FanGraphs released its Top 100 Prospects list today, and the Pirates are more than represented. They’re featured in a way that illustrates how much the organization’s talent pipeline has changed over the last few years.
The biggest headline is not simply that Konnor Griffin is ranked No. 1 overall. That part has almost become expected at this point. Griffin has now completed a clean sweep across major publications — Keith Law, MLB Pipeline, Baseball America, Just Baseball, and now FanGraphs have all named him the top prospect in baseball.
What stands out is how emphatic FanGraphs is about it.
Their evaluation goes well beyond calling Griffin the best prospect in the game right now. They describe him as “one of the top handful of prospects ever evaluated during the current era of FanGraphs scouting,” comparing his talent to players like Bobby Witt Jr. and Carlos Correa. Even more shocking was when they called him “an absolute monster who might make Paul Skenes the second-best guy on his team in short order.” That is not normal language for a prospect write-up. That is the type of praise reserved for players viewed as franchise-altering talents.
FanGraphs even noted that if you “just watched all the players get off the bus, you’d know Griffin was the most talented one,” while pointing to his defensive development as one of the most stunning parts of his rise. Once seen as an average shortstop, Griffin is now viewed as a great defender there, a massive shift that elevates his ceiling.
The grading backs up the words. FanGraphs assigned Griffin a 70 Future Value, making him the only player on the entire list to reach that mark.
For context, Future Value (FV) is FanGraphs’ projection of a player’s long-term major league impact. A 50 FV represents an average regular. A 60 FV points to an All-Star caliber player. A 70 FV is reserved for players projected to be true franchise cornerstones — the kind of prospects who, historically, land in the conversation with the very best of the past decade. Seeing that number attached to Griffin places him in exceptionally rare territory.
Griffin isn’t the only Pirate drawing national attention. Right-hander Bubba Chandler came in at No. 10 overall and carries a 60 FV, a grade topped by only a handful of players across the entire rankings. FanGraphs views him as a potential front-end starter, highlighting the combination of elite velocity, athleticism, and continued projection.
Chandler’s development path is unusual, he was a two-sport, two-way standout who only began focusing solely on pitching in 2023, but the results have been loud. He sustained upper-90s velocity deep into last season, averaged 98 mph, and during his brief major league stint walked just four batters over 31.1 innings. The rawness in his command and secondaries is acknowledged, but FanGraphs sees those as areas likely to improve given his athletic background, noting that pitchers with this type of arm speed often refine control later in their careers.
The Pirates’ 2025 first-round pick, Seth Hernandez, also cracked the list despite not yet throwing a professional inning. FanGraphs describes him as one of the better high school pitching prospects of the last decade, a premium athlete with triple-digit velocity potential and a changeup that could develop into a plus-plus offering. Like most prep arms, he carries risk, but the upside is significant enough to place him firmly among the game’s most intriguing young pitchers.
Edward Florentino narrowly missed the Top 100 at No. 101, though his inclusion reflects FanGraphs’ methodology of ranking all players with at least a 50 FV grade. In other words, the difference between Florentino and players ranked much higher is smaller than the number might suggest.
Florentino’s case is driven by performance. He hit his way through multiple levels as an 18-year-old, showing real power and an ability to do damage when he connects. There are questions about how his swing will handle advanced pitching and where he ultimately fits defensively, but the offensive upside is strong enough to keep evaluators invested.
Taken together, the rankings paint a picture of a system with both elite top-end talent and legitimate depth behind it. Griffin gives the Pirates a potential superstar building block. Chandler offers the kind of power arm teams struggle to develop internally. Hernandez represents another high-upside lottery ticket. Florentino adds a young bat with real offensive projection.
For an organization that has spent years trying to rebuild its talent base, this is what progress looks like. Prospects are never guarantees, but when multiple players draw this level of industry-wide respect, especially one viewed as generational, it signals that the foundation being built in Pittsburgh is gaining real traction.
And if FanGraphs’ evaluation of Griffin proves accurate, the Pirates may not just have the best prospect in baseball. They may have the kind of player who reshapes what the next era of Pirates baseball looks like.
