After a forearm strain kept him on the shelf for nearly a month, KonnorGriffin wasted no time making his presence felt as the Pirates' leadoff hitter in his major-league return:
HOME RUN: Welcome back, Konnor Griffin. Fifth homer of the season leads off the home half of the first. A no-doubter to left. Pirates, 1-0 -- From José Negron in Pittsburghpic.twitter.com/RyzJsJo1pv
That's Griffin, the 20-year-old sensation, sending the second pitch he saw from Reds left-handed pitcher AndrewAbbott into the seats in left, concluding his first at-bat back by becoming the fifth-youngest player with a leadoff homer in MLB history, according to SarahLangs. Here's an impressive list of six:
“That’s crazy," Griffin said of the list following the Pirates' 6-4 loss to the Reds here tonight at PNC Park. "There’s a lot of firsts. I’m sure there’s a lot of big-time names on that list, so I’m proud to be on there.”
Yeah, it's not entirely terrible to be mentioned in the same breath as a guy like Mantle.
“It’s wild to think about," Griffin said upon learning that Mantle was on the list. "I hope I have as good of a career as he had. I’ll just take it day by day and see what happens.”
Before he homered, reached on a hit by pitch in the seventh and singled in the ninth, Griffin expressed his desire to make an impact, not just in his first game, but in the leadoff spot with SpencerHorwitz on the injured list. Griffin led off for just the second time in his big-league career and made a big difference with a leadoff blast that put the Pirates ahead right out of the gates. But he knows he can bring more to the table in that spot, if the Pirates elect to use him more often with Horwitz sidelined.
“Just (want to) try to get on base and use my speed," Griffin said. "I didn’t have much opportunities with lefties on the mound but I’m going to try to continue to be aggressive and steal bases. With guys like BrandonLowe and (Bryan) Reynolds behind me, if they can put it in the gap I’m going to score. That’s the value I can bring being in that leadoff spot.”
THE ASYLUM
Griffin makes immediate impact in return
After a forearm strain kept him on the shelf for nearly a month, Konnor Griffin wasted no time making his presence felt as the Pirates' leadoff hitter in his major-league return:
That's Griffin, the 20-year-old sensation, sending the second pitch he saw from Reds left-handed pitcher Andrew Abbott into the seats in left, concluding his first at-bat back by becoming the fifth-youngest player with a leadoff homer in MLB history, according to Sarah Langs. Here's an impressive list of six:
9/28/58 Lou Klimchock: 18y 348d
5/1/40 Bob Kennedy: 19y 257d
9/13/51 Mickey Mantle: 19y 328d
7/16/40 Sibby Sisti: 19y 356d
6/26/26 Konnor Griffin: 20y 63d
5/26/13 Jurickson Profar: 20y 95d
“That’s crazy," Griffin said of the list following the Pirates' 6-4 loss to the Reds here tonight at PNC Park. "There’s a lot of firsts. I’m sure there’s a lot of big-time names on that list, so I’m proud to be on there.”
Yeah, it's not entirely terrible to be mentioned in the same breath as a guy like Mantle.
“It’s wild to think about," Griffin said upon learning that Mantle was on the list. "I hope I have as good of a career as he had. I’ll just take it day by day and see what happens.”
Before he homered, reached on a hit by pitch in the seventh and singled in the ninth, Griffin expressed his desire to make an impact, not just in his first game, but in the leadoff spot with Spencer Horwitz on the injured list. Griffin led off for just the second time in his big-league career and made a big difference with a leadoff blast that put the Pirates ahead right out of the gates. But he knows he can bring more to the table in that spot, if the Pirates elect to use him more often with Horwitz sidelined.
“Just (want to) try to get on base and use my speed," Griffin said. "I didn’t have much opportunities with lefties on the mound but I’m going to try to continue to be aggressive and steal bases. With guys like Brandon Lowe and (Bryan) Reynolds behind me, if they can put it in the gap I’m going to score. That’s the value I can bring being in that leadoff spot.”
Want to participate in our comments?
Want an ad-free experience?
Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits!
We’d love to have you!