Another Young Pirates Phenom, Another High-Stakes Decision

Another young Pirates phenom is using his torrid spring training performance to force what could be a historic decision by the club. 

Nearly two years after Pittsburgh ace pitcher Paul Skenes turned heads across MLB with his own high-profile entry to MLB, shortstop Konnor Griffin is aiming to do much the same—and at an even younger age. 

Griffin, just 19 years old, hit his third home run Sunday during Grapefruit League play this spring, adding to what has become an .857 slugging percentage and a 1.124 OPS. Drafted No. 9 in the 2024 draft by the Pirates, Griffin is aiming to be the first teenage position player to make his MLB debut on Opening Day since Ken Griffey Jr. in 1989. 

There’s plenty of raw talent with Griffin, who ran away with Minor League Player of the Year honors in 2025 and is considered the top prospect in the entire league according to multiple rankings. But there are financial considerations, too. The Pirates would have an additional year of control of Griffin, keeping him from free agency until after the 2032 season, if they wait at least two weeks into this season to call him up to the majors. 

That decision alone has financial implications potentially reaching into the tens of millions of dollars. The current labor deal between MLB and the MLB Players Association, however, has a series of incentives to help discourage that behavior. If Griffin plays the entire season and wins the Rookie of the Year, or finishes at least third in Most Valuable Player award voting, the Pirates would receive an additional draft pick in the league’s Prospect Promotion Incentive (PPI) program.

Pittsburgh missed out on gaining such a pick in 2024 when Skenes did not make his debut until May of that year, and he ultimately earned a full-year’s worth of service time anyway after winning National League Rookie of the Year. Skenes then followed that up by winning the 2025 NL Cy Young Award last year, claiming another $3.4 million in bonuses last year for outstanding pre-arbitration players. 

As the deliberations around Griffin’s career path continue, there have also been multiple reports that the Pirates will soon seek to sign him to a long-term extension that would buy out his arbitration eligibility and some initial free agency. That would essentially moot much of the timing consideration of when to promote him to the majors. 

The Pirates, meanwhile, are looking to break out of a competitive doldrum, having finished last in the NL Central division each of the last two seasons—despite the heroics of Skenes. 

“We have to keep in mind that he’s 19,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said about Griffin. “It’s about continuing to push him, allowing him to be himself and playing free.”