Would The Pirates Really Trade Paul Skenes This Year?

The Pittsburgh Pirates lucked into the first overall draft pick in 2023, winning the Paul Skenes sweepstakes. And after a short, dominant minor league career, Skenes has already become one of the most dominant pitchers in Major League Baseball. 

After a 1.96 ERA in his rookie season in 2024, Skenes has followed it with a 2.44 ERA thus far in 2025. He's limited hard contact, limited walks, and is already on pace for a 5+ win season, per Fangraphs wins above replacement projections.

Oh, and he's also just 22 years old and playing on an $875,000 salary. Essentially, he's one of the most valuable players in the sport. And the Pirates are doing their best to waste him. 

Pittsburgh is once again in last place in the NL Central at 15-33, 13 games out of first place, buried in the wild card, all but confirming another year of missing the postseason. With an owner who refuses to spend and the worst offense in baseball, the Pirates are once again facing a potential rebuild. And apparently, trading Paul Skenes could somehow be part of it.

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - JULY 11: Paul Skenes #30 of the Pittsburgh Pirates throws a pitch in the second inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field on July 11, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)

New Report Says Teams Set To Inquire About Paul Skenes

ESPN's Jeff Passan joined the "Pat McAfee Show" this past week and blasted the Pirates organization for their poor planning, roster building, and lack of spending, suggesting that Skenes and the fans deserve better.

"It's not just Paul Skenes who deserves better," Passan said. "It's Pittsburgh Pirates fans who deserve better, and they deserve a system that allows teams to keep great players. Now, in some cases, guys will stay with small market teams; we've seen that ... But what incentive does Paul Skenes have to extend with the Pirates when the Pirates haven't shown the willingness – from Bob Nutting all the way down – or the ability to bring in guys who are going to make this team better? The Pirates haven't shown that they are worthy of a Paul Skenes extension at this point."

He went further though, saying that there's a school of thought saying the Pirates should just trade Skenes now while he's at the peak of his value. And that while it's not likely, he's already heard teams will be calling Pittsburgh to ask if Skenes is available.

"You can make the argument that they should trade him now," Passan said."I'm not going to because I think the Pirates, with some of the players that they have coming up, would have a chance to win if they were to go out and actually bring in some offensive players and sign some free agents. But the truth is, there are teams already that are going to ask about Paul Skenes at the trade deadline this year. And I don't anticipate that he's going to be moved, but there's a real argument to be made that the best thing for the Pittsburgh Pirates would be to move Paul Skenes while he has his most value."

The fact that this is even a topic of conversation is embarrassing for Bob Nutting and the Pirates organization. They have a generational talent under team control for years to come, and well below market salaries, and their response is to do nothing to support him. To the point where other teams and owners realize that the Pirates mostly now exist as a profit-taking enterprise to continue enriching Nutting. 

A serious organization, intending to be competitive and try and win a World Series, would never consider trading a player of Skenes' caliber. And while the Pirates might keep him, the fact that other teams are willing to ask shows it's not as farfetched as it sounds. That's not acceptable. 

Of course, if Skenes is on the market, the Dodgers would be the obvious favorites, with their exceptional farm system, seemingly unlimited resources and their remarkable run of injuries necessitating more pitching. The Red Sox too have plenty of prospect depth to deal from. Every team in baseball would be interested in acquiring Skenes and building around him. Except for the team he's on, apparently.

It's not just a small market thing either; the Royals showed that with their Bobby Witt Jr. extension. As have the Padres with their spending on Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, Jackson Merrill, Yu Darvish, Joe Musgrove and so on. Nutting simply doesn't care. And it might cost the Pirates and their fans one of the best pitchers on the planet.