Cherington shoots down Skenes trade talk: He's 'a Pirate in 2026'
Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington wants any opposing fans who hope that he'll trade ace Paul Skenes to stop dreaming.
Despite rumors continuing to fly about the likely NL Cy Young winner's future in Pittsburgh, Cherington bluntly shot down any notion of a blockbuster deal involving Skenes happening any time soon.
"(Skenes) is going to be a Pirate in 2026," Cherington told FanSided's Robert Murray.
Skenes is expected to be named the NL's top pitcher Wednesday after a stellar sophomore season atop the team's rotation. The 23-year-old's 1.97 ERA and 2.36 FIP led the majors, and he tallied 216 strikeouts along with an NL-low 0.95 WHIP while allowing just 11 home runs in 187 2/3 innings.
However, the former first overall pick ended up being the lone bright spot of yet another miserable Pirates season. Pittsburgh went 71-91 in 2025, a record that resulted in Skenes going 10-10 during his otherwise brilliant campaign. The Bucs dismissed manager Derek Shelton in early May after a 12-26 start. Though the team played closer to .500 after his firing, it still finished last in the NL Central for the fifth time since 2019.
Each successive losing season has only increased speculation about Skenes' future with the club. The Pirates have consistently fielded some of the lowest payrolls in the league under owner Bob Nutting and have often traded their biggest stars away rather than paying them to stick around. Skenes, who becomes arbitration eligible next winter, gained an extra year of service time by winning NL Rookie of the Year in 2024.
In late September, he said that "there's urgency" for the Pittsburgh to improve immediately. He also called the campaign a "wasted year" for the franchise if it doesn't learn from it.
The Pirates' brass may have gotten the message. Cherington hinted at potentially making a splash this offseason, telling Murray that the club has "more (payroll) flexibility than we've had in other offseasons."
The Pirates have made the playoffs three times in the wild-card era but have won only one postseason round - the 2013 NL wild-card game - over that span. They last won a World Series in 1979.