Pirates GM gives scouting report on Konnor Griffin, not yet sold on whether he'll adjust like Mookie Betts in the big leagues

Another season goes by the wayside for the Pittsburgh Pirates. With a 61-77 record and 13 games away from the wild card spots, the team is slated to miss the postseason for the 10th straight season. For context, the last time that the Bucs reached the playoffs, former US president Barack Obama was still in office.

With their struggles, they've been handsomely compensated with lottery picks in the MLB draft. Names such as Paul Skenes and Nick Gonzales come to mind when Pirates' lottery picks have been mentioned, including one of the most recent ones in Konnor Griffin. In an interview with Baseball Isn't Boring's Rob Bradford, Pittsburgh general manager Ben Cherington shared his thoughts about Griffin's outlook as a future major leaguer.

"I don't know if Konnor [Griffin] fits in the category yet. He's had a remarkable first professional season, but I think the players that can separate themselves and move faster than you typically do tend to be not just supremely talented and not just perform well in the minor leagues," sad Cherington. (25:33-25:56)

He further added that a player like Dodgers superstar Mookie Betts is an epitome of someone who has made strides in adjusting to the pace of the majors pretty rapidly.

"You think about Mookie Betts and how fast he made adjustments and how quickly those adjustments came. When you get to the big leagues, you're going to have to do that. You're going to have to make adjustments. The game is going to beat you in some ways, and you're going to have to fight back and make an adaptation. Those who show that capability faster typically are the ones that you expect to have a chance to succeed." (26:06-26:37)

Fortunately for Griffin, he has ample time to develop as he's just been elevated to the Pirates' Double-A affiliate in Altoona. After being drafted ninth overall in the 2024 MLB draft, he has posted respectable numbers since his time in Single-A. He's currently batting .330/.411/.526 with an OPS of .937 to go along with 19 homers and 88 RBIs across his minor league stins.

Pirates claim rare series win on the road against Red Sox

In what has largely been another challenging season for the Pirates, they came away with a rare series victory on the road against the surging Red Sox.

They surprised everyone when they the snatched a 4-2 win on the road against the Red Sox on Friday and then followed it up with a 10-3 shellacking the following day. Although they lost the series-closer, 5-2, they could gain a lot of positives from the fixtures as they've actually produced well at the plate, something that sounds farfetched given the campaign that they've had.