New York Yankees legend and recently enshrined Hall of Famer, CC Sabathia, had a bold claim to make about Pittsburgh Pirates' ace Paul Skenes.
Skenes is likely headed towards his first CY Young award this offseason when the award is announced, and is starting to shape into one of, if not the best, starting pitchers in all of MLB.
In a recent interview with Rich Kleiman, Sabathia had some remarks about what the future might hold for Paul Skenes.
Yankees' legend CC Sabathia believes Paul Skenes' future may lead him away from Pittsburgh
When speaking with Rich Kleiman, this is what CC Sabathia had to say about Paul Skenes and his future with Pittsburgh:
"I don't think he'll stay there," Sabathia said to Kleiman. "He'll end up being like Gerrit Cole. He'll end up somewhere else, pitching in the playoffs in a pennant race down the stretch. [When] he becomes a free agent and who knows where he'll end up. Maybe he ends up somewhere in New York, or you know, on the other coast in L.A. I don't see him playing his whole career in Pittsburgh, but I don't see them trading him anytime soon."
It wouldn't shock anyone if Skenes does opt to leave Pittsburgh, as the Pirates organization has done little to nothing to help improve the team around him. Like Sabathia indicates, Skenes is a big-game pitcher, and everyone in the MLB community wants to see him pitch in the big games down the stretch of the regular season and into the playoffs.
Even with Skenes dominating every fifth day, the Pirates just don't have enough around him to be successful.
Now, of course, CC Sabathia mentions Skenes joining New York sometime in the future, but the reality is, both of the New York teams are on the short list of MLB organizations that could actually afford Skenes. Skenes still has several seasons of arbitration left, but is set to be a free agent in 2030.