Konnor Griffin Player of the Year honors come with added Paul Skenes wrinkle

Pittsburgh Pirates prospect Konnor Griffin took the baseball world by storm this year as he skyrocketed to the top of every prospect rankings list in his first pro season.

The 19-year-old, whom the Pirates selected at No. 9 overall in the 2024 MLB Draft, batted .333/.415/.527 with 23 doubles, four triples, 21 home runs, 94 RBI and 117 runs scored with 65 stolen bases across three levels of Pittsburgh's farm system this season. He ranked in the top-10 among all full-season minor-league players in runs scored (second), batting average (fourth), hits (fifth, 161), RBIs (tied for seventh) and stolen bases (tied for eighth).

Griffin has excelled at every level during his electrifying season, which culminated in his being named the Baseball America 2025 Minor League Player of the Year earlier this week. He is the first Pirates player to win the award since Mike Bielecki in 1984.

Paul Skenes has been keeping tabs on top Pirates prospect Konnor Griffin

Pirates general manager Ben Cherington warned that the organization would avoid rushing Griffin to the Major Leagues before he's ready, despite his early success. But Griffin is an admittedly special prospect, and fans are anxiously anticipating his arrival in Pittsburgh – whenever that may be.

But perhaps no one is more excited for Griffin's call-up to the Majors than Pirates ace Paul Skenes. The 2024 National League Rookie of the Year and the runaway favorite to win the NL Cy Young Award this year, Skenes is still hungry for winning baseball in Pittsburgh – and in Griffin, he sees hope.

"He stays in touch," Griffin said of Skenes in a recent interview with Baseball America. "He'll text me every now and then, just making sure everything's going well. When we were in spring training, we got to spend a lot of time together. It's just cool to see the type of competitor he is. He wants to win more than anything, and if you can get a lot of guys around him that have that same mentality, it's going to be a fun few years."

Griffin, who got a taste of playoff baseball this year at Double-A Altoona, said he was eager to bring that winning mentality to Pittsburgh to play alongside a likeminded, results-driven competitor in Skenes.

Griffin and Skenes represent the Pirates' best chance at being a playoff contender in the coming years. They have graciously accepted all the awards and recognitions given to them, but both ultimately just want to win. If Cherington really wants to do right by these two special players, he will get that memo and surround them with a competitive roster before it's too late.