Paul Skenes probably won’t end his career in Pittsburgh. But his stay in Pennsylvania could have been much shorter than expected.

In fact, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the New York Yankees called the Pirates about a deal involving the star pitcher this summer.

The Yankees were one of the few teams to inquire about Paul Skenes even after rumors circulated that the Pirates had no intention of trading him. This is the only case where the Yankees were willing to discuss Spencer Jones and George Lombard Jr. But the talks went nowhere. They just figured a phone call couldn’t hurt.

To acquire Skenes’ services, the Yankees would have had to give up a lot more than Jones and Lombard Jr. because those two might not even have been enough to land Mason Miller in the Bronx, based on the last trade deadline.

https://t.co/5MNKiVKynF A Dunne deal? Nope, Yankees pursued Skenes only because they’d thought he could help (a lot)

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However, the fact that the Yankees attempted to open negotiations with the Pirates is perhaps an indicator of what could happen in the future. In fact, the two franchises have recently agreed on transactions, including David Bednar this year.

Should Skenes become available, the Yankees have already begun laying the groundwork for a trade, stating loud and clear that they would be willing to part with their top prospects to get their hands on the Cy Young Trophy voting favorite.

A player of Skenes’ calibre doesn’t usually become available at such a young age, but in Pittsburgh, you can expect anything.

And the speculation will continue this winter, right up until the 23-year-old officially puts down the markers.

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