Konnor Griffin, Kevin McGonigle, JJ Wetherholt, Colt Emerson roster decisions have MLB top prospects in unprecedented place

Mar 1, 2026; Jupiter, Florida, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Konnor Griffin (75) hits a two-run home run against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The future of the shortstop position in Major League Baseball is in great hands.

That's been emphasized by the immensely difficult Opening Day roster decisions facing the Pittsburgh Pirates, Detroit Tigers, St. Louis Cardinals and Seattle Mariners.

All four have potential superstars at shortstop, top-10 prospects in all of baseball. And they have to decide whether Opening Day is the right time for them to debut in the majors.

The Pirates and Mariners have already made their decisions. Konnor Griffin and Colt Emerson will start the season in Triple-A.

The Tigers, with Kevin McGonigle, and Cardinals, with JJ Wetherholt, are still going to have to decide what to do.

MORE: Big Papi's son has a special moment for the Red Sox

Regardless, this shows how bright the shortstop future is. Griffin and McGonigle are MLB's top-two prospects in the league's official MLB Pipeline rankings. Wetherholt is No. 5, and Emerson is No. 9.

There are actually three other shortstops in the top-10, as well, who are just a bit further from the majors: Milwaukee's Jesus Made (No. 3), Athletics' Leo De Vries (No. 4) and Texas' Sebastian Walcott (No. 7).

It's not exactly the same, but there was an era when just in the American League, there was Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Miguel Tejada and Nomar Garciaparra. None of these guys mentioned above have even gotten MLB at bats yet, so it's not fair to compare them. But they've got the potential to be special.

Shortstop is one of the league's spotlight positions, especially in recent eras when it wasn't just fancy glovework but also immense athletes with impressive abilities at the plate.

And now, Griffin, Emerson, McGonigle and Wetherholt have the potential to set the tone of the next decade of what shortstop is going to look like in the majors. For all the teams with these exciting players at such a key position, there are fun times ahead.

More MLB news:

• The contract reason Pirates are keeping Konnor Griffin in the minor leagues
• Juan Soto might lead MLB in a brand new stat
• Chase DeLauter's time has arrived for the Cleveland Guardians
• The Mariners' Colt Emerson plan is taking shape
• Do the Red Sox have a Garrett Crochet problem?
• Braves make big roster decision with 20-year old pitching phenom