Konnor Griffin will make his major league debut in the home opener, as the Pittsburgh Pirates are promoting the 19-year-old shortstop who is the consensus No. 1 prospect in baseball.<\/p>\n
The Pirates announced the news by posting a video on social media Thursday morning under the caption, Opening Debut. It showed an unidentified player with his head tilted downward putting on a black cap, tugging on the brim with his right hand and the back with his left. Then it showed Griffin\u2019s face, and he was wearing a home white uniform. Griffin is likely to be in the starting lineup when the Pirates play the Baltimore Orioles at 4:12 p.m. Friday at PNC Park.<\/p>\n
Opening Debut. pic.twitter.com\/ILemWfjIHS<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) April 2, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Whether the 6-foot-3, 222-pound Griffin, who was the No. 9 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft and signed for a bonus of $6.53 million, would make the Opening Day roster was one of the biggest storylines of spring training<\/a> in the baseball world. He did not, but it only took a week for the Pirates to reverse course and bring him to the major leagues amid an ESPN report that the sides are negotiating a long-term contract extension.<\/p>\n It marks their most heralded major league debut since the May 2024 arrival of Paul Skenes, who won National League rookie of the year honors that season and the Cy Young Award last year. Skenes was one of many Pirates players impressed with Griffin at spring training.<\/p>\n \u201cYou talk about someone making other people better, that\u2019s what Konnor does,\u201d Skenes told TribLive. \u201cHe shows up like an ultimate pro. He\u2019s got the young energy that we need. Good human and, obviously, he\u2019s a good player. Whether he\u2019s good enough or not, time will tell. Whether he\u2019s good enough or not, it\u2019s going to be obvious to everybody. But he makes other people better.\u201d<\/p>\n Griffin, who will wear No. 6, was dominant across three levels in his first professional season, starting at Low-A Bradenton and finishing at Double-A Altoona. He batted .333\/.415\/.527 with 23 doubles, four triples, 21 home runs, 94 RBIs, 117 runs scored and 65 stolen bases to earn minor league player of the year honors and a Rawlings MiLB Gold Glove.<\/p>\n