This week’s report that there is “no likelihood” the Pirates commerce ace Paul Skenes, only one and a half seasons into his six-year window of membership management, stood out as pretty apparent for many onlookers. That anybody felt it wanted to be mentioned in any respect was extra a mirrored image on the group as an entire than Skenes himself.
Pittsburgh has taken a step again this season, sitting on tempo to win 56 video games after successful 76 video games in each 2023 and 2024. A rebuild that has seen the Bucs decide ninth or higher in 5 consecutive drafts, together with No. 1 total in 2021 and 2023, has not solely failed to supply a contender — it is didn’t even produce a farm system that ranks within the prime third of MLB. The crew at Baseball America ranked the Pirates with MLB’s Sixteenth-best system previous to this season. Keith Legislation of The Athletic did the identical. MLB.com’s trio of Jim Callis, Jonathan Mayo and Sam Dykstra ranked the Bucs 14th. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel was extra bearishrating them twentieth.
The Pirates already fired supervisor Derek Shelton. Normal supervisor Ben Cherington cannot really feel as safe as he did a couple of seasons in the past. Proprietor Bob Nutting bears the brunt of the blame; his refusal to put money into the roster leaves the entrance workplace and training employees zero margin for error. Nutting’s overwhelmingly frugal nature additionally leaves assuredly no likelihood that Skenes will likely be signed long-term.
Simply because a commerce in some unspecified time in the future down the highway feels inevitable, nevertheless, doesn’t imply it will occur this yr. That is by no means appeared seemingly, and whereas the “no means, no likelihood, no how” quote was from a Pirates government who most popular to stay nameless slightly than place their identify on these phrases, GM Ben Cherington quickly provided the same sentiment on the report.
The Pirates, for all their warts, are nonetheless a pitching-rich group. The identify on the very prime of the pyramid will not be on the transfer, however the Pirates could have no scarcity of pitchers who’re legitimately out there this summer season. There’s all the time a broad vary of “availability.” Pure veteran leases will most likely be aggressively shopped. Pitchers signed/managed by way of 2026 will presumably be out there however with the next price ticket. And there will likely be some arms with much more membership management on whom the Bucs will hear however not outright dangle to contenders in search of to bolster their very own staffs.
Let’s run by way of a number of the seemingly out there stock.
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