Paul Skenes quietly showing his leadership skills with Pirates top prospect

Paul Skenes has already proven his worth on the field. After a dominating rookie season that earned him NL Rookie of the Year honors, he one-upped himself in 2025, firing off a 1.97 ERA in 187 2/3 innings that should earn him the Cy Young Award.

To gain an understanding of how dominant he was, know that Skenes led all of baseball in ERA, FIP (2.36), ERA+ (217), and home runs allowed per nine (0.5). He also led the Senior Circuit in WHIP (0.95).

Now, he's starting to showcase some of his skills in the clubhouse. Just 23 years old, Skenes is already the best player on the Pittsburgh Pirates, and he's starting to accept his role as team leader.

The top prospect in all of baseball, Konnor Griffin represents the future of the position player side of things in Pittsburgh. As such, it should be music to the ears of all Pirates fans that Skenes has apparently been doing his best to help mentor Griffin as he ascends up the minor league ladder.

Konnor Griffin, Paul Skenes developing bond over shared winning mentality. Could they bring that to Pirates?

Griffin, 19, spoke about how he and Skenes developed a relationship in spring training this year, and how the right-handed pitcher has made sure to keep in touch with him throughout the season.

Importantly, Griffin also praised Skenes for his bulldog mentality and desire to win, which will hopefully begin to rub off on the rest of the team (and especially the front office).

Griffin is crucial to the Pirates' future, and it's good a sign that Skenes is keeping tabs on him. If nothing else, the fact that the staff ace is paying attention to the farm system and overall health of the talent pipeline in the organization is good evidence that Skenes is in it for the long haul.

A first-round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, Griffin exploded onto the scene in his first taste of professional baseball this year. He made the jump all the way to Double-A by the end of the season, hitting .333/.415/.527 along the way. For good measure, he added 21 home runs, 94 RBI, and 65 steals to his ledger.

MLB Pipeline rewarded him with Hitting Prospect of the Year honors for that effort, and he's put himself in position to make his MLB debut as soon as next year.

Along with outfielder Esmerlyn Valdez, Griffin represented the Pirates at the 2025 Futures Game during the same weekend that Skenes made MLB history by becoming the first pitcher ever to start the All-Star Game in both of his first two seasons. To say that those latter two are the most important players in the organization is an understatement, and it's promising that they've worked already worked together to establish a rapport.