Bucs sign 1st round pick, excited in what he's seeing
What Konnor Griffin said about Pirates & helping community
PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – He said how excited he was to be a Pirates on MLB Draft night because of watching Paul Skenes pitch. Now after watching Pirates games intently since he was selected, Konnor Griffin is talking high goals.
"I can't wait hopefully in a few years be a part of that team trying to win a World Series," Griffin said at a news conference after officially signing his first pro contract. The deal is $6.532 million according to MLB.com's Alex Stumpf which is about $300,000 above slot.
"The team is on a great track right now hopefully getting to the playoffs. There are a lot of great things I'm seeing here. When you have guys like Paul Skenes that come in and bring a ton of energy and get the crowd involved, it's really fun to watch."
If there is a Bucs player other than Skenes that the 6'4" Griffin loves watching, given that he's a shortstop, the answer is not surprising.
"I love watching Oneil Cruz, taller guy," Griffin said on Wednesday. "He's a lefty and I'm a righty but he kind of shows that taller guys can play the infield. I love the way he plays. He plays with a lot of energy and it's fun to watch."
Griffin projects to be a shortstop, but he could play center field. He will start his pro career in Bradenton soon and they will see where he best fits. Before that he has the opportunity to walk around Pittsburgh saying he wants to see what the city is about. Just out of high school, Griffin also wants to give back to the community.
"I just have a lot of people who poured into my life, my family and so many other people," Griffin said. "It's always been my goal to make an impact on wherever I can. The sky is the limit to what you can do in the city. I'm here to first win games and then hopefully interact with the community. As an athlete I have the ability to do that and I really want to do that because that's who I am."
When Griffin stood on the podium putting on his number 24 Pirates jersey and black and gold hat, he muttered 'this jersey is sick'.
It seems to be a growing trend about not just the Pirates uniform, but this team and he can't wait to be a part of it.
