The Baltimore Orioles became the newest team on Friday that signed a prospect with little or no experience in the large competitions for a long -term contract extension. They signed top of catching prospect Samuel Basallo for a contract extension of $ 67 million, not long after he called him to the Majors.
It is a daring move, but not one that is completely unheard of in modern baseball. It is a way for teams to get some certainty for a player they expect to be a star, it is guaranteed money for a young player who would spend the next six years playing for fixed amounts and it is also a security for that player in case they do not come out or get injured.
Now that Basallo is in the Majors and signed, it is worth asking who the next prospect to get that kind of investment should be.
It is actually a very simple answer: it is Infield prospect Konnor Griffin of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Griffin has its way through the Pirates system and is already at Double-A at the age of 19. He also shot his way to the prospect rankings of MLB and has become the top perspective in the game in almost every prospect-ranking publication.
He is not only the best prospect in the Pirates system. He is the best prospect in baseball.
If the pirates were smart, they would come to him at some point in the coming year and provided him with various long -term contract proposals.
Firstly, Griffin is the type of prospect that the pirates usually do not have. He is a job perspective in an organization that is devoid of Major League stroke people, and he is the best they have come through their system in years. He is a potential player of superstar and franchise-changing player.
Secondly, if he becomes the type of player that the Pirates and the Scouting World propose to be him, he will quickly play his way out of the price range of the Pirates. The best chance that they have to keep him after a few arbitration years is to have him signed as early as possible when he is still somewhat affordable.
Is it a risk? Certainly, that’s it. He might not come out. But he could also, at what time they have a bar win on their hands and locked a potential core player in place.
The biggest obstacle that stands on their way would be the tight chases of owner Bob Nuting. He hesitates to give some form of long -term investments or to pay players any kind of big money. He does not like to spend a lot of money on proven veterans in a free agency. The thought of giving an unproven prospect that kind of contract probably sends him in an anger.
Sometimes, if you are serious to win as a small market team, you have to take a risk from time to time. This would be a risk that is worth taking and would probably be a nice olive branch for a frustrated fan base that is furious with everything the team does.
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