Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The Pittsburgh Pirates faced criticism as owner Bob Nutting publicly advocated for a salary cap ahead of crucial labor negotiations.
- Yet, Nutting signed top prospect Konnor Griffin to a nine-year, $140 million extension.
- This move undermines the owner's previous statements about financial constraints and could strengthen the players' union's stance.
Bob Nutting, like most MLB owners, has cried poor ahead of labor talks. A lockout is looming, and the owners are most likely to pull the trigger. If their opinion is to be believed (it shouldn't be), player salaries are too high, and a salary cap is the most obvious solution for greater parity. It should come as not surprise that's not going to fly with the players, especially after Nutting signed Pirates prospect Konnor Griffin to a nine-year, $140 million extension before he ever took an MLB at-bat.
To Nutting's credit, that is just the cost of doing business. Griffin is the No. 1 overall prospect and if the Pirates let him play on his current deal, he'd get more expensive by the day. $140 million sounds like a lot, but not when you consider that same player could quadruple in value in three years. The Pirates have lost too many stars. Extending Griffin is, inherently, a great step for the Pirates and MLB. But it will also hurt their labor talks.
MLB players won't believe Pirates owner Bob Nutting after Konnor Griffin extension
Nutting is worth over $1.1 billion. That takes into account the value of the Pirates franchise, which is likely undervalued. Nutting comes from newspapers – sadly an enterprise of cost-cutting these days – and thus he runs the Pirates the same way. When the team stinks, the payroll reflects just that. If the Pirates contend for a playoff spot, perhaps he'll invest more. So far, Nutting has failed to see the correlation between spending and on-field success. Maybe signing Griffin (along with Ryan O'Hearn and Marcell Ozuna this offseason) will change his mind.
The Pirates are on a timeline. As valuable as Griffin is, he has yet to take an MLB at-bat. Paul Skenes has already won an NL Cy Young award, and despite his rough Opening Day start against the Mets, he rebounded quite nicely in Cincinnati. The Pirates are on Skenes timeline. Starting pitching is hard to find, especially someone as valuable and marketable as Skenes.
But what Nutting failed to realize by signing Griffin is that his previous comments, suddenly, no longer apply. Nutting has long been at the forefront of an MLB salary cap, along with about a third of the league. When asked if he felt he'd done enough – in terms of investing resources – to help the Pirates succeed, he left little doubt in 2025.
“Yes. I think that I’ve done everything that I can to provide the tools and resources to the team. There is a point where it becomes execution. That’s why you play the season. That’s why you play the games," Nutting said, per the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
How Konnor Griffin's extension impacts an MLB lockout
If owners like Nutting have this kind of money to throw around for a player who's never taken an MLB at-bat, it provides easy fodder for MLBPA head Bruce Meyer. Meyer is a former lawyer with an expertise in arbitration. He's not going to back down easy, and a salary cap isn't on the table.
Thus, a Griffin extension is good for the Pirates, but bad for the owners. So was the Colt Emerson extension just a few days ago courtesy of the Seattle Mariners. Owners just want to sign players for under-market value. Look no further than Emerson, Griffin and even Ronald Acuña Jr. and Fernando Tatis Jr.
Where there is a deal to be made that saves them money, MLB owners are more than willing. But as it pertains to actual market value, especially in free agency, Nutting and his peers shy away.