Pirates Make Paul Skenes Announcement

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Gavin Groe | Last updated Oct 23, 2025 6:26 PM ET

The Pittsburgh Pirates finished the 2025 season with a 71–91 record, landing in last place in the NL Central. As the future of the franchise remains uncertain, the team still has right-handed starting pitcher Paul Skenes on the active roster. The 23-year-old star just wrapped up his second season in the big leagues and continued to showcase his dominance.

Skenes remains the frontrunner for the NL Cy Young Award and earned his second consecutive All-Star selection this year for his efforts in the first half. He posted an MLB-best 1.97 ERA, an NL-best 0.948 WHIP and struck out 216 batters over 187 2/3 innings. He has made only 55 career appearances but has already established himself as one of the game’s elite arms.

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes (30)Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

As Skenes enters the offseason preparing for another year in Pittsburgh, the team announced that his season had been recognized by Sporting News. Skenes was selected to the publication’s All-Star team as the lone Pirates representative. “Congrats to Paul Skenes on being named to the @sportingnews All Star Team!” the team wrote on X.

The honor is notable, as Sporting News selects only one player per position from the National League. In its official announcement, the outlet noted the selection was essentially unanimous: “Meantime, starting pitchers Tarik Skubal of the Tigers and Paul Skenes of the Pirates were near-unanimous choices by AL and NL execs, respectively, in the balloting conducted from Sept. 10 to Oct. 10.” Skenes continues to build an impressive legacy just two years into his MLB career.

Congrats to Paul Skenes on being named to the @sportingnews All Star Team! pic.twitter.com/upanCPwkvJ
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) October 23, 2025

While Skenes has expressed a desire to remain in Pittsburgh and has clearly thrived with the organization, his name has surfaced in trade rumors due to the uncertain direction of the franchise. If moved, he would likely be the most valuable piece ever traded, given he still has four years of team control remaining.

At just 23 years old, he still has room to grow and develop into an even more complete pitcher. Skenes has dominated at every level of his career—from LSU to being selected first overall in the 2023 MLB Draft to his rapid rise in the majors. He remains a generational talent.

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

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