Pirates Series Takeaways: Dropped 2 of 3 But Still the Big Winners
PITTSBURGH — Although the Pittsburgh Pirates dropped two of three to the San Diego Padres, they still had the biggest win of the series, and no, it wasn’t their lone victory on the field.
The biggest Pirate win was ensuring Konnor Griffin will be the team’s starting shortstop for the foreseeable future. The two sides signed a nine-year extension worth $140 million guaranteed that will keep him in Pittsburgh through the 2024 seaosn.
“This is where I see a winning organization,” Griffin said in a press box after signing the extension. “We’re gonna do a lot of great things with the players that we have and I want to be a part of it for nine years. I want to continue to be a part of the build of winning, playoff baseball. And this is a great place for me, a great place for my family, and couldn’t be more proud.”
The Pirates announced on Thursday, the eve of the home opener, that Griffin was being promoted for his MLB debut. At the time the news of his promotion, there was speculation that an extension was agreed upon.
While talks had been ongoing since spring training, nothing was official until Wednesday morning before the Pirates fell 8-2 to the San Diego Padres.
Since the time he arrived in Pittsburgh, cameras, interviews and fanfare has followed him everywhere. With a deal now done, Griffin is looking forward to just being able to focus on baseball.
“It was a fun process. Definitely a lot going on,” said Griffin. “I’m so glad that I can just go and be a baseball player, kind of put this behind me. I’m super excited about everything, glad it’s finalized and now I get to go and play ball.”
Clubhouse Reactions
During Griffin’s press conference at PNC Park, Pirates players and coaches filled up the room to support their newest teammate.
“It’s amazing seeing the guys back there,” Griffin said while looking at his teammates from the stage. “They made me so comfortable in this clubhouse. It’s been nothing but great and I’m thankful for the relationships I’ve been able to build with them.”
Among those in attendance was Paul Skenes, the current face of the franchise who seems willing to pass that title to Griffin.
“Just super happy for him and his family. Glad he got a deal that works for him,” said Skenes. “Yeah he’s gonna be the face of the franchise for a long time.”
The deal is another sign of the Pirates continued urgency dating back to the offseason. This winter, the Pirates made several notable additions to the roster to try and build a team capable of reaching the postseason for the first time since 2015.
Among the additions was Ryan O’Hearn, who took a chance on Pittsburgh as a free agent and was there to see Griffin have that same confidence in the Pirates.
“That kind of commitment is pretty cool,” O’Hearn said. “I think it says a lot about both sides. Konnor, his family and also the organization, the commitment to winning. I’m excited. I’m really excited with our team and everybody in this locker room. Today’s special for Konnor and for us, for sure.”
With Griffin and Skenes as cornerstones — the latter already cemented and the former looking to follow suit — the Pirates have a strong foundation to try and deliver a winning product to the fans in Pittsburgh.
With Griffin now here to stay, the Pirates feel they can get over the hump.
“When you sit back and think about growing up in Pittsburgh, being a Pirates fan, now to have Konnor locked up for nine years, that we know he’s gonna be here and be part of this team, part of a winning team that he’s already impacted in such a short amount of time,” said manager Don Kelly.
Pirate for Life?
It’s far too early to start thinking about what will happen once Griffin’s contract expires. The ink on the dotted line isn’t even dried. But I’m gonna do it anyway.
Based off the current economics of baseball, small-market teams rarely have the luxury of keeping their star players around long-term. The Pirates took a gamble to make sure Griffin isn’t going anywhere until he’s approaching 30.
But given when his contract ends, Griffin will get a chance to cash in for a second time. If he lives up to his potential, the safe bet is that he will one day sign a mega contract in free agency with one of the usual suspects.
However, something his father, Kevin, said to a pool of reporters including myself on Wednesday morning stood out to me, and will be something to think about when the time comes nearly a decade from now.
“Now that he’s in this situation, he has said, he wanted to be a Pirate and play in the same organization his entire career. He’s been around guys like Chipper Jones who said it’s so special to be able to play in one place your whole career. I know this is the first nine of it. Hopefully there will be more to come after that.”
Not to get too far ahead of things…
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The organization seems legit with the signing of Connor Griffin. I haven’t seen this team this collected in many years. You know the sign of a good team is one that comes back in the late innings or late quarters or periods and wins the game. Another sign is when teams start slow and finish fast. this team seems to be doing that I believe Don Kelly will be manager of the year. You know if you churn milk enough,the cream does come to the top. Nice article.