PITTSBURGH -- Konnor Griffin has been consistent with his desire to play baseball in Pittsburgh for a long, long time.
Now, those dreams have become reality.
The Pirates on Wednesday morning announced they’ve agreed to a nine-year contract with the 19-year-old shortstop, ensuring Griffin remains in Pittsburgh through 2034. Terms of the deal were not announced, but it's reported to be $140 million.
It represents the largest contract in Pirates history, besting Bryan Reynolds’ $106.75 million deal from 2023, but it also forges a sturdy tie between Griffin and a city that suits him.
"It feels great knowing I will be a Pittsburgh Pirate for a long time," Griffin said. "The goal is to win every year. And I believe we can do that.
"It will be nice to have everything behind me and now I can just go play baseball."
As talented as the Jackson, Miss., native might be -- and he is -- Griffin has proven himself to be quite a person as well: humble and loyal with a great support system around him.
Now, Griffin and his wife Dendy can officially call Pittsburgh home.
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“Signing Konnor is a meaningful commitment to this team, this city and our fans,” said Pirates chairman Bob Nutting. “It reflects our belief in Konnor, in this season’s club and in the future of our organization.
“Konnor represents everything we value in a player: exceptional talent, strong character, a team-first mentality and a maturity that stood out to all of us from the beginning. He is the right person, from the right family, and this is another important step in the work we have been doing to build something lasting.”
Griffin's rapid growth has been on display since he joined the organization ... but especially in recent weeks.
When the Pirates reassigned Griffin to Minor League camp on March 21, it was a chance to reset, to stop pressing and get back to work. It hardly took Griffin any time to do that. He tore up Triple-A and worked his way to Pittsburgh within a week.
That response was encouraging for the Pirates. It also set the stage for the contract. At its core, Griffin’s response to the move showed the type of person he is, the type of player the Pirates were comfortable betting on with a long-term deal.
“I give a lot of credit to my parents [Kevin and Kim],” Griffin said during Spring Training. “They raised me the right way. I know I'm 19, and it's rare to be doing what I'm doing at 19. But I just try to be professional every day.
“I’m around a lot of great players. That humbles me a little bit. Stay who you are, be who you are, and don't try to change and be somebody else. Just be the same person every day and try to grow as a player.”
The contract serves as another mile marker in what has been an atypical and impressive rise for Griffin, a player the Pirates selected ninth overall in 2024.
He was the first high school player taken. There was concern whether his hit tool would play in professional baseball. That turned out to be laughably unfounded.
In 2025, Griffin ripped his way through three levels, debuting with Single-A Bradenton and finishing with Double-A Altoona, slashing .333/.415/.527 in 122 games, with 23 doubles, 21 home runs, 94 RBIs, 117 runs scored and 65 steals.
With just one year of professional baseball under his belt, Griffin became pretty much everyone’s Minor League Player of the Year and quickly ascended to the top of prospect charts, his five tools the envy of other Major League teams.
A sixth might be humility.
“I know I have so much growth left,” Griffin said this past fall. “I’m just gonna continue to put my head down and work because I’m not anywhere close to being what I think I can be. It’s just part of the journey.”
When Griffin arrived in Bradenton, Fla., earlier this year, that work continued. Again, more talk about the future, what he could become. Griffin responded by emphasizing the work, getting a little better each day, trying to be a sponge.
The same as ever, sometimes his responses can feel prerecorded they’re so perfect. But it’s genuine. It’s how he was raised.
Whenever workouts started, Griffin really put on a show, routinely cranking balls off the metal roof atop the batting cages at Pirate City. More baseballs landed on the building housing the home clubhouse. Griffin even cleared the batter’s eye in center field. Several times.
“There are certain things you really enjoy as a baseball player,” Brandon Lowe said. “When you see somebody swing a bat and the ball comes off the way that he does with him, you kind of take a step back and appreciate it a little bit. It comes off the bat differently.”
The most recent adjustment with Griffin came at the Major League level. Following the pomp and circumstance of his MLB debut, a packed PNC Park teeming with excitement, Griffin laced a double to the left-center gap that wound up being the key hit.
Then … 0-for-12. Griffin only hit the ball out of the infield once during that time. But it was his turn to punch back Tuesday, contributing two hits, including one that went 113.2 mph, flashing elite sprint speed and looking more like himself.
"This made sense for me and my family because we believe Pittsburgh is a place I see myself in nine years," Griffin said. "We did it now because there’s no reason to wait. It’s time to win."
As a result, there’s no concern about service time, arbitration or what a number might be in future seasons.
The Pirates have made a sizable commitment to Griffin because he’s the safest of bets. He also plays baseball extremely well.
This type of deal made sense from the start, and they smartly found common ground by adding a ninth year. It moves Griffin more into the Roman Anthony conversation (eight years, $134 million with the Red Sox) than Jackson Chourio (eight years, $82 million with the Brewers) or Colt Emerson (eight years, $95 million with the Mariners).
It’s a show of good faith by the Pirates. And now, from Griffin on out, it’s hard to feel anything other than thrilled that it’s done.
“Since joining the organization, Konnor has consistently demonstrated the traits we want in a Pirate: a daily commitment to improvement, a team-first mindset and a strong desire to win,” said Pirates general manager Ben Cherington. “He has met every challenge in front of him, and we are excited to watch him continue that growth alongside his teammates in Pittsburgh. We are thrilled he will be a Pirate for a long time.”