The New York Yankees do have an aging bullpen. Gerrit Cole is 35 years old and is starting to have problems with his elbow. And with Paul Skenes already being linked to the Yankees, it looked like this deal was going to happen in the near future. But it looks like we were wrong.

Jon Heyman, in his recent piece, wrote, “The Yankees, perhaps encouraged by their belief Pirates superstar Paul Skenes might have interest in them, tried for Skenes at the deadline but were shut down so quickly the Pirates didn’t even listen to the offer.”

The New York Yankees made a serious push at the last deadline for Paul Skenes, but the Pirates didn’t even entertain it. This is because the Pittsburgh Pirates see him as a long-term franchise cornerstone.

Paul Skenes is the current NL Cy Young winner, and his pitching with a career ERA of 1.96 when the 2025 season ended. We all know that trading him away would put the Pirates in the rebuilding process, if they are planning to do one. But the Yankees have still not lost all hope of signing Skenes.

The financial side of things is one of the major things that could force the Pirates to trade away Paul Skenes to the Yankees. Skenes is expected to ask for a massive $50M per year contract when he hits free agency. The Pirates have never given out such a contract since Bob Nutting took over the Pirates.

But that’s not the only thing that might give the Yankees an edge. Pirates fans have been asking Bob Nutting to build a solid team around Paul Skenes since his MLB debut. But it looks like Nutting is least worried about that. The Pirates have not made any significant move to upgrade their squad.

And the current squad he has isn’t even trying to do their best on the field. On Opening Day of the 2026 season, we saw that Paul Skenes was taken out of the game, pitching just 0.2 innings and giving up 5 runs. Although his command was a bit off, the reason for his earning those runs was Oneil Cruz.

Oneil Cruz missed two easy fly balls and cost the team 5 runs. The Pirates could never recover from there and lost the game 11-7. That 37-pitch outing became the shortest start of his professional career by a clear margin. With all this, Skenes might be tempted to push the Pirates for a move or even choose free agency over extending his contract with the Pirates.

Pirates fans are not happy with Paul Skenes and the Yankees’ links

With this news out, the Pirates fans are starting to question if Brian Cashman can really afford Paul Skenes. “This link with Skenes to NY is hysterical,” one fan wrote, dismissing rumors. The Yankees do have prospects like Spencer Jones and George Lombard Jr., who have had good years in the minors. But if the Yankees want to get Paul Skenes, they will need to give a lot more, and with the current Yankees system, they might not have that.

“He will more likely be a Dodger than a Yankee,” one fan argued bluntly online. And the fan is right. The Dodgers have top prospects like Dalton Rushing and Josue De Paula. They also have arms like River Ryan, who is still viewed as a great trade piece for the Dodgers. That depth contrasts with the Yankees’ system, strengthening the belief that the Dodgers could assemble a stronger Skenes offer.

“I think he wants to be wherever Oneil Cruz is not,” one fan wrote. Oneil Cruz misjudged Brett Baty’s fly ball, allowing a bases-clearing double early. He then lost another fly ball in sunlight, giving up an additional run. Those plays helped five runs score, ending Paul Skenes’ outing after just 37 pitches.

“No one wants to be in New York, don’t kid yourself,” one fan argued bluntly. This fan points to the fact that the Yankees have not won a World Series since 2009. And when you add the fact that Juan Soto chose the Mets over the Yankees, add to this perspective.

“They are going to hold onto him until there’s like 4 months left,” one fan wrote. He says that the Pirates will panic late in the season and start to negotiate. The fan suggests they will demand the same top prospects they asked for 2 year ago. The fan suggests they will demand the same top prospects.

So the question is more about whether the Pirates will trade him. It is about whether the Yankees actually have the assets to afford him.