One of the players on the Pittsburgh Pirates' roster is not like the others, and it's 22-year-old ace Paul Skenes.
Skenes was the first overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, and he ascended to MLB with astonishing speed. He pitched 34 innings in the minor leagues between 2023-24, and was called up for his debut on May 11, 2024. He's since posted a 2.12 ERA with 232 strikeouts through 195.2 innings in the big leagues.
But the Pirates have a 3-5 record in Skenes' starts and a firm hold on last place in the National League Central. Pittsburgh has a generational talent on its hands and team owner Bob Nutting has done nothing of consequence to build around him. The Pirates haven't signed a free agent to a deal longer than one year since Ivan Nova in 2016, and there's little optimism among Pittsburgh fans (and MLB at large) that the team will successfully extend Skenes.
MLB insider Jeff Passan of ESPN recently appeared on the Pat McAfee Show and stated that the Pirates should trade Skenes. Fellow MLB insider Jon Heyman of The New York Post Tweeted on May 21 that there is "no chance" the young righty is traded. Still, the rumors present an intriguing opportunity for the Boston Red Sox.
The Red Sox are rich with top prospect capital they have no place for in the big leagues — the streaking Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer can't even seem to get a roster spot for the life of them. Skenes has an All-Star nomination, MVP votes, and a Rookie of the Year victory already under his belt with five more years of control on his contract. It will take quite a package to convince the Pirates to move him, but Boston has more than enough quality candidates to do it.
Red Sox trade package could be enticing enough to get Paul Skenes to Boston
We'll base our value for Skenes on the prospect package the Padres sent to the Nationals in the trade for Juan Soto. San Diego traded six players to Washington for Soto and Josh Bell, including CJ Abrams, James Woods, MacKenzie Gore and Jarlin Susana, the Nats' current No. 2 prospect. Skenes has two and a half more years of control on his contract than Soto did at the time of the deal, so the Pirates' return for him will need to be even more extreme.
Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, Jhostynxon Garcia, Brandon Clarke, Franklin Arias and Richard Fitts should be enough to get the job done. Fitts has MLB experience and could slot straight into Pittsburgh's rotation in Skenes' stead. Anthony, Mayer, Garcia and eventually Arias will give the Pirates' offense a much-needed boost — they've scored four or fewer runs in each of their last 26 games, tying a modern baseball record.
The trade package it would take to get the Pirates to move Skenes will be insane, and we are NOT advocating for the Red Sox to make such a trade. Boston has billed Anthony and Mayer as the future of the team, and that probably won't change anytime soon, especially since the Pirates aren't taking offers on Skenes.
It would take a player of Skenes' caliber to get the Red Sox to part with Anthony or Mayer. A trade for Skenes is also risky because there's no promise that he'll sign an extension with his new club, and Boston has a recent history of lowballing players in extension talks (Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts, etc).
There is very little chance of the Red Sox acquiring Skenes anytime soon. Anthony and Mayer will (hopefully) be established big leaguers by the time he hits free agency or the Pirates begin taking trade offers seriously.