Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Jared Triolo falters early, while top prospect Konnor Griffin ignites the minors.
Jared Triolo got the night off on Tuesday.
Speculation arose that the Pittsburgh Pirates’ shortstop was benched due to his poor start. However, manager Don Kelly clarified that sitting Triolo against the Cincinnati Reds was part of his plan to give other players an opportunity in the lineup.
Though Triolo is hitting just .118/.211/.176 through an extremely small four-game sample, the comparison to his competition at shortstop adds another layer to the conversation. The player Triolo beat out is currently excelling in the minors.
Konnor Griffin, starting at Triple-A Indianapolis, is 6-for-13 with three doubles, two stolen bases, four walks, and four strikeouts.
The 19-year-old is considered the best prospect in baseball and was kept in the major-league spring training camp until two days before the Pirates left Bradenton, Fla.
TrioTriolo is staying calm, less than a week into the season. Unlike some talent evaluators who see him as a utility player, Triolo believes he'll hit enough to be an everyday player in the major leagues. Many scouts think his best defensive position is third base. feel good,” Triolo told reporters on Tuesday after the Pirates lost to the Reds 2-0. “The swing feels good, just have to start doing damage on pitches that I’m seeing. I feel like I’m swinging at the right stuff, just have to start doing damage.”
With Triolo out of the lineup, Pittsburgh’s offense did its share of damage on Tuesday, scoring a season-high in runs in an 8-3 victory at Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati. Oneil Cruz hit two home runs, and Ryan O’Hearn and Bryan Reynolds had back-to-back shots as the Pirates improved to 2-3.
"I think hitting is contagious," Triolo said. "One person does it, and everybody else will start falling in line.”
Triolo is hoping that hitting will be contagious for him as well. At the same time, Griffin remains a presence in the minors, though GM Ben Cherington says there is no set timetable for his promotion.
“Got a little taste of it in spring training, he'll get more of that now in Triple-A,” Cherington said Sunday on his weekly radio show. “Older pitchers may have some of the same stuff as younger pitchers, but their approach is more advanced. It’s more about the consistency of how they command, how they sequence, just the way they’re setting hitters up. Those are the things that change a little bit as you get to Triple-A.
“I think it's seeing him, over some period of time, manage that, adjust to that kind of pitching, and seeing that play out in his at-bats and the consistency of his at-bats. Along with the things that you know he's going to bring every day, which is that great attitude, athleticism, and ability to impact the game in different ways. Excited to see him continue to develop in Triple-A.”
Cherington also explained why Triolo is playing shortstop while Nick Gonzales is at third base. The left side of the infield was expected to be the other way around when spring training began.
"If we go back to last year, when he had a chance to play shortstop regularly, in our internal system, we had him above average defensively at the position," Cherington said of Triolo. "I think there's an argument to be made at shortstop. He's got the ball in his hands a lot, and you want to try to put guys in the field that you trust defensively, have the ball in their hands a lot, and we certainly trust that with Tri."
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