The Pittsburgh Pirates have one of the best pitchers in baseball in Paul Skenes. He is in his second season and will not be a free agent until 2030. However, the team has not done much to convince him to want to stay with the team beyond that.
The Pirates are 15-33 and have already fired Derek Shelton. They look like a team that is years out from being contenders, prompting the question of what they should do with Paul Skenes. During an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” MLB insider Jeff Passan suggested the Pirates trade Skenes.
“If they believe they have absolutely no chance of signing him, then they should trade him,” said Passan. “And you can make an argument that they should trade him now.”
“What incentive does Paul Skenes have to extend with the Pirates? The Pirates have not shown willingness, from Bob Nutting all the way down, or the ability to bring in guys who are going to make this team better,” Passan continued.
The harsh reality is that the Pirates will likely lose Skenes to a big-market team as soon as he hits free agency. The only way to prevent that is by extending him, but he is not going to be enticed to sign an extension after the team has done practically nothing but lose since he debuted.
Teams like the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies have shown they are willing to spend big on star players, and contend for a World Series year in and year out. Any one of those teams could put together a great package for Skenes and then try to extend him. However, the chances of them doing that right now could be low, according to MLB insider Ken Rosenthal.
“I do not see it happening this year,” Rosenthal said on “Foul Territory.” “Paul Skenes is under control for four more years after this one. The Pirates have many problems, but I don’t know that trading Paul Skenes is the way to do it.”
Trading Skenes this season is likely not even under consideration for the Pirates. However, as he gets closer to free agency, and if the front office in Pittsburgh sees some changes, trading him could become more realistic.
“Can it happen in the future under a new GM if that is indeed what happens? Oh, yes, I can see that very much in the near future,” said Rosenthal.
Skenes was the National League Rookie of the Year last year and was the 2024 All-Star Game starter. Teams like the Yankees and Dodgers will be willing to write him a blank check if given the opportunity.
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