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Chicago Cubs Get Bad News on Paul Skenes Trade After Latest Rumors

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jon Conahan | Last updated Jun 5, 2025 7:30 PM ET

There have been rumors that the Chicago Cubs could be interested in trading for Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Skenes is one of the better starters in Major League Baseball, and even has an argument to be the best.

From the Pirates' perspective, there's no reason to move on from him. If anything, there's a reason to go out and try to build a competent roster around the right-hander instead of saving money like they've done for much of the past few decades.

But if Skenes is available, the Cubs are one of the teams around Major League Baseball who could realistically offer a decent package in return for the starter with a 100-plus miles per hour fastball and a 2.05 ERA with 85 strikeouts in 83.1 innings.

He looks to be the clear favorite to win the National League Cy Young Award, but according to a recent report from Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, the chances of the Cubs or any team in Major League Baseball having a chance to trade for him are slim to none.

"No," Feinsand wrote . "We’ve had some fun projecting the types of packages that Pittsburgh could get for the reigning NL Rookie of the Year, but GM Ben Cherington has done everything possible to throw cold water on the possibility."

As Feinsand mentioned, it's fun to think about the type of package the Pirates could get in return for Skenes.

However, it's also fair to mention that even with the Cubs having as good of a farm system as they do, the chances of any of those players ever becoming Skenes are slim to none.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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