsburgh or Griffin’s own camp, knew whether he would make the adjustment or rush it, but the Pirates thought it was worth a gamble.

If I could give one thing to a talented, young player to overcome the challenges of being dropped into the deep end of the pool that modern big league pitchers are facing every day for the first time, it would be his ability to handle the challenges of being dropped into the deep end of the pool.