The Pomp And Joe Show
Konnor Griffin shines in spring training, Sidney Crosby out minimum four weeks
25 Feb 2026
Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What impressive performance did Konnor Griffin showcase in spring training?
And both of them playing here on a major league field. And Connor Griffin sends this one up high and gone. The top prospect in the game puts the Pirates on top here in the second. Now the fly ball here for Connor Griffin. That is up towards the green monster and long gone. Second home run of the game for Connor Griffin. If you don't know the name yet, you will soon enough.
Oh, man, Bob. Do we have a lot to talk about today? Am I glad to see you? You look wonderful. Limits, you look wonderful coming off our big fight that they replayed on the morning show today. How many times did they replay it? A lot. Yeah. Did you hear about it, Bob? What happened? I wasn't here and things go to hell. I'll tell you later. Dad was out and the kids fought. That's what happened.
Well, we'll tell you about it later, Bob. It's not important right now. That would be self-indulgent on our part because there's too much real news. Are you okay? Yeah. Everything's good? Everything's good. How about you guys? Good?
Other than you fought and made up, I assume?
We haven't made up yet, but that comes naturally. We fight like, well, there's always someone in here for me to fight with. Malzi at one point. John Seibel, literally in the parking lot. Ron, and now Limits, because you're not here enough for us to be an old married couple. It has to be me and him. Okay, that's fine.
Hi, Bob. It's great to see you. I'm doing great. And it's great to see you as well, Joe. You as well.
I'm glad we're all here. I'm glad we're taking off on this voyage together. What a story. I mean... Connor Griffin, even with the Aaron Rodgers stuff hanging over the franchise with the Steelers, maybe that's not even the right way to phrase it, waiting on Aaron Rodgers, maybe the top five quarterbacks in NFL history, if he's going to come back to the Steelers, That's kind of a big story.
Connor Griffin is the biggest story in Pittsburgh sports right now. Period. The whole baseball world and all of Pittsburgh wondering, especially after yesterday now. And I know it was only an exhibition game. It's only spring training. It was two hanging, breaking balls, whatever. I don't care. It's Connor Griffin. And this guy, I saw Noah Hiles compare him to Sidney Crosby.
at least in terms of hype and what he could possibly do for a franchise. And I'm not so sure I disagree. And they already have Paul Skeens. They already have Skeens who's pitching today. So I ask you, Bob, I ask you, as the first item on our six-pack, O Limitless Wonder, thank you. Is Connor Griffin coming north, and should he? We've asked this question 18 times. It's different after yesterday.
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Chapter 2: How does Konnor Griffin compare to other top prospects in baseball?
Not only hit them, crushed them. 814 feet combined. So that dude has everything it takes. Now...
you know business wise will they bring him up here do they still think he needs time they can think whatever they want he is a legitimate star already i think and i for me i want to go north with the best players who have a chance to make this lineup something special and he's a big part of i believe i thought this before string training so i'm basing it on what i saw from him in double a last year after a quick rise through single to double and in both levels he was outstanding
So, yeah, he can make that jump, and I think he should, but I really don't think he will, and I don't know if I'm going to totally blame him for that unless they start so badly that they could have used his bat.
Well, I agree with pretty much every syllable you just said, Bob, except that, well, I guess we agree on this, too. I don't think he's going to be here either. I think Don Kelly sort of poured water on that. What was it? Three or four days ago when he was asked about Connor Griffin and basically said, man, that'd be quite a jump to go double A to the majors. You heard that quote.
I heard that quote.
And generally I understand that quote. But again, I look at what he did last year, watching a lot of video of him in single to double. It didn't matter. I mean, the adjustments were made very quickly, and I assume he can do that from double to the majors. He's going to have some ups and downs. They all do. But are you telling me he's not one of your best players right now?
I don't think you can say that.
What Kelly said actually was it's a, quote, really tough ask for him to go from double A to the majors. That just made it sound like it's not going to happen. And I think I'll be honest with you. And I was militantly in favor of this. Remember, we did this topic last week, even a week ago. But when we looked at the history, and there have been guys who have done it. Don't get me wrong.
There have. I think I'd be okay with a couple weeks, three weeks at AAA. I don't see what harm that would really do. And I don't think business would have anything to do with that. I think it would be strictly baseball.
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Chapter 3: What are the implications of Sidney Crosby's lower body injury?
Hell no. I want to see it. But I can't get all worked up. If they start him in AAA and bring him up after two or three weeks. Because a lot of guys have done that too.
They want to see if he can do it down there. Three weeks worth, fine. I'm not going to sit here and say that's totally the wrong move. Because it may be the right move. I'm just saying the guy will be up here eventually. And sooner rather than later, when he is, he's going to be a star. I think you can say that.
definitively man if if he languishes down there then we can have a different topic at 412-928-9370 off the top presented by jp roofing and siding we have a show opening six pack uh but before we get to that i heard somebody say crack me another one limits as we advance this conversation bob and i at the bar here somebody said to me this morning and i totally agree You take one look at this kid.
He's the guy that other teams have been bringing to Pittsburgh for 30 years. He's that guy that walks into the stadium. You're like, wait a second. This dude looks like a football player and just rocketed through whatever the Cardinals system or somebody else's system or he's Juan Soto. Chris Bryant, why do other teams always have these guys when the Pirates always have top ten, top five picks?
He's that guy, finally. And the sound of the ball cracking off his bat yesterday. Let's take another listen to that in a second here, Bob. And just, you remember the old-time baseball radio broadcasts when they created the sound?
Oh, when they piped in the sound of the bat, yes. It sounded exactly like that.
A guy would sit there. Who were some of the old guys, Bob? Who were some of the old, the famous Red Barber? Who were the famous? I mean, announcers. Yes. Oh. Name one. The Tigers guy. Who was that?
I know who he is. I don't know his name. I forget.
They would sit there in their little studio and have a piece of wood and crack it against something because they would be replaying the game and doing the radio dub over it. Correct? Play by play. So they'd have to create their own sound effects. That's what this sounded like. Listen to these home runs.
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Chapter 4: How will Crosby's injury affect the Penguins' playoff chances?
You don't want to make a decision based just on that.
No, and they won't. But I think they also know enough of what he's done here that they suspect he can be that guy. But you don't want to overreact to it, just as you don't overreact to Bubba Chandler losing his command completely in the second inning of his first start where he walked four guys, including a bases-loaded walk.
No, but well, all right. Crack another one. This is fun, Bob, because it's almost unimaginable that there are like thousands of people in their cars and wherever they are, hopefully on the Odyssey app, maybe at home watching on YouTube. It's just you and I sitting up at the bar.
Yeah. The only thing missing is, I mean, I hear the sound. It's like that sound of the ball hitting the bat. That's a sound, but it's not the real sound. We should have a sponsor who wants to bring in some beer.
That would be interesting. Maybe Ron, although if he had to buy it, he wouldn't bring it in.
It would be an early beer, right? It's 10 o'clock in the morning. Although they do have one called Breakfast Ball from Lynx Brewing. It's a breakfast beer.
Use that sound instead of the sound of the beer can opening. Let's use that. Where's that one again? I missed it. The new sound instead of the beer is that every time we have a new topic. That would be incranculant, Bob. All right, Bubba Chandler then. Bob, I'm not convinced he's just going to walk in and be really good right away, now that you mentioned him.
And it's not about his appearance yesterday. It's about what he did in the minors last year. High ERA, high walk rate. The kid's got all kinds of potential. But I think we may be counting on him for a little bit too much this year.
Maybe. But I also think that he was one of those guys who... was told, you're not ready, goes down. I think he lost his focus. I really do. When he came up here, he did go 4-1. He had some really good outings once he became a major leaguer. So I'm not going to discount those. No, me neither. But also, I'm not going to overreact to every little thing that happens at this point.
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Chapter 5: What are the potential trade deadline strategies for the Penguins?
Your thoughts?
Yeah, I think it is still, and I said that I thought they'd be a playoff team. I'm not going to change that. I still think they will. They've built up a pretty good season so far. They've shown me that they can go with multiple lines, multiple people who make a difference. Certainly Sidney Crosby is a big loss. He's been...
Not only their captain, he's been everything in his 20th year of doing this that you can expect. So you have to somehow get through those next four weeks. I think they can. I don't know that this, you know, if I'm going to go out and make a trade, if his thinking to do was I'm going to make a big deal right now, that may have to take a little bit of a backseat for now.
I don't think he was, but that's my point. You think he was going to make a big deal?
No, I think if he was thinking about it, that may change this. But I also will point out that during Sidney Crosby's absence in the past, Evgeny Malkin has played probably his best hockey. Is he still capable of carrying a team like that? We'll see. And they're going to have to figure out a way to get through these four weeks. But if they do, then Sidney Crosby may be able to come back if thisā
We're assuming it's an MCL. If it is, he can deal with that. And also, the rest would give him a little bit of an advantage heading into a postseason. But, you know, for now, geez, you want him there. He was having such a good season. And Joe, in the past four years, he's only missed two games. He has been an Ironman for them. So this is disappointing from that point of view.
It is. And don't get me wrong here either. This makes chasing that playoff spot infinitely more challenging than And probably under a 50-50 bet. When I say I think they can still do it, that doesn't mean I would advise putting money on it.
I don't think it's better than 50-50, do you? No, I'm not going to do that. But I do think they still can make it. I think this may change maybe their thoughts about Anthony Mantha or Justin Brezzo. If they thought of moving on from them to getting more picks, I don't think they'll do that now.
If this team is still in a playoff position, I don't think they're going to disrupt much of this roster. in an attempt to continue to do this hybrid rebuild. I think they'll stick to what they're doing. If you lose those guys at the end of the season because they want to sign someplace else, so be it. But for now, they're even more important to them.
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Chapter 6: How does the Penguins' roster look without Crosby?
I mean, that's how I would look at this, first and foremost. When it comes to wild cards, yes, you expanded that conversation to look at those other teams, but you can get in by just holding your own here in this division.
True. And they have two divisional games right off the bat and two highly winnable ones, home against the Devils and then against Sully's Broken Rangers.
And this is why Dan Mews has been very important because this style of play they're playing, I think, can weather this storm. I do. I think they're playing the kind of hockey that you need to play ā Honestly, when you get to a postseason, which is tight, 200 feet, don't give up much, don't make mistakes, rely on your goaltending. We've seen them do that. They're 7-1-2 in their last 10.
So they can do that using that same recipe.
So that's a minimum of four weeks, correct, Limits? That's how it was phrased? Correct.
All right, Bob. I wonder if that's proactive to when he first got this because it's been a week. Yeah. I mean, it could be. Could be.
Is it surprising at all to anybody, though, that Sid was that close to playing for Team Canada?
See, I never believed that for one minute. Why not?
I don't believe it now either.
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Chapter 7: What are the latest updates on Aaron Rodgers and his future?
And that is the Minnesota Vikings VP of football ops, Rob Brzezinski, says that. All options are on the table for their quarterback situation. And in a story by Kevin Seifert on ESPN.com, Aaron Rodgers is prominently mentioned. Who would you rather throw to? Justin Jefferson or a guy who attacks people with blue wigs, Bob? I don't know.
I think Justin Jefferson, for me, maybe attack is too strong a word. He only took a little swipe at the guy, for God's sakes. But let's hear Schefter on Rodgers to Minnesota.
If we go back to last year... He wanted to play in Minnesota. That's the interesting one to me, right? Like, I don't know how Aaron Rodgers feels, and I don't know exactly how the Vikings feel, and they didn't want to do that last year because I think they were being protective of J.J. McCarthy. Do they still feel the same way, or is Aaron Rodgers more in the conversation?
So, again, with the man of mystery, there are some real mysteries here. as to exactly when he's going to announce what he's doing, whether he is or isn't coming back. Feeling is, he'll be back.
Very nice work, Clements. Very nice work. Thank you very kindly. Bob, your thoughts on all of this, the timeline and the Vikings suddenly reentering this picture, and like Schefter said, or at least according to Schefter, Rodgers wanted to play in Minnesota last year.
Yeah, and they shut that down, and now they're having regrets because they saw a full year with J.J. McCarthy. Not that they're totally moving in a different direction with him. I still think they're hopeful, but they also know he may not be their immediate target. best option. And that's how it was last year. And then they said, no, we're going to stick with him. We believe in him.
They got rid of Sam Darnold.
What would you do if you were Rodgers?
If you had both options? I'd probably retire. I think he's done enough. Does he have to keep playing? If he has both options... I don't know about the McCarthy thing with him now. I mean, that's part of this whole story. Is that enough? Do they have a good enough relationship? I think they did for him to come here if he wants to come here. Certainly Mike made it sound that way to me.
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Chapter 8: How might the Steelers' quarterback situation evolve with Rodgers' decision?
You saw a fifth and a sixth for the Jerry Judy trade. You're not going to get rich on a trade. So that brings up two questions, Bob. Really, one. Should the Steelers go after Jordan Addison? That's number one. And could his presence impact an Aaron Rodgers decision?
No. That's my answer to the first one. Why? I think what I've seen from him over the last several years, good, good, good, and then it's starting to drop off a little bit. Now some of this other stuff you hear, I know. I made it clear, I think, to you last week. For me, I'm going to draft two receivers. in the first three rounds here. I'm going to load up.
If not that, there are other guys out there who I think could be a good complement as a number three if you draft somebody who could be a number two. And today, in this NFL, you have to come in immediately with your first-round pick and play, and play well. So that's the way I'm going to go. You?
I'm not going after Jordan Addison. I agree with every syllable and half syllable you said. I think he's an immensely talented kid who had 19 touchdowns in his first two NFL seasons. Then he fell off. But some of the off-the-field stuff has been more than a little troublesome. July 2024, arrested for DUI after being found asleep behind the wheel on a highway near LAX.
And I think he was suspended three games. And then his production fell off.
He came back right for that doubling game.
Yeah, and I know their quarterback situation was a mess. He's productive or he will be productive, I think, again, and he's wildly talented. That's inarguable. But you're also going to have to pay him. That's the problem. You're going to have to pay him and take the risk on the off the field stuff and give up a draft pick. No, I'm with you. I'd rather draft one. And thank you for asking, Bob.
Limits? That was a silent beard. Now louder. I didn't have anything else, but we could certainly do one more, Bob.
I think you misunderstood his cue was go to break.
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