The New York Yankees are fighting for their playoff lives as the regular season winds down. Earlier this season, Brian Cashman made some moves at the trade deadline. While he addressed weak points he did not give Yankees manager Aaron Boone a starting pitcher. However, the team kicked the tires on Pittsburgh Pirates All-Star Paul Skenes, offering top prospect Spencer Jones.
Skenes and the Pirates had a rough 2025 season, firing their manager after a terrible start. As time went on and things did not take a turn for the better, all eyes turned towards the trade deadline. Some experts thought that Pittsburgh would decide to blow things up and trade away veterans for future assets. The Pirates did move on from David Bednar and Ke'Bryan Hayes in July.
Trade rumors concerning Skenes flew around for months. However, the All-Star starter and his organization shot down the rumors. However, that did not stop the Yankees from checking in on him ahead of the trade deadline. According to New York Post reporter Jon Heyman, New York offered up names like Jones and top-ranked prospect George Lombard for the pitcher.
At the end of the day, the Pirates did not pursue any trade talks involving Skenes with any kind of sincerity. Pittsburgh is a smaller market compared to New York. However, the organization has made it known that it intends to give its leader a long-term deal as soon as possible. Unfortunately for the Yankees, the opportunity to bring Skenes in via trade has already passed them by.
For now, New York has to make do with the pitchers it has in the starting rotation. Getting Gerrit Cole and potentially another starter in the offseason will help a lot in 2026. However, some fans can't help but think about what-ifs. The Yankees could be the favorites to win a title if a deal swapping Jones and other prospects for Skenes had happened earlier in the summer.
