Griffin has crushed the baseball in his first MiLB season, hitting 16 doubles, 13 home runs, and 53 RBIs in 73 games.
It’s no secret that the Pittsburgh Pirates are in desperate need of offense. After outscoring the Cardinals 13-0 at PNC Park, they fell asleep in Seattle and were swept in the three-game series.
They didn’t score a run. It was the first time in MLB history that a team swept an opponent while not allowing a single run, then was swept by an opponent while not scoring a run in consecutive series.
The Pirates also experienced a 26-game run where they scored four or fewer runs. It tied an MLB record. To steal a line from CBS’s hit reality show “Big Brother,” Expect the Unexpected this season.
That could be the motto with Konnor Griffin.
Drafted No. 9 overall in the 2024 MLB Draft, Griffin was the first high school player selected and considered one of the best athletes in the class.
Konnor Griffin leads all full-season minor leaguers in runs (73) and is tied for the most hits with 99 pic.twitter.com/uIR0GeVbGc
— Young Bucs (@YoungBucsPIT) July 7, 2025
There’s a chance he makes it to the big leagues before players three years older than him.
Griffin has hit the cover off the baseball in 2025.
Starting in Single-A Bradenton, Griffin slashed .338/.396/.536 with a .932 OPS, 10 doubles, nine home runs, 36 RBIs, and 26 steals in 50 games.
He parlayed his success into a promotion to High-A Greensboro in early June. Griffin has done nothing but hit.
The 6-foot-4, 225-pound shortstop/center fielder hasn’t missed a beat. Griffin, 19, is slashing .322/.421/.522 with a .943 OPS through 23 games.
Konnor Griffin HOMER!
Hoppers: 7 | IronBirds: 2 pic.twitter.com/jDSYgkYiNX
— Greensboro Grasshoppers (@GSOHoppers) July 3, 2025
The righty owns 29 hits, six doubles, four home runs, 17 RBIs, and 14 steals. Griffin stole three bases Sunday to reach 40 in only 73 games.
MLB Pipeline’s Jonathan Mayo believes we could see Griffin in the next 12-14 months.
“Second half of next year he’s in the big leagues,” Mayo said on SportsNet Pittsburgh on Monday. “That might be conservative, by the way.”
.@JonathanMayo of @MLBPipeline discusses the rise of Konnor Griffin with @theFortMcKenry & @SquidBrault
“13 homers and 37 steals already… thinking second half of next year he’s in the big leagues. That might be conservative, by the way.” pic.twitter.com/t9GMWBtjLb
— SportsNet Pittsburgh (@SNPittsburgh) July 7, 2025
MLB Pipeline re-ranked Griffin as the 13th-best prospect in baseball. Mayo responded to a fan’s suggestion that the Pirates won’t call him up due to Super Two and possibly losing a year of service time.
“So call him up in late August, make sure he doesn’t go over the rookie status limit (45 days service time; 130 ABs), then he makes Opening Day roster in 2027 and gets them a PPI pick possibly,” Mayo said. “Win-win! ;)”
Baseball America ranked Griffin as the No. 2 prospect behind Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony, who is on pace to graduate from the prospect list later this season.
It’s no secret Griffin has star potential. He will represent the Pirates in the All-Star Futures Game in Atlanta, showcasing the next wave of top talent.
If Griffin can make a meteoric rise through the Pirates system, usually conservative with its talent, Griffin could become the home-grown star hitter the Pirates have been searching for over the last decade.