PIRATES

As Konnor Griffin stepped to the plate for his first major-league at-bat against Orioles starter Kyle Bradish in the bottom of the second inning, the 19-year-old top overall prospect in baseball had one thing on his mind. 

"I was up there trying to compete," Griffin said following the Pirates' 5-4 home-opening win over the Orioles here tonight in front of a sell-out crowd at PNC Park. "I feel like that's the goal, to kind of make it sound like that every time you get in the box, just focus on the pitcher and go compete." 

Compete is exactly what Griffin, the first teenage position player to reach the major leagues since Juan Soto in 2018, did on this early April day. Griffin whiffed on two sliders from Bradish but fought his way into a 1-2 count before fouling off another slider out of the zone. Bradish threw four of those before turning to a curveball that he spotted on the outer edge. Griffin didn't miss it: 

"That was special," said Griffin, who ultimately went 1 for 3 with a walk, an RBI and a run scored in the win. "Got to (do the) hoist the cone celebration. This team is awesome. We're going to do a lot of great things and I'm glad to be a part of it."

Griffin has the appropriate mindset to handle the challenges associated with playing at the major-league level. He's never too high or too low, he just tries to control what he can control and be where his feet are. He did say, though, that he felt a sense of relief getting that first hit out of the way right out of the gate. Now, he just wants to play baseball and stack them. Though he knows there will be plenty of ups and downs now that he's made it to the show. 

"When i got to bed at night, it's time to flip the switch, get ready for tomorrow's game and it's my job to show up every day and go compete," Griffin said. "Today was the first day. It was super special. Now it's time to go through the ups and downs of a long season and see what happens."