After a very unlucky 0-for-5 start to begin Spring Training, Konnor Griffin showed the world why he's almost unanimously considered MLB's No. 1 prospect on Tuesday, hitting a pair of home runs against the Boston Red Sox. The first of the two came against Ranger Suarez, an All-Star who just signed a $130 million contract with Boston this offseason.
KONNOR GRIFFiN TAKES RANGER SUÁREZ DEEP! pic.twitter.com/gIohzzhl89
— Alex Fast (@AlexFast8) February 24, 2026
Swings like these show what most Pittsburgh Pirates fans already know: Griffin, at just 19 years of age, is already one of the best players in the organization. He's deserving of an Opening Day roster spot despite minimal experience in the upper Minors, and would be a near lock if the Pirates didn't care about trying to earn another year of service time. With that in mind, while Griffin's Opening Day status is far from certain, he should make the team over these four players.
INF/OF Nick Yorke
The Pirates traded for Nick Yorke, one of the Red Sox' top prospects at the time of the 2024 trade deadline, expecting him to compete for a spot somewhere on Pittsburgh's roster in the not-too-distant future. Unfortunately, Yorke hasn't swung the bat very well in Triple-A and has only played 33 big-league games as a result.
Yorke has a .612 OPS in those 33 games. Griffin might be an unknown, but what has Yorke proven to be given a roster spot over him? The only reason to choose Yorke over Griffin would be to manipulate Griffin's service time — which is a possibility, but really shouldn't be.
2B/SS Nick Gonzales
Nick Gonzales has far more big-league experience than Yorke and, as things stand right now, projects to be the Pirates' Opening Day shortstop. Should he really be, though? Sure, he hit .260 in 2025 and his .257 career batting average is respectable, but he does little well other than putting the ball into play.
Gonzales rarely strikes out, but he slashed .260/.299/.362 with five home runs and 30 RBI in 96 games last season. He hit a decent amount of singles, but failed to even reach base 30 percent of the time while hitting for little power. He does run and defend well, but for a Pirates team trying to improve its offense and make a postseason push, Gonzales just hasn't hit enough to justify rostering over someone of Griffin's ability.
OF Jhostynxon Garcia
The Pirates traded Johan Oviedo to Boston in a deal that saw them land Jhostynxon Garcia as the main piece. It'd be fun to see The Password earn a spot on the big-league roster, but what would his role be? The Pirates' outfield is solidified with Bryan Reynolds, Oneil Cruz and Ryan O'Hearn from left to right, and Jake Mangum as the fourth option off the bench. Marcell Ozuna figures to get the DH at-bats just about every day.
The Pirates could use Garcia in a platoon role, but would that be ideal for a 23-year-old with limited experience? Would it not make more sense to roster Griffin as the starting shortstop, shift him to the outfield when necessary and use a different player off the bench in more of a limited role? If Garcia isn't getting regular big-league at-bats, he should be starting every day in the Minor Leagues so he can continue to develop.
1B/2B Enmanuel Valdez
Enmanuel Valdez looked like a potential key contributor for the Red Sox in 2023, but struggled in 2024 to the point where Boston traded him to Pittsburgh that offseason. Despite their offensive struggles, the Pirates only gave Valdez 31 games to show he could revert to his 2023 form, and his Valdez's .209 average and .657 OPS didn't exactly prove them wrong
Valdez has experience at first base, second base and even the corner outfield spots as well, offering a good amount of versatility the Pirates might value off the bench. However, Pittsburgh is lefty-heavy as is, so Valdez would be a tricky fit. And more importantly, Griffin is just a better player. The Pirates cannot let someone like Valdez with limited upside get in the way of a generational prospect debuting as soon as he's ready.
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