This type of article separates this site in my eyes. Really appreciate the insight on these young players. Ten Observations is always excellent as well. Keep up the great work gentlemen.
From my trip to Bradentons, my daughter has gotten exactly one autograph from an opposin team. It took us forever to figure out who it was. It was Simon. How weird is that now?
Was going to mention this because it’s kinda funny. Kendrick Herrera will probably get about all the time at SS now with Sanford promoted. Yesterday there was a routine grounder to SS. Herrera fielded it, took several hops toward first, stopped, didn’t throw, then took several more before throwing. Looked bizarre unless you noticed the batter was dogging it down the line. Herrera was making him run.
BA on KG, who went from 42 to 27 in their top 100:
"Griffin is one of the best athletes in the minors, with plus-plus speed, plus-plus raw power and the athleticism to handle shortstop or center field. He hit the second-hardest ball recorded in the Florida State League (and the sixth- and 11th-hardest) and also has the sixth-fastest sprint speed in the league."
I maybe should have edited this (it was done before the Marauders game last night) to add something about Sanford's home run (just for fun) and to note that Sanford played second and Griffin short. With YDLS also there, I don't know what the plan is, but it's one of those good problems. Griffin is likely to go to Greensboro, maybe YDLS too, while Sanford is still at Bradenton. If there are periods where they have a logjam, it's just something to figure out. I'm happy to see these guys getting challenged by facing progressively better competition.
I absolutely don't agree, though, with the notion that Griffin inevitably needs to move to CF. If that ultimately works the best for the Pirates, fine, but I haven't seen a single solitary thing to make me think he can't be an above avg SS going forward.
I'm still in the category of someone else's bat will determine what position Griffin will play long term. Kids a gamer, he can probably play any position other than catcher and be above average with a little time to acclimate. What ever position he provides the most value shortstop, centerfield, 3rd base, left field it doesn't matter. That's a good thing, he's very impressive at short and center.
The most value to this franchise is at SS. Also, I may be mistaken, but in the past dozen or so games, he has reigned himself in a little on free swinging - 45 AB, 15 Hits incl 2 doubles/1HR, and 7 BB/5 K. This kid seems to be making adjustments on the fly that much more experienced players have difficulty doing.
I don't think you get it Mel, the kid is a "what's best for the team player". Very well might be at shortstop, let's hypothetically say Rivas has a huge breakout at shortstop for the pirates second half of '26 and does even better in '27. Buy mid-season of '27 Griffin's bat is ready. Cruz was a gg finalist in center, Hayes just won another at 3rd while OPSing .750. Termarr, Horwitz and Reynolds hold down the rights side of the field all hitting above average. Left field is the only position open, too bad Griffin has more value at short cause his bat and glove sure would look good out there.
Yeah, and that's very different from what they were saying pre-season. Probably because somebody actually watched him play SS. So they caught up! Good for them!
"Griffin was the shortstop for his 6A State Champion high school team in Mississippi but was a little too stiff to play there on the showcase circuit. He mostly played right field with Team USA and at select events because his feel for the outfield wasn’t as polished as his more experienced peers, who were more seaworthy in center field. But Griffin absolutely has the wheels to not only play center, but to potentially be really good out there, and his 2025 spring look has been very encouraging."
There's quite a bit more, all of it about him in center, nothing about SS, but I don't want to push too much with a sub-only piece.
BA:
"Griffin’s defensive home remains an open-ended question, too. He played both shortstop and center field upon turning pro. He’ll likely get a chance to stick in the dirt, where he’s a solid defender, but his speed, instincts and throwing arm could be special in center field."
Both clearly prefer him in center.
There were also comments during the spring in a couple of chats or something to the effect of "now that he's moved to center," but I have no idea how to find them.
Just a hunch, but I have to think much of that thought process stems from the fact that he’s a big dude. Right? Don’t see too many SS his size that young. I don’t think it’s necessarily a correct assumption to have with a guy of his talents.
well the good thing is that nobody has said either player *needs* to move to centerfield, but we can all continue to be butthurt for no reason I guess.
Sanford appears to have a very disciplined approach and zone judgment (I know very small sample). I think he also hit a hot shot to second. I could see him advancing fairly quickly if he barrels the ball at a good rate.
“The Pirates have already worked with Sanford on his setup at the plate, as the left-handed hitter had spread out with his legs too far during his senior year of high school, putting too much pressure on himself to make contact, while also trying to pull the ball more at times. He does have good bat-to-ball skills and still made a good amount of contact, but the focus is now on closing the spread, loading on his back hip and being on time for the fastball, which should also help him unlock some of his power. He’s also a plus runner who knows how to use that speed on the basepaths.”
Yeah, he showed with that and the HR that he can turn on a pitch and drive it. I like to think, with his approach, the main ingredient still to be added is experience.
I think they're putting off that sort of decision, which is fine. Sanford doesn't strike me as a guy who either needs to learn SS or who's going to forget how to play it because he gets time at 2B -- which he was already doing some in the FCL because of Kendrick Herrera, another legit SS.
Yeah, his tools are such a natural fit in CF, if they play him at SS all the way through the minors and then make the switch when he comes up, I wouldn't be overly concerned
Same like you said with Sanford. If he rides shotgun with Griffin all the way up playing 2B, don't think he's all of a sudden going to forgot how to play SS.
This type of article separates this site in my eyes. Really appreciate the insight on these young players. Ten Observations is always excellent as well. Keep up the great work gentlemen.
Harumph!
Solak elected free agency. They may have claimed Simon in anticipation of that. Whatever.
I hope Solak catches on somewhere.
From my trip to Bradentons, my daughter has gotten exactly one autograph from an opposin team. It took us forever to figure out who it was. It was Simon. How weird is that now?
Plenty weird.
GREAT read, Wilbur.
Gracias. Hopefully the positive stuff isn't just wishful thinking on my part.
Was going to mention this because it’s kinda funny. Kendrick Herrera will probably get about all the time at SS now with Sanford promoted. Yesterday there was a routine grounder to SS. Herrera fielded it, took several hops toward first, stopped, didn’t throw, then took several more before throwing. Looked bizarre unless you noticed the batter was dogging it down the line. Herrera was making him run.
Rookie ball can be a hoot.
BA on KG, who went from 42 to 27 in their top 100:
"Griffin is one of the best athletes in the minors, with plus-plus speed, plus-plus raw power and the athleticism to handle shortstop or center field. He hit the second-hardest ball recorded in the Florida State League (and the sixth- and 11th-hardest) and also has the sixth-fastest sprint speed in the league."
at this point I'm taking the refusal to acknowledge Termarr personally.
Termarr seems to defy level-headed judgment.
I maybe should have edited this (it was done before the Marauders game last night) to add something about Sanford's home run (just for fun) and to note that Sanford played second and Griffin short. With YDLS also there, I don't know what the plan is, but it's one of those good problems. Griffin is likely to go to Greensboro, maybe YDLS too, while Sanford is still at Bradenton. If there are periods where they have a logjam, it's just something to figure out. I'm happy to see these guys getting challenged by facing progressively better competition.
I absolutely don't agree, though, with the notion that Griffin inevitably needs to move to CF. If that ultimately works the best for the Pirates, fine, but I haven't seen a single solitary thing to make me think he can't be an above avg SS going forward.
Again man, name a single person who said Griffin *needs* to move to CF. One person!
I'm still in the category of someone else's bat will determine what position Griffin will play long term. Kids a gamer, he can probably play any position other than catcher and be above average with a little time to acclimate. What ever position he provides the most value shortstop, centerfield, 3rd base, left field it doesn't matter. That's a good thing, he's very impressive at short and center.
Can we dream that they extend Cruz which would leave Griffin at SS? Who am I kidding?
Amen!
The most value to this franchise is at SS. Also, I may be mistaken, but in the past dozen or so games, he has reigned himself in a little on free swinging - 45 AB, 15 Hits incl 2 doubles/1HR, and 7 BB/5 K. This kid seems to be making adjustments on the fly that much more experienced players have difficulty doing.
I don't think you get it Mel, the kid is a "what's best for the team player". Very well might be at shortstop, let's hypothetically say Rivas has a huge breakout at shortstop for the pirates second half of '26 and does even better in '27. Buy mid-season of '27 Griffin's bat is ready. Cruz was a gg finalist in center, Hayes just won another at 3rd while OPSing .750. Termarr, Horwitz and Reynolds hold down the rights side of the field all hitting above average. Left field is the only position open, too bad Griffin has more value at short cause his bat and glove sure would look good out there.
I don't know, man, Javy Rivas and Wyatt Sanford will need somewhere to play. ;)
Both FG and BA in their prospect lists.
Dude, BA literally put out a podcast TODAY titled "Rising Shortstop Prospects to Watch in the Latest Top 100 Update".
Guess who's on it!
FanGraphs prospect list is public for everyone to see, including yourself. Guess what it doesn't say!
Yeah, and that's very different from what they were saying pre-season. Probably because somebody actually watched him play SS. So they caught up! Good for them!
Then prove it, post the line. Same with FanGraphs. You won't because you can't.
FG:
"Griffin was the shortstop for his 6A State Champion high school team in Mississippi but was a little too stiff to play there on the showcase circuit. He mostly played right field with Team USA and at select events because his feel for the outfield wasn’t as polished as his more experienced peers, who were more seaworthy in center field. But Griffin absolutely has the wheels to not only play center, but to potentially be really good out there, and his 2025 spring look has been very encouraging."
There's quite a bit more, all of it about him in center, nothing about SS, but I don't want to push too much with a sub-only piece.
BA:
"Griffin’s defensive home remains an open-ended question, too. He played both shortstop and center field upon turning pro. He’ll likely get a chance to stick in the dirt, where he’s a solid defender, but his speed, instincts and throwing arm could be special in center field."
Both clearly prefer him in center.
There were also comments during the spring in a couple of chats or something to the effect of "now that he's moved to center," but I have no idea how to find them.
Just a hunch, but I have to think much of that thought process stems from the fact that he’s a big dude. Right? Don’t see too many SS his size that young. I don’t think it’s necessarily a correct assumption to have with a guy of his talents.
Rivas is even taller, although he's thinner, and he can certainly play SS.
Old perceptions of how a player should look at a position take a long time to die, it seems.
well the good thing is that nobody has said either player *needs* to move to centerfield, but we can all continue to be butthurt for no reason I guess.
I guess back in the day they took one look at a tall, rangy kid like KG and said, “Outfield.”
Sanford appears to have a very disciplined approach and zone judgment (I know very small sample). I think he also hit a hot shot to second. I could see him advancing fairly quickly if he barrels the ball at a good rate.
Is he fast/base stealer?
Never mind, looked up the MLB write up,
“The Pirates have already worked with Sanford on his setup at the plate, as the left-handed hitter had spread out with his legs too far during his senior year of high school, putting too much pressure on himself to make contact, while also trying to pull the ball more at times. He does have good bat-to-ball skills and still made a good amount of contact, but the focus is now on closing the spread, loading on his back hip and being on time for the fastball, which should also help him unlock some of his power. He’s also a plus runner who knows how to use that speed on the basepaths.”
Yep
Yeah, he showed with that and the HR that he can turn on a pitch and drive it. I like to think, with his approach, the main ingredient still to be added is experience.
Totally agree
I think the only reason KG would get moved to CF full time now is because they believe he would be that much more valuable out there.
He very much looks the part of a shortstop. Another good problem to have. Pirates have a potential SS and CF of the future all wrapped into one player
Can he play both at the same time?
I've learned not to count anything out lol.
KG will play anywhere he damn well pleases!
And pitch the 9th!
You know what, I'm ok with that lol
I think they're putting off that sort of decision, which is fine. Sanford doesn't strike me as a guy who either needs to learn SS or who's going to forget how to play it because he gets time at 2B -- which he was already doing some in the FCL because of Kendrick Herrera, another legit SS.
Yeah, his tools are such a natural fit in CF, if they play him at SS all the way through the minors and then make the switch when he comes up, I wouldn't be overly concerned
Same like you said with Sanford. If he rides shotgun with Griffin all the way up playing 2B, don't think he's all of a sudden going to forgot how to play SS.
bookmarking this receipt for when that happens and he initially struggles. ;)
jokes aside, it would certainly be a blessing to have a Mookie situation to play with.
Thanks for the report. A ton of information there.