Jeff Passan absolutely flames Pirates with Paul Skenes trade take

Everyone knows that Paul Skenes is the best young pitcher on the planet – everyone, that is, except the team that currently employs him.

The Pittsburgh Pirates (specifically, owner Bob Nutting and general manager Ben Cherington) have come under fire for their unwillingness to spend on top-tier offensive talent to build a competitive team around Skenes. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, Skenes is the definition of a once-in-a generation player, and the Pirates aren't giving him much of a reason to stick around once he hits free agency in five years.

Pittsburgh is currently getting Skenes at a fraction of his value, as he is earning around the league minimum salary in his second pre-arb year. However, there is an argument to be made that the Pirates should trade Skenes while he's still under team control.

Jeff Passan absolutely flames Pirates with Paul Skenes trade take

In a recent appearance on the Pat McAfee Show, ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan explained the logic behind the Pirates trading Skenes before he becomes a free agent.

"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."

Once Skenes becomes a free agent, he will likely command one of the largest – if not the largest – contracts for a pitcher in MLB history. If the Pirates believe that they have absolutely no chance of signing Skenes to an extension before he hits free agency, Passan said, then they should trade him.

"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."

Passan added that the whole situation is a "depressing reality," which may actually be an understatement. Skenes deserves a chance to win, and the Pirates won't give him that. He'll almost certainly get that chance somewhere else, while Pittsburgh fans remain stuck with a leadership group that prioritizes profit over progress.

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