Memorial Day isn’t until May 25th. That’s still well over a month-and-a-half away. However, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ roster may have a handful of fresh new faces even by then. Their Triple-A roster is absolutely loaded with talent. A hot start in April will get some of the Pirates’ best prospects up before the start of Summer. However, they have some in particular that could reach the Pirates’ 26-man roster before Memorial Day.
Konnor Griffin
This one is a bit obvious, but it’s 100% true. By Memorial Day, Konnor Griffin may even be one of baseball’s best rookies. Griffin earned his spot as baseball’s consensus number one prospect after he hit .333/.415/.527 with a .437 wOBA and 165 wRC+ over 563 plate appearances last season. The shortstop walked in 8.9% of his plate appearances with a solid 21.7% strikeout rate. His performance at the plate was only made better by the fact that he started the year at A-Ball and reached Double-A by the end of the season.
MLB’s top prospect Konnor Griffin launched that ball out of the stadium! ☄️
(via @MLB)pic.twitter.com/Hdxz9mN5R2
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) February 24, 2026
Griffin isn’t just a slugger who can also hit for average. He’s an outstanding defender up the middle. Both Baseball America and MLB Pipeline praise his glove work at shortstop. Both project him as a 60-grade defender. Griffin also pitched in high school, so he has plenty of arm strength to stick there long term. He received a 70 grade for his arm. Griffin originally looked destined for center field, but is now confidently a shortstop. He is also a burner on the basepaths and is one of the fastest minor leaguers.
Griffin had a real chance of opening the year on the Pirates’ 26-man roster. There still seems to be mutual interest in getting an extension done as well. If the Pirates and Griffin don’t hammer out an extension before Opening Day at PNC Park, they’ll surely call up the shortstop by late-April or early-May. That would give him plenty of time to get some work in and an opportunity to find his footing before Memorial Day.
Brandan Bidois
It’s not uncommon for teams to have regular turnover in their bullpen, outside of their core set of relievers. So the Pirates may see Brandan Bidois make his MLB debut well before Memorial Day. Bidois was nothing short of phenomenal last year. The Australian right-hander had a huge breakout season after he put up a 0.74 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, and 2.44 WHIP over 61 innings. He struck out a healthy number of batters, with a 30% K%. However, he occasionally ran into walks, with a 11.7% BB%. The most impressive part of Bidois’ season was that he allowed zero home runs.
This year Brandan Bidois found success at four levels of the organization. pic.twitter.com/lClhcrbkXE
— Young Bucs (@YoungBucsPIT) October 29, 2025
Bidois hurls a mid-to-upper-90s fastball by hitters. He does so with elite ride through the zone, regularly hitting 20 inches of induced vertical break. His primary breaking pitch is a mid-80s slider with over 2600 RPM of spin. Bidois has also developed a legitimate change-up. His offspeed offering comes in around the low-90s. Not only does he throw the pitch with above-average velocity for a change-up, but also with low-spin at around 1350 RPM.
Bidois’ stuff is too good to let simmer in the minor leagues. A reliever with three legitimately good pitches is something the Pirates need to have in their Major League bullpen. His ability to limit walks may be a reason for concern, but he only had a 10.6% BB% from the start of July through the end of the season. That’s better than average in the minor leagues. Bidois has the sort of stuff that could make him a future closer candidate for the Pirates. Bidois was also added to the 40-man roster this offseason, putting him close to making his MLB debut.
Endy Rodriguez
The Pirates’ current catching situation has Henry Davis getting the lion’s share of playing time behind the dish, with Joey Bart as the backup. However, the Pirates may look to move Bart as soon as possible and give Endy Rodriguez an opportunity. Rodriguez’s last two seasons haven’t gone according to plan. After making the Major Leagues in 2023, he was set to play an important role on the 2024 Pirates. Tommy John surgery derailed the chance of that happening. He then played just 26 games between the minor leagues and Major Leagues in 2025, eventually undergoing another elbow surgery.
On the plus side, two major elbow surgeries haven’t sapped all of Rodriguez’s raw power. The switch-hitting catcher/first baseman tore up Spring Training pitching. He collected eight hits, including two home runs and a double. He had three batted balls over 100 MPH in 30 plate appearances. Rodriguez kicked off his season at Triple-A in a big way, going two-for-four, with both hits clocking in at over 108 MPH off the bat.
Endy Rodriguez with his 2nd RBI of the night, and Konnor Griffin scores his 2nd run of the night
108.3 MPH exit velocity pic.twitter.com/etzmI7wfgd
— Platinum Key (@PlatinumKey13) March 28, 2026
Rodriguez continues to hit the ball as he did in Spring Training, and in his first game of 2026, the Pirates will have to call him up. Rodriguez’s ability to play first base gives the Pirates some roster flexibility as well. However, if the Pirates make an early-season trade and move Joey Bart before Memorial Day, Rodriguez will be the first man up.
(Top Image Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images)
