Pirates Q&A: 81 Wins Possible? How Much Longer Will Skenes Be Around?
Welcome back to our weekly Pittsburgh Pirates Q&A.
A lot of good questions to get into this week so we won’t waste any time. Let’s dive in.
Opening Day countdown: 12 days.
If Henry Davis has found something at the plate, and being better than Bart defensively, why not find Joey reps at 1B? – Matt Casto
Good question, Matt. If it was my decision, it would be something I would explore. I would probably leave Davis behind the plate given the failed experiment trying him at right field. But all three catchers are playing well this spring and I wouldn’t hate seeing all of them on the Opening Day roster.
Whether it’s Bart or Endy RodrÃguez, who has experience at the position, I would get someone some reps at first base. But the Pirates are insistent all three players are going to focus on catching.
Why is Shelton still the manager? – Jim Lash
It’s a fair question given that Shelton has a 294-414 record as Pirates’ manager. Hardly ever do you see a manager return for a sixth season after five-straight losing ones.
But he received a vote of confidence from general manager Ben Cheringon at the end of last season. And Bob Nutting rarely fires people. However, Shelton’s seat is so hot entering 2025 he may not be able to sit down.
Will the Pirates retire 39 and 10? – Craig Ambrose Leech Jr.
If either of the two get retired, 39 seems much more likely. If 10 was to be retired, it feels like something that would have happened already, and it probably won’t happen while one of the team’s best players is currently wearing it.
But there’s a legitimate case to be made as to retire No. 39 or not with Dave Parker officially joining the Hall of Fame this summer. At PiratesFest in January, team president Travis Williams said it had not yet been discussed but they would look into it.
I wrote this shortly after examining both sides of the argument.
Why won’t management spend any money? A little would go a LONG way with Skenes and Jones before they leave. – Ryan King
I agree with you, Ryan. If the Pirates were ever going to spend money, this would have been the offseason to do it. You have a one-in-a-lifetime pitcher and should be desperately trying to build as good a roster as you can while you have him. Even a marginal free agent addition (by league standards, not the Pirates’) would have at least excited a fanbase starved for postseason baseball.
But it’s just not how the Pirates operate and it appears it won’t be in the future either. They’ve never been a team that’s made splashes in free agency. Nutting doesn’t seem eager to change that either.
My big question: can the Pirates win 81 games this year? If the answer is yes, explain your reasoning. – Elvis Nixon
Yes, the Pirates can get to 81 wins because of the starting pitcher. Paul Skenes could be a legitimate 20-game winner this season and the rest of the starting rotation is formidable with more help on the way. The division doesn’t look like it will be all that imposing either. But a lot still has to go right for that to happen.
While the pitching could keep them around a playoff race for a while, I’m not sure the offense will have enough juice to get them over the hump. Right now, I have the Pirates pegged in the 78-80 win range, so 81 wins isn’t all that far off.
The day that the Pirates drafted Skenes was the day that he was on borrowed time. When is the best time to trade him: Now when he has a few years of low cost and teams can provide quality players and pay their salaries and the Pirates will still have a good rotation with the help of a better lineup that will help them to compete every game? – Ragjag
Another good question. First off, let me say this. If it was my choice, I would offer Skenes a massive extension right now. Something in the range of eight years and $240 million. That would immediately put him into the top-tier of earners as a starting pitcher and allow him to reach free agency at age 30 and potentially cash in again.
But even if they don’t extend him, the Pirates need to keep Skenes in a black and gold uniform as long as they can. Ultimately, I believe he will be traded because there’s no reason to believe the contrary based on precedent.
Once Skenes reaches arbitration, his price tag is going to quickly increase. Looking at Gerrit Cole, he was traded with two years left on his rookie contract. That’s probably the time the Pirates at least consider sending him elsewhere.
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