Paul Skenes’ father, Craig, revealed that the Pittsburgh Pirates star pitcher is relishing the opportunity to compete for a championship at this year’s World Baseball Classic
Paul Skenes will represent Team USA at this year’s World Baseball Classic(Image: Getty Images)
Fresh off winning the 2025 National League Cy Young Award, Paul Skenes already has his sights set on adding more hardware to his trophy case at the World Baseball Classic (WBC).
Back in May, Skenes — who recently worked a shift serving veterans at Raising Cane’s in West Palm Beach — announced that he would be representing Team USA at the quadrennial tournament. The Pittsburgh Pirates ace will undoubtedly be one of the Stars and Stripes’ best starters after recording 216 strikeouts and an MLB-best 1.97 ERA this season.
Speaking exclusively to Mirror U.S. Sports, Skenes’ father Craig revealed that his son is relishing the opportunity to represent his country and compete on the world’s biggest stage.
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“That’ll be one of the very near-term opportunities for him to possibly play for a championship, which I think he’s really looking forward to,” Craig explained.
Though Skenes has achieved no shortage of individual success in the majors, the flamethrowing righty hasn’t even come close to sniffing the playoffs during his two seasons in Pittsburgh.
The Pirates — who boasted a bottom-five payroll this year — are currently mired in a stretch of seven straight losing seasons while making the postseason only three times since 1992.
Given Pittsburgh’s inability to construct a winning ballclub around Skenes, some have suggested that he’d rather play for a championship contender.
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Mere hours before Skenes became the second-youngest unanimous Cy Young Award winner in MLB history, an anonymous Pirates player told NJ Advance Media’s Randy Miller that the 23-year-old privately expressed his desire to play for the New York Yankees.
Per the report, Skenes wished to be traded well before hitting free agency following the 2029 campaign, citing his lack of confidence in the Pirates’ ability to win during his tenure in Pittsburgh.
Skenes swiftly poured cold water on the baseless rumors, which he insisted had no validity. “There’s a reason [ESPN baseball insider] Jeff Passan didn’t write about [it], I’ll say that,” he told Mirror U.S. Sports of the comments.
“Rumors are rumors. I was frustrated for a little bit, but it doesn’t really matter. I’ve had some time to think about it, but I’m glad I had the opportunity to speak to the Pittsburgh media and clear the air over nothing, basically. It is what it is.”
Paul Skenes worked a Raising Cane’s ‘shift’ supporting veterans through a check donation event(Image: Getty Images)
Less than 24 hours prior, Skenes reaffirmed his commitment to changing the culture in Pittsburgh. “I’m on the Pirates. My goal is to win with the Pirates,” he said on a Cy Young conference call.
“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.
“Forty-six years without a World Series championship. This is why I’m going to show up to the ballpark, and I’m going to work to get everybody pushing in the same direction. I know there are other guys who are going to do the same. That’s all the truth.”