Konnor Griffin Makes Immediate Impact in Return to Pirates’ Lineup After Injury

The Pittsburgh Pirates have long awaited the return of their superstar rookie Konnor Griffin, who landed on the injured list with a fractured finger at the beginning of July.

Ever since Griffin has been sidelined, Pittsburgh has continued to fall further out of the postseason race. Several factors have contributed, but not having the 20-year-old in the lineup every day has been one of them.

Finally, on Friday, Griffin was activated on Friday and played his first big-league game in weeks. The rookie wasted no time making an immediate impact and helping Pittsburgh win its series opener against the Los Angeles Angels.

Griffin reached base in the bottom of the second on a fielder’s choice; his first time on base since the injury. The next batter up was Jake Mangum, who ripped a ball down the right-field line.

Typically, this would’ve been a play in which the runner on first finds themselves on third base, still in scoring position, but not Griffin. The rookie flipped the switch and ended up scoring all the way from first base, which included a perfect slide into home plate.

For what it’s worth, Griffin ranks in the 98th percentile in sprint speed this season.

It was only one run, but it was one that Griffin manufactured on his own. It also became the difference-maker in the game, as the Pirates won 1-0.

“ I was laying my body on a line, trying to score a run,” Griffin said after the game. “I’ve been out so long, it means, it means a lot when good stuff happens. I don't show too much emotion, but it came out of me.”

Manager Don Kelly said before Friday’s game the plan was to ease Griffin back into playing every day. However, the Pirates are also in the middle of a playoff race. If Griffin continues to leave his mark on games as he did on Sunday, it’ll be hard to leave him out of the lineup.

The reality is that the Pirates are still several games out of a playoff spot, but aren’t out of the race just yet. Griffin showed in his return on Friday that he could single-handedly provide the spark the team needs to go on a run over the final few weeks and potentially make the postseason after all.