On the same day he won his first career Cy Young award, Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes had to refute a report that he wants to play for the New York Yankees.

Speaking to reporters after being named the 2025 NL Cy Young winner, Skenes explained he “didn’t think too much” about the report in which a Pirates player said the right-hander spoke openly about his desire to join the Yankees:

“I got shown the tweet and got some texts about it. Didn’t think much about it. I’m on the Pirates. My goal is to win with the Pirates. … The way that fans see us outside of Pittsburgh, we’re 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.”

The story came out earlier in the day on Wednesday, with NJ.com’s Randy Miller quoting an anonymous Pirates player who was on the team in 2024 and 2025 about Skenes’ alleged Bronx dreams.

“Trust me, he wants to play for the Yankees. I’ve heard him say it multiple times,” the player said.

Skenes went on to say he doesn’t know where the story came from, but emphasized his “goal is to win in Pittsburgh.”

In addition to Skenes’ dismissal of the report, Pirates general manager Ben Cherington left little doubt about where the right-hander is going to be next season.

“Paul Skenes is going to be a Pirate in 2026,” Cherington said at the general manager meetings.

Certainly, the likelihood of Skenes spending his entire career in Pittsburgh seems low given ownership’s lack of financial investment in the roster during Bob Nutting’s tenure.

The Pirates’ history suggests they will trade Skenes as he gets closer to free agency, but he’s not even arbitration-eligible until 2027. His projected salary for next season, even with a Rookie of the Year and Cy Young award on his mantle in his first two years, is around $1 million.

Skenes was named the 2025 NL Cy Young winner on Wednesday. He became the 21st pitcher in MLB history to win the award unanimously.

Even though the 2025 campaign was largely one to forget for the Pirates, who finished last in the NL Central with a 71-91 record, Skenes was a must-watch player whenever he stepped on the mound.

The 23-year-old led MLB with a 1.97 ERA and struck out 216 hitters in 187.2 innings over 32 starts.