Andres Chavez
Last week, the baseball universe was shocked when MLB insider Jon Heyman revealed that the New York Yankees tried to acquire Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes before last year’s deadline.
The specific offer wasn’t revealed, but Heyman noted that Cam Schlittler, George Lombard Jr., Spencer Jones, and Carlos Lagrange were viable players who were in the Yankees’ farm system back then.
Speaking on the Foul Territory podcast, current analyst and former MLB executive Jim Bowden expressed his opinion on the Yankees’ offer and whether the Pirates should have taken it or not.
Bowden Sees Cam Schlittler As An Ace
He said the Yankees “should not have offered what is being said they offered, if they did offer it” before clarifying that he doesn’t have confirmation they offered it.
“Based on the report that’s there, the Pirates should have gone ahead and closed the deal immediately. And I love Paul Skenes, don’t get me wrong, but I know that when his free agent days are up, he’s not going to be able to sign long-term in Pittsburgh. They’re not going to pay him $400 million or whatever it’s going to take at that time. So you know your length of life with Skenes in Pittsburgh. If, in fact, you were offered Cam Schlittler, I think he’s going to be a one. I said that last year, and that’s before the development of the cutter this year. I think the makeup, the delivery, the stuff, I think he’s a one. I just think he’s an ace,” Bowden said.
About Lagrange, Bowden made it clear how impressed he was by his easy velocity, and said he is going to be “either a top-of-the-rotation starter or an impact closer.”
He also praised Lombard and said he is the best position player prospect on the Yankees. “I think he can play second, short, or third. Wherever they put him in spring training, he looked like a plus defender to me. Great instincts, good bloodlines, as we all know. Short, quick to the ball. Reads the ball off the bat extremely well. I love his takes. He’s gonna be a star.”
While he said there are 30 to 40 homers in Spencer Jones plus 30 steals, he expressed concern about his strikeout issues, which is definitely fair. Still, he acknowledged it is an enticing package for a team like Pittsburgh.
The Pirates Should Have Taken The Deal If It Was On The Table
“So, if I’m Pittsburgh and I got offered those four guys that I could control for six years and not have to pay any of them for three years, I have a better chance of winning with those four guys, and I have a better chance of winning longer with those four guys. So if in fact they were offered that, which I highly doubt, Ben Cherington should have made that deal immediately,” Bowden explained.
The package required to even get the Pirates to listen to offers on the 2024 NL Rookie of the Year and 2025 NL Cy Young Award winner has to be something like that, even if it makes little sense for the Yankees to entertain it now that they are getting more and more data suggesting that Schlittler can be an ace.
Schlittler made just three starts in the majors before last year’s deadline, so you could understand why he was offered, if indeed that was the case. While Skenes remains the better pitcher and has already proven his worth for two full seasons, the Yankees’ righty is no slouch and has ace potential, as Bowden indicates. To give that up, plus your best prospect (Lombard) and two high-ceiling young players in Lagrange and Jones, would be shocking.
Given his potential price, it’s hard to see the Pirates trading Skenes soon. The main takeaway of all this is that the Yankees are very much interested if he becomes available.
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