Pirates’ Minor League Affiliate Continued Dominant Season With 27-Run Game

The Greensboro Grasshoppers nearly outscored the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday.

The Steelers began their NFL preseason with a 31-25 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Meanwhile, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ High-A affiliate continued to pummel the opposition. Greensboro improved to a resounding 76-30 with a 27-4 victory over the Houston Astros’ Asheville Tourists.

Konnor Griffin once again led the charge, reaching base five times (three hits, two walks) and swiping two more bags. MLB’s new No. 1 prospect is now batting .321/.423/.537 with seven home runs and 24 steals in 43 games for Greensboro.

Although Griffin didn’t homer for the third straight game on Saturday, the 19-year-old shortstop extended his hitting streak to eight. At this rate, he may earn another promotion later this season.

It wasn’t all Griffin in a game where every Grasshoppers starter reached base at least twice. Some new members of the organization made their mark.

Sammy Stafura, recently acquired in the Ke’Bryan Hayes trade, was the only Greensboro player who didn’t register at least two hits. The second baseman still had a productive game, going 1-for-5 with two walks and three runs scored.

First baseman Callan Moss, traded from the Kansas City Royals for Bailey Falter, went 4-for-5 with a walk and a two-run homer. Ivan Brethowr, shipped from the Chicago Cubs in the Taylor Rogers deal, went 4-for-5 with a home run, six RBIs and five runs.

Will Taylor, a 22-year-old outfielder, crushed a grand slam in the seventh inning. The Grasshoppers plated six runs apiece in the sixth and seventh frames before the Tourists threw in the towel. Brethowr and catcher Derek Berg homered off Fernando Caldera, a catcher who surrendered nine runs in the eighth.

All nine players tallied at least one run and RBI for a Grasshoppers offense that collected 22 hits and 10 walks. They actually left 12 runners in scoring position.

Greensboro has won six straight games and 14 of its last 17. That’s despite Griffin and Stafura, who joined the team on Tuesday, representing Pittsburgh’s only top-30 prospects in the lineup. Esmerlyn Valdez led the South Atlantic League in home runs before getting promoted to Double-A at the end of June.

The Grasshoppers finished a half-game behind the New York Mets’ Brooklyn Cyclones in the first-half standings, but they have a 3.5-game lead in the SAL’s second-half leaderboard at 31-10 after Saturday’s offensive outburst.

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