JUPITER, Fla. — Konnor Griffin, the consensus No. 1 prospect in baseball, homered for the third time this spring in the first inning, and four pitchers combined for a one-hitter in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ 6-1 victory against the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.
The 19-year-old Griffin, ranked as ESPN’s top prospect, started at shortstop for the Pirates and hit a two-run shot over the left-center field fence off Kyle Leahy on the third pitch of the game to give Pittsburgh a 2-0 lead.
“I felt really comfortable,” Griffin told reporters after the game. “I’m really working on just being present, taking each game one game at a time. I’m enjoying where I’m at right now, but still got to continue to work and get ready to go tomorrow again.
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Pirates starter Hunter Barco pitched three scoreless innings with three strikeouts, while Antwone Kelly, Khristian Curtis and Brandon Neeck also blanked the Cardinals in relief, allowing only a fifth-inning single to first baseman Yohel Pozo.
In all, Pirates pitchers combined for 12 strikeouts.
Griffin, who has a .214 batting average this spring, went deep twice against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday.
“Those at-bats that I’m getting out, I’m always taking something from it,” Griffin told reporters. “Whether it was a good take, I’m always trying to find the positives. I felt like there’s a lot of positives lately, and that’s the goal, to continue that, because that means just quality at-bats.”
The Pirates drafted Griffin in the first round in 2024. He reached Double-A last year, where he hit .337 with a .960 OPS in 21 games for Altoona.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
