2 for 1! MLB's top prospect clears Monster twice for 1st spring HRs

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The swing was smooth and true. The curveball caught a little too much of the plate. And just like countless other baseballs Konnor Griffin has seen this spring, this one landed pretty far from home.

There was one main difference between Tuesday and all the days before it, though.

This home run counted.

Much like a lot of other things baseball’s No. 1 prospect has done so far in his short pro career, Griffin’s first home run of Grapefruit League play this season was a memorable one. It traveled just 374 feet, but the 104.8 mph exit velocity and 28 degree launch angle combined to snap the heads of everyone atop the replica Green Monster to attention as the ball sailed over them and out of the park.

The homer, which came on a 2-1 pitch from Red Sox lefty Ranger Suárez, put the Pirates ahead, 2-0, in the second inning.

"I heard very good things about him," Suárez said. "Great, great ballplayer, a very good hitter, and you can see that.

"... I suppose when you're the top prospect in the game that people expect that from you, and he did it today. No, I wasn’t surprised.”

Manager Don Kelly has often been asked to comment on Griffin this spring, and guys like the Phillies' Bryce Harper have been happy to share their opinion, too. Still, with the 19-year-old phenom doing something new every day, it’ll likely be a while before anyone runs out of compliments.

Griffin put that theory into practice on Tuesday, when he torched a second ball over the Monster in left-center field in his second at-bat. This one traveled 440 feet and came off his bat at 111 mph.

“There's just not a whole lot of people that hit it that far at a Fenway field setup," Bucs starter Carmen Mlodzinski said. "I know it's Fenway South, but going out of the stadium at that point was super impressive.”

Griffin made outs during his two final at-bats in the game, but he didn't walk away empty-handed either time. Griffin's fifth-inning groundout scored a run, giving him his fourth and final RBI on the day. He put together a solid at-bat in the sixth inning, too, working Alec Gamboa for six pitches, including four consecutive foul balls -- one which came off his bat at 102.2 mph -- before breaking his bat on the final offering, a groundout to third.

If Griffin cracks the Pirates’ roster out of camp, he’ll be just the 21st teenager in the Modern Era (since 1900) to do so. He’ll also be the youngest player to start on Opening Day since Adrian Beltré opened the season at third base for the Dodgers in 1999, two days before his 20th birthday.

That’s a lot of pressure to put on a guy with one season of professional ball under his belt, so let’s dial it back a notch. It would be a shock if Griffin didn’t make his MLB debut at some point this season -- and when that happens, he’ll still be the first under-20 position player since Juan Soto debuted for the Nationals in 2018.

“It’s amazing for a 19-year-old,” Kelly said pregame. “... We talked about [his live BP] against Paul [Skenes] that day -- struck out on three fastballs, then comes up and hammers a slider to left. He’s shown the ability to make those adjustments, and we have to keep in mind that he’s 19.

“How do we continue to push him, allow him to be Konnor and play free? Go out and make those adjustments and be who he is.”

So … the expectations are sky-high for some pretty spectacular don’t-see-that-very-often things to occur, and even if they don’t happen right now, they’re still going to be pretty cool when they do.

Until then, it’s going to be fun to watch Griffin the rest of spring.