Paul Skenes deserves so much better than Pirates actual trade deadline plans

The Pittsburgh Pirates are coming off a month in which they went 14-12, making June the best ball the team has played all season. Currently, the Pirates are 9.5 games back in the National League Central and approaching the All-Star break still have a slim chance to remain in the NL playoff conversation.

It's been a season of ups and downs, but overall, the Pirates have been a team carried by their pitching rotation.

Paul Skenes has been unreal on the mound to begin his major league career in Pittsburgh. Skenes has a 4-0 record, 2.06 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 70 strikeouts in nine games. If his season started before May, he would likely be a Cy Young candidate (he still may be). He has been phenomenal on the mound, especially since the Pirates are one of the worst offensive teams in all of baseball.

As a team offensively, the Pirates rank 24th in team hits, 23rd in homeruns and 26th in team batting average. Although guys like Rowdy Tellez and Oneil Cruz have been hitting very well, it shouldn't be enough to trust their progression over acquiring some more consistent hitters in the lineup.

The trade deadline is a few weeks away on July 30, and it appears that the Pirates won't be very active on the market to add any run support help for Skenes.

The Pirates aren't going to give Paul Skenes the deadline help he deserves

Sunday morning, Pirates General Manager Ben Cherington addressed the team's struggles at the plate and forecasted their plans moving forward on his weekly shot on 93.7 The Fan:

"We have more players that can improve by far than the number we can acquire. I truly believe the current group of position players can be better in the second half of the season than they were in the first."

With a young core group of hitters including Jack Suwinski, Michael A. Taylor, Cruz, Tellez, Jared Triolo, and Ke’Bryan Hayes, there is room to grow. But the way Skenes has been pitching, it is unfair to think that the team won't even try to get him any offensive help with the trade deadline coming up.

It doesn't necessarily mean go out and get Pete Alonso, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or anything crazy like that. The patient approach may work out in the long run, but at what cost? Skenes has been pitching out of his mind and he deserves so much better than the Pirates actual deadline plans.