The Pittsburgh Pirates received great news on Monday when it was revealed star shortstop Konnor Griffin was “ahead of schedule” and had his finger splint removed.
The rookie tore the sagittal band in his left ring finger during a game on July 5, sidelining him from baseball activities ever since. He was later placed on the 60-day injured list.
Now, with Griffin making significant progress in his recovery, his return appears closer than originally expected. The young star confirmed that himself on Tuesday.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the Pirates’ game against the Detroit Tigers, Griffin revealed he is targeting Sept. 4 for his return, the first day he’s eligible to rejoin the big league club.
“I know I can get activated on September 4th, so I kind of have that in mind. It’s not a for sure date. It’s just that my goal would be to be back then,” Griffin said.
Before Griffin went down in early July, he was putting on full display why he was the top-ranked prospect in baseball entering this season. In 59 games, he hit .276/.332/.404 with 10 doubles, five home runs and 20 stolen bases.
The 20-year-old also made several highlight-reel defensive plays, showing off just how many tools he brings to the field. But while trying to make one of those spectacular plays, Griffin injured his ring finger while diving up the middle.
When Griffin went down, the Pirates were 46-45 and right in the thick of playoff contention, which eventually led them to buy at the Aug. 3 MLB trade deadline.
However, Griffin’s absence has proven to be a massive loss for Pittsburgh. The Pirates have gone just 15-21 since his injury, derailing much of the momentum they had built before he went down.
This collapse has dropped the Pirates out of the wild-card race, sitting 6.5 games behind the San Diego Padres for the final spot. While Pittsburgh can still climb back into the race, it feels increasingly unlikely with only 35 games remaining.
This season was shaping up to be the Pirates’ best since they last reached the playoffs in 2015, making their recent collapse all the more disappointing.
But Pittsburgh should return almost all of its core pieces next season, and having a healthy Griffin back in the middle of it all gives the team plenty of reason for optimism moving forward.
