There’s significant excitement throughout the Major League Baseball community about their standout starting pitcher, Paul Skenes. As the first overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates, Skenes has consistently performed at an elite level since joining the team. Nonetheless, the organization hasn’t shared in this success.

In his debut season, Skenes won the Rookie of the Year Award, got an All-Star nod, finished third in CY Young Award voting and did so all at the age of 22. While Skenes is Pittsburgh’s star pitcher, one former UCLA Bruin in the form of Gerrit Cole had a similar beginning to Skenes.

The UCLA product was also a first-round draft pick for the Pirates franchise and also debuted at the age of 22. The Pirates weren’t successful when Cole began to thrive, eventually leading to his trade out of Pittsburgh to the Houston Astros. If Skenes is following suit, he might be next.

The Pirates haven’t had a strong start to their campaign, so much so that speculation started to float around the league surrounding what the Pirates should do with Skenes. Many have said to trade him to get valuable pieces in return, and restart the rebuild, much like they did with Cole. But the franchise has other plans.

When asked about a potential Skenes trade, Pirates general manager Ben Cherington was quick to shoot it down.

Absolutely not related to the discussion,

Cherington said on Wednesday

We simply need to improve,” Cherington stated. “It’s about playing better baseball, which will result in winning more games. Afterward, let’s assess our progress come July.

Ideally, players from Triple-A should come in strong and make their presence known,” Cherington stated. “This could certainly occur this season. Over time, we aim to see even more of such contributions. … It’s clear that increasing our run production is necessary. However, merely wishing for it won’t suffice; hard work will be essential to achieve this.

Since

Cole

After leaving the Pirates, he has consistently ranked within the top ten in Cy Young votes, ultimately winning the award in 2023. He has also played a crucial role in playoff pushes with both the Astros and his present club.

the New York Yankees

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While the Pirates didn’t want to trade Cole, they ended up having to because of the state of their franchise. Could Skenes be next?

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Will the Pirate’s Ace Pitcher Follow in the Ex-Bruin’s Shoes?

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