Bryce Harper on Konnor Griffin: “Be yourself. Don’t change for nobody.”
If you have not heard the name Konnor Griffin yet, get familiar.
The Pittsburgh Pirates selected him with the first overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft out of high school in Mississippi. He is 19 years old, listed as a shortstop, and is currently the number one prospect in all of baseball according to MLB Pipeline.
The same rankings that had Aidan Miller as the top Phillies prospect also have Griffin as the best prospect in the entire sport. He is that guy.
Konnor Griffin is already in big league camp with the Pirates this spring, which tells you everything about how Pittsburgh views his development timeline. He is not being eased in. He is being thrown into the fire early and seeing what he does with it.
Bryce Harper was on the headset doing a TV interview during Sunday’s spring training game against the Pirates when Griffin stepped in the box. He hit a laser right at the right fielder and was retired, but Harper saw enough to have something to say about what the kid is walking into.
Bryce Harper on Konnor Griffin
Nobody in baseball is better positioned to give that advice than Harper. He was the most hyped teenage prospect in the sport before Griffin was. He knows what the pressure feels like, what the spotlight does to a young player, and what it costs you if you try to be something you are not when every camera in the building is pointed at you.
His advice was simple.
“I would just tell him to be himself. That’s it. Do what got you here and don’t change for nobody. Be yourself, have fun, enjoy the game. He’s here for a reason and he looks like a grown-ass man.”
That is the advice you wish someone had given you at nineteen. Coming from a guy who has been through every version of the hype machine and come out the other side as one of the best players in baseball, Griffin would be smart to hold onto that one.
Speaking of Konnor Griffin, he just took Ranger Suarez YARD
UPDATE: KONNOR GRIFFIN AGAIN
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