Konnor Griffin’s first season in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ minor league system was nothing short of spectacular. He turned in a .941 OPS, .437 wOBA, 165 wRC+, and ascended prospect rankings, becoming the number one prospect in all of baseball. However, arguably the most impressive part of his season was his meteoric rise throughout the minor leagues. Griffin began the 2025 season at A-Ball Bradenton, ending the year at Double-A Altoona, and made himself a legitimate option at shortstop for the Pirates as soon as Opening Day 2026. Cases such as Griffin are few and far between, and only the most talented can do such a feat. But believe it or not, the Pirates have two more prospects whose talent could lead to another Griffin-esque season.
Seth Hernandez
Seth Hernandez was the Pirates’ first round pick in 2025. Going into the draft, he was considered a consensus top three name, with MLB Pipeline ranking him behind just Ethan Holliday and Kade Anderson, and Baseball America only placing him behind Holliday. Despite that pedigree, he was still on the board when the Pirates selected him sixth overall, and the Bucs may have gotten the biggest steal of the draft if Hernandez is anywhere as good as he is projected to be.
The right-hander already averages out in the upper-90s and tops out in the triple-digits with his fastball. His change-up is arguably his best pitch, a low-80s offspeed offering that BA projects as double-plus at a 70-grade. Hernandez utilizes two breaking pitches. The first is his mid-to-upper-80s slider and a high-spin, low-80s curveball. The latter has even been clocked with 3000 RPM of spin. Hernandez throws hard, but doesn’t come with the risk many high school flamethrowers have, as he’s shown above-average control.
Hernandez isn’t just a top pitching prospect, but was one of the best prep arms of all-time. He has been compared to former three-time All-Star Josh Beckett, and a more advanced version of division rival ace Hunter Greene. Greene is also the last high school pitcher who was a consensus top three draft prospect, as both Pipeline and BA ranked him number one.
It’s not hard to imagine that given Hernandez’s talent and the Pirates’ ability to develop pitchers, he takes a quick path to the Major Leagues. He hasn’t made his professional debut yet, but it should not be a shock if he hits the ground running, and makes his way to Double-A before the end of the year.
Edward Florentino
Edward Florentino was signed by the Bucs during the 2023-2024 offseason out of the Dominican Republic. The young outfield prospect couldn’t have started his pro career out better, with a 152 wRC+ and more walks than strikeouts in 190 plate appearances in the Dominican Summer League. However, his performance and the potential he showed in 2025 make his future outlook extremely bright.
Florentino collected 351 plate appearances between the Florida Complex League and A-Ball Bradenton, batting .290/.400/.548 with a .442 wOBA, and 159 wRC+. The slugger went yard 16 times with an ISO over .250, coming in at .259. He also walked at a healthy 14% rate, with a K% of 22.2%. Along with showing off his power, he went 35-for-41 in stolen base attempts. He was the only minor league hitter with 30+ steals and an ISO of at least .250 in 2025.
The bottom line is great, but it’s what’s under the hood that makes Florentino even better. He rarely swung and missed. He had just a 16.3% whiff rate at Bradenton. Not only did Florentino make a ton of contact when he swung, but it was regularly loud contact. He had an 89 MPH exit velocity, and 8.5% barrel rate.
What sells Florentino’s skill is his ability to hit velocity. He saw 53 pitches at A-Ball that were clocked at 96+ MPH. Of those 53 pitches, he did not swing and miss a single time. It is the only time since Statcast began tracking A-Ball and Triple-A games in 2021 that a player saw at least 50 pitches at 96+ and had a whiff rate of 0% on all of them at the A-Ball level.
2026 will only be Florentino’s age-19 season, as he was the eighth youngest A-ball hitter to appear in 50+ games in ‘25, making his performance in 2025 even more impressive. Bat-to-ball skills and power are usually a good combination of skills to have in baseball, and Florentino showed off both in 2025 at Bradenton. Those are also the sort of traits that could help him rocket through the minor leagues next season.
