PITTSBURGH — Paul Skenes didn’t hear Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington say that trading the reigning National League Rookie of the Year to give the last-place club an influx of much-needed position player talent is “ not at all part of the conversation.”
When someone relayed Cherington’s comments to him, the 22-year-old ace laughed.
“It doesn’t affect anything,” Skenes told The Associated Press late Friday night after the Pirates rallied for a 6-5, 10-inning win over Milwaukee. “Anybody can play GM.”
True, but it says something about where the Pirates are currently at — well out of playoff position before Memorial Day — that Cherington’s uncharacteristically blunt answer made headlines anyway..
Yet if Skenes, who celebrated his first anniversary in the majors two weeks ago, has learned anything during his rise to stardom over the last three years, it’s that noise is not the same as news.
“There’s no substance to just all that talk that you hear on social media and news outlets and stuff like that,” Skenes said.
It’s one of the many reasons he makes it a point to try and block all the noise out. Yes, Skenes understands that baseball is a business — he said as much after manager Derek Shelton was fired on May 8 — but he also knows his business at this point in his career is focused entirely on throwing a baseball, not worrying about who he’s throwing it for.
There could very well be a time when Skenes moves on, either by Pittsburgh’s choice or his own. That time, at least to Skenes, is not coming anytime soon.
Pittsburgh is last in the major leagues in runs with 157, and no high-profile position player prospect ready to walk into the home clubhouse at PNC Park as a big leaguer anytime soon.
“Ben’s job is to create a winning team and a winning organization,” Skenes said. “So, what it looks like to him (is up to him).”
Skenes added if the Pirates decided to make some sort of highly unusual move by trading one of the sport’s brightest young stars, even though he remains under team control for the rest of the decade and isn’t even eligible for arbitration until 2027, he wouldn’t take it personally.
“I don’t expect it to happen,” Skenes stressed. “(But Cherington) is going to look out for what’s best for the Pirates. If he feels (trading me) is the right way to go, then he feels that’s the right way to go. But you know, I have to pitch well, that’s the bottom line.”
Skenes has been every bit the generational talent Pittsburgh hoped it was getting when it selected him with the top pick in the 2023 draft.
The 6-foot-6 right-hander was a sensation from the moment he made his big-league debut last May and even as the team around him has scuffled — the Pirates tied a major-league record by going 26 straight games without scoring more than four runs, a streak that ended in a loss to the Brewers on Thursday — he has not.
Five days after throwing the first complete game of his career in a 1-0 loss to Philadelphia, Skenes kept the Brewers in check over six innings, giving up just one run on four hits with two walks and eight strikeouts.
When he induced Sam Frelick into a grounder to second to finish the sixth, many in the crowd of 24,646 rose to their feet to salute him as he sauntered his way back to the dugout. He exited with a 2-1 lead, then watched from afar the struggling bullpen let it slip away. The Pirates, in an all-too-rare occurrence, fought back, rallying to tie it in the ninth on Oneil Cruz’s second home run, then winning it in the 10th when Adam Frazier raced home on a wild pitch.
Afterward, music blared and Skenes — who hasn’t won in a month despite having a 2.32 ERA across his five May starts — flashed a smile that was a mixture of happiness and relief.
“It’s nice to see us pull it out, which is something that we haven’t done as much to this point in the year,” he said. “Hopefully it’s a good sign.”
The Pirates sure could use some.
Skenes has been fully invested in the franchise since baseball commissioner Rob Manfred called his name in the amateur draft two years ago. He has embraced his role as one of baseball’s first Gen Z stars and has become comfortable being the face of the franchise, even if that franchise hasn’t won much of anything in 30-plus years.
The challenge of trying to help make the Pirates truly matter is something Skenes has eagerly accepted. He’s as invested in the city as he is in the team itself.
Asked if the outside speculation that the club should move on from him so quickly is disrespectful to the effort he’s made to be everything the Pirates have asked him to be, the former Air Force cadet shrugged.
“I don’t feel anything good or bad toward it,” he said.
Maybe because he realizes it’s simply not worth the energy. It hasn’t been the start to 2025 that anybody associated with the Pirates has wanted. Skenes believes there’s been a “little bit more fight” since Don Kelly took over as manager. He believes that he’s gaining more mastery over his ever-expanding arsenal. He believes he’s developing chemistry with catcher Henry Davis.
That’s a lot for a veteran to handle, let alone someone who doesn’t turn 23 until next week.
It’s why focusing on his long-term future — or what others are saying about it — is wasted energy.
Skenes was asked about what it’s been like to work with Davis, the top overall pick in the 2021 draft. His answer could have doubled for where Skenes finds himself in general as he tries to navigate the push-pull of stardom and all the trappings — both good and bad — that come with it.
“Just really got to keep doing what we’re doing,” he said, “continue learning and let everything take care of itself, I guess.”
