The Pirates have shut down Paul Skenes trade rumors with a definitive “No chance, no way, no how” from one team source. But that hasn’t stopped the speculation as Pittsburgh struggles through a disappointing 2025 campaign that’s already seen manager Derek Shelton fired.
It’s worth considering what a Skenes trade might actually look like. The 2023 Juan Soto trade to San Diego provides an interesting comparison. The Nationals received a massive prospect haul including Robert Hassell III, MacKenzie Gore, CJ Abrams, Jarlin Susana and James Wood. Four of those players are now contributing at the big league level for Washington.
What would Skenes command? One MLB executive told Mark Feinsand of MLB.com that “If they looked to trade him now, I think something like 1.5 times the Soto deal would be a starting point.”
That’s an absolutely staggering return.
The same executive suggested Boston could build a package around top prospect Marcelo Mayer. But the deal wouldn’t stop there – it would likely include multiple top prospects and possibly established major leaguers too.
The Pirates’ reluctance to move Skenes makes perfect sense. He’s a generational talent with ace potential who’s already showing dominance at the MLB level. But for a franchise desperately needing to rebuild and generate excitement, a package exceeding what Soto commanded would be difficult to ignore.
Would the Red Sox actually make such an offer? Or might another contender step up with an even more compelling package? The asking price seems astronomical, but that’s exactly what it should be for a player of Skenes’ caliber.
If any team comes close to offering 1.5 times the Soto return, the Pirates would have to at least listen. That’s the type of franchise-altering haul that could accelerate a rebuild from years to months.