Pirates Latest Move Has Paul Skenes Believing in Something Big
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates have the best pitcher in baseball in Paul Skenes and also could have the best future player in the game too.
Shortstop Konnor Griffin signed a nine-year extension with the Pirates, which totals $140 million and $150 million with escalators, according to source, making it the biggest contract in franchise history and keeping their young star with the team long-term.
It's another big move for the Pirates, who had a busy winter with trades and free agent signings, showing a change in their usual frugal nature and a commitment towards building a team that will compete for and in the postseason.
Skenes, who won the 2025 National League Cy Young Award and wants nothing more than to win in Pittsburgh, is seeing all these moves, including Griffin's signing, as reasons to have confidence in the future of the franchise and a winning culture becoming reality.
“Yeah I mean. It’s a continuation of everything we’ve seen for the past year or so," Skenes said. "Just bringing in guys, we have a home grown rotation right now. Drafting well, developing well and creating a foundation of a team that’s going to win for a long time. It’s another step in the right direction, I think.”
How Konnor Griffin Helps the Pirates Get Closer to Playoffs
It's been a wild journey for Griffin, who the Pirates took ninth overall in the 2024 MLB Draft out of Jackson Prepartory School in Jackson, Miss.
He moved up three levels in 2025 in his first professional season and then after missing out on the Opening Day roster, he played just five games at Triple-A Indianapolis before earning his MLB callup and making his MLB debut vs. the Baltimore Orioles in the home opener at PNC Park on April 8.
Griffin has played just five games for the Pirates, but he's shown exactly why he's the best option at shortstop for the franchise for close to the next decade.
He has +2 defensive runs saved (DRS), which is tied for second-best amongst MLB shortstops that have played at last 30 innings this season. An MiLB Gold Glove Award winner in 2025, Griffin has made diving stops, backhanded throws, displayed his arm on great throws to first base and worked well to help make for important double plays.
Griffin has also shown his speed, not stealing a base yet after doing so 65 times in 2025, but reaching 29-30 feet per second on the two runs he scored this year, easily beating throws.
He struggled from the plate after an RBI-double in his first plate appearance, with no hits in 14 consecutive at-bats, but had two hits in the 7-1 win over the San Diego Padres at PNC Park on April 7, showing he can become a great hitter at the major league level.
Griffin doesn't turn 20 years old until April 24, but Skenes already sees him as a big part of a team that is going to be a tough out for everyone in the major leagues.
“Yeah it’s huge. He was the best player in that draft from everything I heard and we got him," Skenes said on Griffin. "It’s hard to say looking at him now that they made the right choice, it was kind of a layup it seems like to pick him with the makeup and the talent and everything. It’s what we need and to put him alongside with the other guys we have offensively and on the pitching side, it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
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.