Paul Skenes All-Star campaign is cursed by his own general manager

The Pittsburgh Pirates marketing team has their hands full. As a small-market team in ever sense of the word, the Buccos want what's rightfully there's -- more than one representative at the midsummer classic in Arlington.

PNC Park has a different feel to it this summer. Much of that credit goes to the Pirates farm system, headlined by Paul Skenes and Jared Jones, their two-headed rotation monster. Both pitchers are rookies, and ought to be paired together atop the Pittsburgh rotation for the long haul.

They are not alone, of course. The Pirates are in the middle of the NL Wild Card race thanks to a litany of talented players who have finally performed up to expectations. Ben Cherington wants you to know that, which is why when asked on 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh who should represent the Pirates at the All-Star Game, Skenes was not the first player mentioned.

Keller and Reynolds are both solid contributors to this team, and are signed long term in Pittsburgh. Perhaps Cherington sent a subtle message Skenes way that he must earn his turn, or he just forgot Skenes name in the moment. Who am I to say?

To Cherington's credit, he did recover when prompted.

MLB analysts make better case for Paul Skenes than Pirates do

ESPN's Jeff Passan made the case for Skenes to start for the National League just days ago.

“I urge Torrey Lovullo, the manager of the National League team … to go and pick Paul Skenes to start,”Passan said on the All-Star Reveal Show. “Because if the idea is to get eyeballs on this game, if the idea is to have baseball fans see and feel a moment that excites them, Paul Skenes vs. Gunnar Henderson, Aaron Judge and Juan Soto is a pretty darn good place to do it.”

Rather than riding Passan's coattails, Cherington instead opted to mention multiple Pirates prior to making Skenes case. Starting Skenes would help grow the game, and it's also plausible to make the argument he's the best pitcher in the sport right now. In 10 starts, Skenes is 5-0 with a 2.12 ERA. He's also struck out seven or more batters in nine of those 10 starts, which is an MLB record.

The stats favor Skenes. The pundits favor Skenes. The only person not making a great case for the Pirates rookie is, ironically, the man who drafted him in the first place.