No. 1 prospect Konnor Griffin reflects on Spring Training, what's next

NEW YORK -- Since the day Konnor Griffin arrived at Pirate City, he displayed an impressive ability to focus on the day-to-day work, to learn and get better. It was no different the day the Pirates reassigned him to Minor League camp.

This past Saturday, Griffin left manager Don Kelly’s office upset he didn’t make the MLB club, sure. That was his goal entering spring. But a few days later, Griffin offered some incredible perspective, especially for a 19-year-old.

It squared with everything we’ve seen out of Griffin in Spring Training.

“I try to find the positives as much as I can,” Griffin said. “At the end of the day, this is still a promotion for me. I haven’t played above Double-A. This is still one step closer to reaching my dream of playing in the big leagues.”

While driving from Florida to Indianapolis with his wife, Dendy, for the start of the Triple-A season, Griffin reflected on what he learned this spring when it comes to baseball and channeling the noise surrounding his every move, plus how he plans to handle this Minor League assignment.

Griffin was happy with what he showed: the power, the speed, the athleticism. But he also knows he has work to do.

“It was tough because I felt like I was so close,” Griffin said. “But I also now have a little more time to prepare. I can get back to doing what I do.”

Griffin appeared in 16 Grapefruit League games for the Pirates, hitting .171 with four home runs, two walks and 13 strikeouts. Over his final 10 games, Griffin hit .148 and struck out 11 times in 27 at-bats.

As the spring evolved, Griffin said he noticed more pitchers relying on spin pitches against him, especially getting him to chase. An adjustment he knows he needs to make is to lay off that stuff and do a better job hitting fastballs.

“I hit fastballs really well all last year,” Griffin said. “It’s nothing new. It’s just getting back into the consistent playing time every day. I think that’s gonna be big, just continue to get that timing down. Then we’ll go from there.”

The time Griffin spent around the Pirates this spring actually helped him in a lot of ways, more than just navigating at-bats or learning how pitchers might attack him.

Inside the Pirates clubhouse, he got to know his teammates better and began to feel comfortable around everyone. Griffin also enjoyed seeing how much preparation goes into major league practice, pregame scouting reports and the slice of the big league process that everyone gets in Spring Training.

“Just learning the ins and outs of how everything rolls was pretty cool,” Griffin said. “I feel comfortable around the guys. It’s a great group, easy guys to communicate with and get advice from. I feel like I became part of the team with them.”

Another part of what Griffin learned was a little tougher.

While he’s able to mostly separate the outside noise from baseball, nobody’s perfect. Griffin really wanted to make a good impression, to show he deserved to be on the big league roster.

He admitted Tuesday that, yeah, he might’ve tried a little too hard.

It’s also easy to respect coming from a good, genuine kid who simply wants to show everyone what he can do on a baseball field.

“I was giving it my all,” Griffin said. “I don’t know if I was pressing too much. There was just a lot going on. My goal was to try and make the team. There may have been a little pressure, a little pressing on my part.

“But I think I was just trying to be a competitor, go win a job and try to make the big leagues, try to make an impact.”

While Griffin wanted to open the season with the Pirates Thursday in New York, this will allow him a quiet period to recalibrate.

It also wouldn’t be surprising if extension conversations continued — neither side is closing the door — and Griffin wound up in Pittsburgh at some point this season.

But the first part requires Griffin handling this maturely, which he’s done, and the next will be for him to do the work and produce.

“None of the off-the-field stuff matters when you’re playing a baseball game,” Griffin said. “You have to perform. You have to prepare for the games. You have to put in the work.”

The good news baseball-wise is that Griffin doesn’t need to make sizable swing changes. He needs to be more selective and hit fastballs hard, which he’s done.

Assuming that happens, this spring showed us that Griffin isn’t far away. He’ll be intent on proving that during his time in the Minor Leagues.

“Just have to get back to being who I am, playing my game and continuing to play aggressive,” Griffin said, “using all the tools I have to impact the game. Get back going and hopefully be up there as soon as possible.”

Jason Mackey: Jason.Mackey@pirates.com and @JMackey_PGH.