Former Major League Baseball catcher and now analyst Erik Kratz believes the Pittsburgh Pirates should trade Paul Skenes.
The Pirates drafted Skenes first overall in 2023, and he won Rookie of the Year in 2024. The right-hander has already become one of the best starting pitchers in baseball. Although Skenes is just 22 years old, Kratz believes the Pirates should trade him as holding onto him doesn’t help the organization that doesn’t seem to want to win.
“Largest trade of all-time,” Kratz said on Foul Territory. “He is a chandelier in a haunted house. You know the value of the chandelier. If you want to make an impact on this organization that will last for the next six years, which is you fire your scouting department, different heads, and change different things. You are looking to shake it up, But, that ain’t the move that is pushing the Pirates across.
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“Right now, Paul Skenes might win 15 games a season for a 65 at max 70-win team. Go and see the value, go and find it, set a new bar, you have to do something new because you’re not spending,” Krazt added. “So, you don’t have four years of control with him. Technically, in Pirate land, you have like two and a half to three. Get something, get something right now and change the bar.”
Kratz believes the Pirates won’t pay Skenes on an extension anyway, so trading him when he has multiple years of control will only add to what Pittsburgh can get in return. However, it would be hard to determine the true value of Skenes in a trade, which could make trading him difficult.
Skenes is 3-4 with a 2.77 ERA in eight starts this season.
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