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Baseball announcer blasts Pirates for not building around Paul Skenes
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Paul Skenes took the baseball world by storm after making his MLB debut last season as he finished 3rd in NL Cy Young voting won Rookie of the Year despite making just 23 starts.
But while Skenes did plenty to revive some optimism around his Pittsburgh Pirates, the front office and ownership didn’t do their part this offseason. That’s according to New York Yankees announcer Michael Kay, who unloaded on the Pirates during a recent broadcast.
Kay pointed out that the Pirates haven’t signed a free agent to a mutli-year contract since 2016. He compared Pittsburgh to Cleveland as well, stating that the Pirates are underachievers compared to the Guardians, who often contend at the top of the AL Central.
“Their owner has been here at the ballpark this weekend and he’s getting jeered every time they see his face,” Kay said, noting the animosity from fans at PNC Park over the weekend.
“The thing that has really angered the fans the most is they have an all-time pitcher in Paul Skenes, who has just electrified the baseball world and they did nothing to build a competitive team around him.”
Here’s a clip of Kay’s comments:
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The Pirates did indeed have a very quiet offseason as they largely only spent money on veterans like Tommy Pham who is playing on a 1-year deal. According to FanGraphs, the Pirates have a payroll of approximately $88 million. That ranks 27th in the Major Leagues, ahead of only the White Sox, Athletics and Marlins.
The next-closest NL Central team to the Pirates in payroll is the Cincinnati Reds at $116 million. Per FanGraphs, the Pirates only have about $38 million committed for 2026, so it’s possible Pittsburgh will do more spending next offseason as they look to build around Skenes into the future.
The former LSU arm will be on the mound on Tuesday afternoon against the St. Louis Cardinals. The Pirates are off to a 4-7 start this season.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
