Paul Skenes Defends Pirates Leadership Amidst Poor Start

PITTSBURGH — Paul Skenes has had a great start to the season, but the Pittsburgh Pirates, overall, are one of the worst teams in baseball.

They hold a 2-6 record through eight games, with only the Atlanta Braves, Washington Nationals and Colorado Rockies having a worse record with just one win apiece so far.

Pittsburgh lost three of their four games against the Miami Marlins in the opening series on walk-offs, 5-4 on both March 27 on Opening Day and then March 29 in 12 innings, plus 3-2 on March 30. Their only win came 4-3 on March 28.

They then faced the Tampa Bay Rays for a road series, losing two of the three games, and then lost to the New York Yankees in their home opener on April 4, 9-4.

Pirates fans showed their dislike for both owner Bob Nutting and manager Derek Shelton during the home opener.

The fan group, "Our Team, Not His" organized a protest prior to the home opener. One occurred on Federal Street and the other had a plane fly a sign reading, "Sell the Team Bob" and also put in the website, ourteamnothis.com, around PNC Park.

The plane cost a reported $4,000, according to Dejan Kovacevic of DK Pittsburgh Sports for the group of fans, as they hired a private plane operator to do this around Downtown and on the North Shore.

Those fans also accosted Nutting on the rotunda in left field, chanting "Sell The Team" at him while he went past.

Shelton also received a plethora of boos when they announced his name during pre-game introductions.

The Pirates haven't achieved much during either's tenure, which represents 30 years of poor results for a franchise that has won five World Series.

Nutting has owned the Pirates since 2007 and the franchise holds a 1285-1535 win-loss record (.455) in his 19th season. The team has also made the postseason just three times, 2013-15, and had four seasons above .500.

The Pirates had a projected Opening Day payroll of $89,975,500, per Cot's Contracts, which is $20 million lower than their next National League Central opponent in the Milwaukee Brewers at $109,141,136.

It was also the fourth lowest in baseball, with only the Marlins at $68.9 million, Chicago White Sox at $74 million, the Athletics at $78.2 million and the Rays at $82.9 million ranking lower than the Pirates.

Shelton took over as the Pirates manager on Nov. 27, 2019 and earned an extension on April 22, 2023.

The Pirates have struggled under Shelton during his tenure, going 294-414 (.415) through his first five seasons, as the team has never finished higher than fourth in the National League Central Division.

Skenes is coming off of National League Rookie of the Year campaign in 2024 and is aiming for his first Cy Young Award this season.

He pitched 5.1 innings vs. the Marlins on Opening Day, allowing three hits, two earned runs and two walks while striking out seven batters.

Skenes pitched even better back on April 2 against the Rays, allowing just three hits, one earned run and no walks over seven innings with six strikeouts in the 4-2 win.

He spoke with Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette following the contentious home opener and showed support for both Nutting and Shelton, while taking responsibility as a team for their failures so far in 2025.

“Mr. Nutting and Shelty aren’t the ones playing," Skenes said. "We're the ones playing. So if we were 8-0 or however many games we’ve played right now, maybe the fans aren't booing. We’ve got to play better.”

Paul Skenes, on boos and fan reaction in the home opener:

“Mr. Nutting and Shelty aren’t the ones playing. We're the ones playing. So if we were 8-0 or however many games we’ve played right now, maybe the fans aren't booing. We’ve got to play better.”
— Colin Beazley (@colin_beazley) April 5, 2025

Make sure to visit Pirates OnSI for the latest news, updates, interviews and insight on the Pittsburgh Pirates