Early Spring Training Battles Between Pirates' Top Prospects Generating Buzz

Pittsburgh Pirates fans are being treated to an early look at the not-so-distant future with spring training kicking into gear this week.

While most of the attention on the Pirates has rightfully surrounded 2024 National League Rookie of the Year and 2025 Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes over the last two seasons, Pittsburgh has a couple of other highly touted prospects who are seemingly ready to make an impact. Konnor Griffin, the No. 1 prospect in all of baseball according to MLB Pipeline, was seen taking live at-bats on Thursday against pitcher Bubba Chandler, Pittsburgh's No. 2 prospect and MLB Pipeline's No. 11 overall prospect.

Chandler, a 2021 third-round pick by the Pirates, made his major league debut for Pittsburgh last year, posting a 4.02 ERA and 31 strikeouts in seven appearances. Griffin, on the other hand, was Pittsburgh's first-round draft choice in 2024. The 19-year-old hit .333 with 21 home runs and 65 stolen bases in 122 games across three levels in his first minor league campaign. With numbers like that, Pirates fans are already dreaming of what the young shortstop could do in the big leagues.

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Could both top prospects be in Pittsburgh on opening day?

Aug 2, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Konnor Griffin who was the ninth overall pick in first round of the 2024 First-Year Player Draft in the batting cage before a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The spring training buzz around Griffin quickly started to spread on Wednesday after he hit a couple of missiles in batting practice. Then, on Thursday, multiple Pirates beat reporters posted videos of Griffin facing off against Chandler in live BP. In one at-bat, Chandler caught Griffin looking at a fastball for a strikeout. In another, Griffin drew a walk on five pitches.

While these are simply a few spring training swings and plate appearances, baseball fans are naturally already wondering when they could expect to see Griffin in the majors. It also doesn't hurt Griffin's chances of making the opening day roster when Skenes himself says he's "excited to have him help us win a lot of games in Pittsburgh this year."

Realistically, Griffin will most likely start the season in either Double-A or Triple-A. He's only played 21 games at Double-A so far, after all. But if the hype continues to grow and he forces himself into the conversation throughout spring training, Griffin could wind up being Pittsburgh's starting shortstop sooner rather than later. Chandler, on the other hand, is widely expected to be a part of the Pirates' starting rotation to kick off the 2026 season.

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