Konnor Griffin's Pirates season can't end soon enough after repeated injury scares

It was just over one year ago that the Pittsburgh Pirates made Konnor Griffin the ninth overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, and the 19-year-old has responded in kind, turning in one of the best minor league seasons in recent memory and emerging as the top prospect in all of baseball.

The shortstop and outfielder is hitting an incredible .330/.415/.524 in 115 games this season, adding 19 home runs and a whopping 65 stolen bases to his stacked résumé. Add it all up, and he's been good for a 164 wRC+ in 2025.

What's truly amazing is that he's only gotten better as he's climbed the ranks, posting a 172 wRC+ at Double-A Altoona after recording a 170 mark in High-A (156 in Single-A).

That has Pirates fans ecstatic for the 2026 season, when Griffin could make his MLB debut. However, to do so, he'll have to escape the remainder of this season, which could prove more difficult than it sounds. The top prospect has been an absolute magnet for hit by pitches recently.

Konnor Griffin hit by four pitches in three games, terrifying Pirates fans

The last thing the Pirates need in this lost season is a serious injury to the best player in their farm system, though it appears that Griffin has (for now) avoided any serious injuries despite the barrage of balls headed his way.

The scariest event came on Sept. 2, when Griffin got hit in the head by an errant pitch from San Francisco Giants prospect Will Bednar. The 97 mph fastball luckily caught the flap of Griffin's helmet, and though he went down, he remained in the game and finished the contest without issue.

Since, he's been hit three times in two games, including taking one off his right shoulder from Ryan Murphy on Sept. 3. That streak continued, as he got hit twice in the Sept. 4 game against the RIchmond Flying Squirrels.

This continues a larger, disturbing trend for Griffin, as he's now been hit by a pitch 22 times this year. That would rank second in the major leagues, behind only Randy Arozarena (23). The top prospect got hit six times in 50 games in Single-A, 10 times in 51 games in High-A, and now six times in 14 games in Double-A. He's been hit in more than nine percent of his plate appearances with the Curve.

Of course, there's nothing in Griffin's skillset or plate approach that invites this kind of punishment in the batter's box; this is just a case of bad luck, wrought by young pitchers with lackluster control at the lowest levels of the minor leagues.

Hopefully, the Pirates can reverse his polarity and discard any ball magnets hiding in Griffin's uniform. His health is absolutely paramount to the future of the franchise.