Paul Skenes is under team control with the Pittsburgh Pirates for four more seasons, and the All-Star pitcher insists he has not given serious thought to what it might be like to wear a different uniform.
A report on Wednesday claimed Skenes has already grown fed up with losing in Pittsburgh. An anonymous Pirates player said he has been told “multiple times” by Skenes that the 23-year-old wants to play for the New York Yankees.
Skenes had a strong response to the rumor.
“I got shown the tweet and didn’t really think anything of it and then got some texts about it. I’m on the Pirates. My goal is to win with the Pirates,” Skenes said. “I love the city of Pittsburgh. The fans are hungry to have a winner in Pittsburgh and I want to be a part of the group that did that.”
Skenes compared playing for the Pirates to when he was at the Air Force Academy, when his team won its conference despite never finishing in the top four prior to his arrival. He said he wants to accomplish something similar in Pittsburgh.
“The way that fans see us outside of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh is not supposed to win. There are 29 fan bases that expect us to lose. I want to be a part of the 26 guys that change that,” Skenes added. “I don’t know where that came from. The goal is to win. I don’t know the reporter that reported it. I don’t know the player who supposedly said that, but the goal is to win and the goal is to win in Pittsburgh.”
“The way that fans see us outside of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh is not supposed to win. There are 29 fanbases that expect us to lose. And I want to be a part of the 26 guys that change that.”
Paul Skenes was asked about the report saying he told teammates he wants to play for NYY. pic.twitter.com/Bhofiz7Z6a
— Jenna Harner (@JennaHarner11) November 13, 2025
As expected, Skenes won the NL Cy Young Award on Wednesday night. He was a unanimous choice after leading MLB in his second season with a 1.97 ERA. Skenes had 216 strikeouts across 32 total starts. He also earned himself a whopping bonus by capturing the award.
It would only be natural for a player of Skenes’ caliber to fantasize about playing for a historic franchise like the Yankees. But even if he is hoping to leave Pittsburgh sooner than 2029, there is no point to him admitting it publicly.