The Pittsburgh Pirates are keeping Konnor Griffin in town. The 19-year-old shortstop has signed a nine-year extension that locks him up through 2034, the team announced Wednesday. The deal is worth $140 million with no options or deferrals, according to the New York Post. Awards escalators can take the contract up to $150 million.
This marks the largest contract the Pirates have ever handed out, surpassing Bryan Reynolds’ $106.75 million extension in 2023.
“Since joining the organization, Konnor has consistently demonstrated the traits we want in a Pirate — a daily commitment to improvement, a team-first mindset and a strong desire to win,” Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said in a statement. “He has met every challenge in front of him, and we are excited to watch him continue that growth alongside his teammates in Pittsburgh. We are thrilled he will be with a Pirate for a long time.”
The news comes just days after Griffin’s major-league debut, which made him the first teenager to appear in the big leagues since Elvis Luciano and Juan Soto in 2019. The No. 9 pick in the 2024 Draft skyrocketed through the minors last season, slashing .333/.415/.527 with 21 home runs and 65 steals while climbing from Low Class-A to Double-A. Griffin is 7 for 16 (.438) with three doubles in five Triple-A games this year.
The Pirates gave Griffin a chance to win the shortstop job in spring training, though he stumbled a bit (7 for 41 with 13), specifically swinging through too many pitches in the zone. We ranked Griffin has the third-best prospect in baseball entering spring training. Here’s the write-up:
The rap on Griffin during his amateur days was that he had every tool but the hit tool, the most important of the bunch. It was encouraging, then, to see him ease concerns about his swing-and-miss during his first pro season. He connected on more than 75% of his attempts while showing off the power (he cleared the 114 mph threshold) and speed (he stole 65 bases) combination that gave him a high ceiling. Griffin even kept his strikeout rate under 24% during a 21-game stint in Double-A, suggesting that he wasn’t just feasting on younger pitchers or those with less raw talent. Knowing when to adjust priors is one of the trickiest parts of evaluating players. Given everything about Griffin’s year, it would be silly to ignore how much higher his chances of reaching his star ceiling are now than they were 365 days ago.
Griffin is expected to be a favorite in the National League’s rookie of the year race (+200, per Caesars), though it’s a stacked class including righty Nolan McLean (New York Mets), first baseman Sal Stewart (Cincinnati Reds), and second baseman JJ Wetherholt (St. Louis Cardinals).
The Pirates are 7-4 in the young season, led by ace Paul Skenes.
