WATCH: Pirates' Konnor Griffin Makes Diving Grab
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates have a young star in Konnor Griffin, who continues showing his talents throughout spring training.
The Pirates faced the New York Yankees at home and led 9-1 in the top of the seventh inning. Right-handed pitcher Yohan Ramirez put a pitch right over the plate that Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe hit out to center field.
Griffin, who was playing in center, tracked the ball down and made a sensational diving grab for the out, which generated great applause from the home fans.
Griffin played for Jackson Preparatory School in Jackson, Miss. and was Perfect Game's No. 1 ranked player in the Class of 2024.
He played sensationally as a senior, hitting .559, with 66 hits in 118 at-bats, along with 39 RBIs, 13 doubles, nine home runs and four triples as a senior. He also only struckout 10 times, while earning 47 walks and got hit by pitch five times.
Griffin also showed his prowess in the infield, with a .932 fielding percentage, turning nine double plays and only committing six errors. He also plays in the outfield too, giving the Pirates a number of positions they can put him at to succeed.
The Pirates selected Griffin with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, and signed him to a $6,532,025 deal, which was above slot for the pick at $6,216,600.
Griffin has had a solid spring for the Pirates so far, getting his first hit back on Feb. 23 and hitting his first home run on March 1.
While he can play both shortstop and center field, Griffin enjoys the latter and loves catching fly balls.
“Yeah I think centerfield comes more natural to me," Griffin said. "So I’m doing all my defensive work in the infield at shortstop and anytime, in BP, I get out there in centerfield and try to shag and keep the skillset for whenever they want me to put me in center, I’m ready to go."
The Pirates have off on March 12, but will return on March 13, as they face the Minnesota Twins, with first pitch set for 1:05 p.m.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.