Paul Skenes could be playing somewhere else in 2028.. even though the Pirates have him under team control through 2029.
According to John Perrotto of Pittsburgh Baseball Now, Skenes’ salary will likely be outside the Pirates’ comfort zone after next season, and he believes the former Cy Young winner will be gone by 2028.
His projected salary for 2027? $7.2 MILLION.
Now that’s a massive raise from what he’s making now, but we’re talking about a guy who won Rookie of the Year and a Cy Young in his first two seasons. And somehow we’re already discussing when he becomes too expensive for Pittsburgh to keep?
Skenes definitely took a step back this year, and to be clear, Perrotto is making a prediction here. There’s no reported trade happening.
But imagine Skenes comes back next season and looks like the best pitcher in baseball again. That SHOULD be the greatest thing that could happen to the Pirates! Instead, there’s a real possibility his success makes Pittsburgh more willing to trade him before his salary climbs even higher.
The Pirates finally get a pitcher that other franchises would KILL to build around, and we’re having conversations about when they might have to get rid of him.
At some point, what the hell is the point of drafting and developing superstars if you’re not willing to pay them when they become superstars?
