Baseball's No. 1 overall prospect will make his highly-anticipated major-league debut at PNC Park this weekend, as the Pirates are set to promote 19-year-old Konnor Griffin ahead of Friday's home opener against the Orioles.
Griffin, who has been at the center of multiple reports regarding a long-term contract extension with the Pirates, didn't make the team out of spring training, but he should immediately be slotted into the major-league lineup and provide a boost -- both offensively and defensively -- following a 3-3 road trip to begin the season.
Per Sarah Langs, Griffin will become the first teenage position player to reach the major leagues since a 19-year-old Juan Soto in 2018. He will also be the first teenage position player in a game within his team's first seven games of a season since AdrianBeltre in 1999.
Griffin's call up comes after just five games spent with Class AAA Indianapolis, where he collected seven hits in 16 at-bats, scored four runs, walked five times and stole three bases. He has played in 127 minor-league games since the beginning of 2025, including 26 games above Class A. In a sample of 500 at-bats, he slashed .336/.420/.530 with a .950 OPS, 21 home runs, 95 RBIs and 121 runs scored. He's also stolen 68 bases after a 65-steal season between low Class A Bradenton, high Class A Greensboro and Class AA Altoona last year.
There is an incentive associated with Griffin being called up now, as the Pirates become eligible to potentially earn an extra draft pick through the Prospect Promotion Incentive. Griffin is considered a PPI-eligible player because he's listed on multiple top-100 lists and doesn't have any MLB service time. There's a PPI deadline set for April 9 because it'll maximize service time for these eligible players. The Pirates get that extra pick if Griffin accrues a full year of service time as a rookie and either wins rookie of the year or finishes top three in MVP voting prior to arbitration hitting. He wouldn't be considered PPI eligible if he were to sign a contract extension prior to his major-league debut.
THE ASYLUM
Pirates promoting Griffin ahead of home opener
Baseball's No. 1 overall prospect will make his highly-anticipated major-league debut at PNC Park this weekend, as the Pirates are set to promote 19-year-old Konnor Griffin ahead of Friday's home opener against the Orioles.
Griffin, who has been at the center of multiple reports regarding a long-term contract extension with the Pirates, didn't make the team out of spring training, but he should immediately be slotted into the major-league lineup and provide a boost -- both offensively and defensively -- following a 3-3 road trip to begin the season.
Per Sarah Langs, Griffin will become the first teenage position player to reach the major leagues since a 19-year-old Juan Soto in 2018. He will also be the first teenage position player in a game within his team's first seven games of a season since Adrian Beltre in 1999.
Griffin's call up comes after just five games spent with Class AAA Indianapolis, where he collected seven hits in 16 at-bats, scored four runs, walked five times and stole three bases. He has played in 127 minor-league games since the beginning of 2025, including 26 games above Class A. In a sample of 500 at-bats, he slashed .336/.420/.530 with a .950 OPS, 21 home runs, 95 RBIs and 121 runs scored. He's also stolen 68 bases after a 65-steal season between low Class A Bradenton, high Class A Greensboro and Class AA Altoona last year.
There is an incentive associated with Griffin being called up now, as the Pirates become eligible to potentially earn an extra draft pick through the Prospect Promotion Incentive. Griffin is considered a PPI-eligible player because he's listed on multiple top-100 lists and doesn't have any MLB service time. There's a PPI deadline set for April 9 because it'll maximize service time for these eligible players. The Pirates get that extra pick if Griffin accrues a full year of service time as a rookie and either wins rookie of the year or finishes top three in MVP voting prior to arbitration hitting. He wouldn't be considered PPI eligible if he were to sign a contract extension prior to his major-league debut.
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