Griffin Conine vs Jeff Conine
Jeff Conine played in the majors for 17 seasons with six teams as a left fielder and first baseman. The two time World Series winner (1997 + 2003) has a career 19.5WAR and was an inaugural member of the Florida Marlins. His son Griffin Conine was just cutting his teeth in professional baseball last season playing low A ball in Vancouver, and he came in at #18 in our Jays Journal top Blue Jays prospects for 2019. His father Jeff played parts of five season’s in the minors and we will compare his first Single-A season in 1988 against his son Griffin’s last season in Vancouver.
Minor League Comparison
Griffin Conine 2018 A-(20): 206AB, 49H, 7HR, 33RBI, .238BA .309OBP, 5SB
Jeff Conine 1988 A (22): 415AB, 113H, 10HR, 59RBI, .272BA .342OBP, 26SB
It’s clear that Jeff Conine received around double the number of at-bats in his 1988 season than his son did last year. However, this does not take away from the fact that their numbers are eerily similar. Jeff had a higher OBP in his day with more steals, but Griffin kept pace in almost every other category. It should be noted though that Griffin Conine’s numbers are from Low-A, while his fathers were Single-A.
Still, if Griffin is able to do the same damage this season in A/AA, the Blue Jays would be thrilled to have a player that could continue where his all-star father left off.