If it seems like major league stars are getting younger, that might not just be because you’re getting older. The last few days have seen a rash of contract extensions, both of established players and of kids whose names have never appeared on a major league lineup card.
Last week, the Cubs locked up 24-year-old center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong ($115 million over six years) and 28-year-old second baseman Nico Hoerner ($141 million over six years).
On Tuesday, the Mariners reportedly signed top shortstop prospect Colt Emerson to an eight-year, $95 million extension—then said he would remain at Triple A for the moment. (Presumably team dinners are on him for the foreseeable future.) Emerson has only played 43 games above High A, and there’s no reason to rush him. It’s the largest guarantee in baseball history for a player with no service time, topping the Brewers’ eight-year, $82 million deal with Jackson Chourio before the 2024 season.
And the Brewers are reportedly finalizing an extension with their own top shortstop prospect Cooper Pratt, who at 21 just played his first games at Triple A this week. That deal would be worth $50.75 million over eight years, and he’s another candidate to celebrate his life-changing riches on the bus to minor league affiliates. In that spirit, here are three other young players their teams should try to extend as soon as possible, even if their spot in the majors isn’t completely set.
Konnor Griffin, Pirates SS
In some ways, he’s even less proven than Pratt; Griffin won’t turn 20 until April 24, and he has fewer than 600 career plate appearances and barely 100 above High A. But he’s sure made the most of them. The only reason Griffin fell to the Pirates at No. 9 in the 2024 draft was some concern about his bat-to-ball ability. That’s gone: He was the best hitter in the minors last year (165 wRC+), and he slugged 21 home runs and stole 65 bases.
Griffin went 7-for-46 this spring, so it’s hard to blame Pittsburgh for sending him to Triple A to start the season. But he looks like the face of the franchise—even the franchise that employs Paul Skenes. And speaking of Skenes, he’s only under team control for another four years. That means the Pirates’ window of contention starts the day they call up Griffin.
Kevin McGonigle, Tigers SS
McGonigle might have gotten more expensive already: The 21-year-old went 4-for-5 on Opening Day, becoming the third-youngest player with so many Opening Day hits, behind only 21-year-old Delino DeShields and 20-year-old Ken Griffey Jr., both in 1990.
A day later, with two outs, the bases loaded and the game tied in the eighth inning, facing a lefty-on-lefty matchup, McGonigle fouled off six pitches and slashed the go-ahead single. None of this came as a surprise to anyone who watched him in the minors, where he destroyed any challengers despite being anywhere from one to three years young for each level. He owns a career minor-league 10.3% strikeout rate; that figure would have been No. 6 in the majors last year.
McGonigle is probably not a long-term shortstop defensively, but there is enough versatility in Detroit’s infield—Javier Báez, Colt Keith and Zach McKinstry can all bounce around—that the Tigers can certainly find a place for him on the field to cement his place in the lineup.
JJ Wetherholt, Cardinals 2B
St. Louis already seems to be structuring its roster in part around the 23-year-old Wetherholt and his fellow young infielders—24-year-old Masyn Winn, 25-year-old Nolan Gorman and 27-year-old Alec Burleson. This winter, president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom traded 33-year-old first baseman Willson Contreras, 29-year-old second baseman Brendan Donovan and 34-year-old third baseman Nolan Arenado, leaving Winn at shortstop as the only incumbent. Wetherholt has the best pedigree of the prospects the Cardinals are letting play, and he’s the one they should try hardest to extend, even though he’s the least experienced of the bunch.
He came up as a shortstop, though Wynn is such an exceptional defender that there’s no position battle there, and Wetherholt got time at second and third last season, so he can move around the diamond. He has hit everywhere he’s played, and he combines good average (.304 in the minors) with some pop (.487 slugging percentage) and speed (23 steals last season). He began his major league career last week with a 425-foot home run and a walk-off single.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Three Future MLB Stars Who Should Be Next in Line for Mega Extensions.
