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3 hours ago
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Wherever Paul Skenes gets traded in the hypothetical world where the Pittsburgh Pirates decide to deal their superstar, he's likely going to wind up with a gigantic contract extension that some have suggested could exceed $500 million.
The idea that a team could then have Skenes for a decade-plus is obviously mightily appealing, and it's why teams left and right would line up if the Pirates end up making Skenes available. The Boston Red Sox, in one of baseball's biggest markets, would almost certainly throw their hat in the ring.
Paul Riley of Ballcap Sports recently suggested this blockbuster Pittsburgh-Boston trade:
- Red Sox receive Paul Skenes
- Pirates receive Marcelo Mayer, Franklin Arias, Luis Perales and Brayan Bello
Bello is the lone big leaguer of that return haul. He's an extremely talented right-handed starting pitcher who has battled injuries.
Mayer is a top-10 prospect in baseball as a shortstop, and Arias is another shortstop and ranked in the top-100. Perales falls just outside the top-100 on most lists but adds another high-upside pitcher to this return.
Skenes is the headliner, of course, the 2024 NL Rookie of the Year who had a 1.96 ERA last year and has a 2.63 ERA this year.
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The former Air Force and LSU star is currently toiling on a Pirates team that already has double the losses as it does wins.
They have Skenes under control for four more seasons when you count his arbitration years, so they probably aren't in a hurry to move him.
But if the Pirates do make the choice to deal Skenes, the Red Sox have some of the best prospects to choose from in MLB, including multiple that weren't put into this proposed deal.
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