Will Pittsburgh Pirates Make Serious Effort to Sign Konnor Griffin?

Plenty of prospects have come and gone for the Pittsburgh Pirates since 1993.

Building a strategy based on hope rather than proven talent hasn’t worked. The Pirates have just four winning seasons in the last 33 years and haven’t finished above .500 in 2017.

So, it’s easy to be skeptical of Pittsburgh's prospects. However, Paul Skenes has lived up to the hype since being the first overall pick in the 2023 amateur draft. The big right-hander was the National League Rookie of the Year in 2024 and the NL Cy Young Award winner last season.

Now comes another Pirates’ prospect getting plenty of hype, 19-year-old shortstop Konner Griffin. He was playing high school baseball in Flowood, Miss., just two years ago, but he is now considered the best prospect in baseball after being the Minor League Player of the Year last season.

The spotlight seemingly gets brighter by the day, through no fault of Griffin. He truly seems unaffected by all the attention.

Yet Griffin can’t help but get plenty of notice when he dies things as he did on Tuesday when he hit two home runs against the Boston Red Sox in a Grapefruit League game in Fort Myers, Fla, During Pittsburgh's early-spring workouts in Bradenton, Fla., everyone would stop when it was Griffin’s turn to step into the batting cage.

Now comes word that the Pirates and Griffin have mutual interest in a long-term contract. It is encouraging that normally frugal Pittsburgh is open to at least considering signing a potential superstar to a long-term contract.

Reaching a deal would pose risks for both sides. The Pirates would be on the hook for a lot of money if Griffin, who has yet to play above Double-A, turns out to be a flop. Griffin would pass up the potential to make a lot more money by retaining his salary arbitration rights.

It has become more routine for teams to sign their young players to long-term contracts. The largest deal given to a player with no major league service is the eight-year, $82-million contract that Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Jackson Chourio signed before the 2024 season.

Just 21, Chourio has been a key player on two NL Central championship teams. He has hit .272/.317/.463 in 279 games with 42 home runs and 43 stolen bases.

Chourio was ranked as the second-best prospect in the game by Baseball America when he signed his contract. Every outlet currently ranks Griffin at No. 1.

If Pittsburgh used the same eight-year template that the Brewers did with Chourio, Griffin would give up all four years of salary arbitration and two years of free agency. Yet Griffin could still become a free agent at 27, seemingly able to command a large contract.

To get an eight-year deal done now, it would likely cost around $125 million. That would be a large outlay for the Pirates, who have never signed a player for more than left fielder Bryan Reynolds’ current eight-year, $106.75-million contract.

It would be a big gamble for the risk-averse Pirates. Whether they take it remains to be seen.

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