"Remember last season, around the trade deadline, when every analyst in America was calling for the Tigers to trade Tarik Skubal because their "window" wasn't open? Then they went on a run, made the playoffs, did it again the next season without trading Skubal? People have already started talking about the Pirates trading Paul Skenes. They have their own issues, but trading Paul Skenes won't solve them."
"You hold on to a player like Skubal because you (should) play to win the World Series. Who cares if the aging curves and the charts tell you to trade him and get prospect capital to try to win in a few years? The Tigers held on to their guy, even if it wasn't the baseball-economically shrewd move, and they have a chance to win the World Series because of it."
"First of all, a Blue Jays World Series ensures the Yankees lose as quickly as possible, and I don't just want the Yankees to not win the World Series, I want them to go down in a flaming wreck in short order! But this wish is twofold. It's not just that I always want the Yankees to lose, but I also don't want the team the Sox very nearly swept in two games in the Wild Card series to have any ounce of success"
The Tigers retained Tarik Skubal through trade deadlines and then achieved playoff runs, illustrating the potential value of keeping elite pitchers. Trading a top prospect like Paul Skenes would not solve deeper roster or organizational problems for the Pirates. Prioritizing present championship opportunities can justify foregoing prospect capital or future value, even if that approach is less economical. Accepting the risk of losing a player to free agency for a compensatory pick can be preferable to weakening a current contention window. A Blue Jays championship would both punish the Yankees and signal to rivals that divisional competition, not distant trades, determines success.
Read at Over the Monster
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