The Pirates may be the next team that jumps on the early train of teams looking to lock up their top prospects.
What if I told you that you can make big money with little experience?
If only it were that easy.
In Major League Baseball, though, that concept is starting to become more of a reality.
Teams are going all in on their future prospects and giving them big money. And Pittsburgh Pirates top prospect Konnor Griffin wants in on the trend.
It almost seemed sacrilegious a decade ago, but given how expensive players are in the modern era, teams feel like the juice is worth the squeeze.
Thanks to a trend set by the Atlanta Braves, by dishing out longer-term contracts to younger players for financial freedom, while giving the team a little more flexibility, teams are more open to biting the bullet.
Ronald Acuna, Austin Riley, Michael Harris II, Spencer Strider and Ozzie Albies all signed contracts that spanned six years or longer with the Braves.
And it’s worked out for them nicely, winning the 2021 World Series, with plenty of room to go big-game hunting if need be.
As of late, the contracts to inexperienced, high upside prospects are starting to spike once again, with the Seattle Mariners handing out an eight-year $95 million contract to 20-year-old shortstop Colt Emerson.
The amount of MLB games played?
Zero.
The same went for Milwaukee Brewers prospect Cooper Pratt, who has only played three games in Triple-A, to an eight-year, $50 million contract.
You get the picture.
Griffin, 19, is widely known as baseball’s premier prospect, and according to ESPN’s Buster Olney, his camp and the Pirates have been deep in negotiations since early spring training.
From the looks of it, Griffin’s camp is looking for a contract similar to what the Boston Red Sox gave 21-year-old Roman Anthony – which was in the eight-year, $130 million range.
It’ll only be a matter of time before Griffin eventually gets called up to the big leagues. Last season, he bounced around single-A, A+, and Triple-A, and he dazzled with a .333 batting average, 21 home runs, 94 RBIs, 65 stolen bases, and a .941 OPS.
With a statline like that, it’s no wonder why Pittsburgh is so eager to lock him up at a reasonable price.
Olney also reports that the Pirates making this deal would be a signal of good faith to their fanbase, a group that has lived in perpetual sorrow – making the playoffs just three times in 33 years.
Griffin is a major part of this franchise moving forward, and pairing him with star pitcher Paul Skenes can create an amount of buzz in the Steel City that it hasn’t experienced in the summer in recent memory.
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