Pirates’ Paul Skenes Shuts Down Yankees Rumors After Cy Young Win

Paul Skenes confirmed his commitment to the Pittsburgh Pirates while celebrating his 2025 National League Cy Young Award win.

Skenes became the third Cy Young Award winner in franchise history when he unanimously received the honor on Wednesday. The morning of the momentous reveal, NJ.com’s Randy Miller claimed that the 23-year-old ace wants to play for the New York Yankees.

Pirates fans can exhale, as Skenes shot down the report during a media call on Wednesday night, per Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

“I’m on the Pirates,” Skenes said. “My goal is to win with the Pirates. I love the city of Pittsburgh. The fans are hungry to have a winner in Pittsburgh, and I want to be part of the group that did that.”

The Pirates extended a 10-year playoff drought by going 71-91 in 2025. Skenes went 10-10 despite posting a 1.97 ERA, making him the first starting pitcher to garner a Cy Young Award without a winning record.

Skenes remains eager to lead the Pirates back to contention.

“The way that fans see us outside of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh is not supposed to win,” Skenes said. “There are 29 fanbases that expect us to lose. I want to be part of the 26 guys that change that.”

Speculation has surfaced about a Skenes trade, but general manager Ben Cherington once again emphatically declared that the star right-hander is staying put. Skenes isn’t eligible for free agency until after the 2029 season.

“He’s going to be a Pirate in 2026,” Cherington said.

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