Paul Skenes has been nothing but brilliant in his young major league career for the Pittsburgh Pirates, including pitching into the 9th inning on Tuesday night. However, despite allowing just two earned runs and striking out eight, it was the first time he took a loss in a game since his college days.

Jake Mintz & Jordan Shusterm discuss if the Pirates are already wasting a golden opportunity for winning while having a great pitcher like Paul Skenes in their rotation and if the club will make a play before the trade deadline to bolster their underwhelming offense.

Also on this episode of the Baseball Bar-B-Cast, the guys talk about the challenges the New York Yankees and the New York Mets face in improving their squads as they continue to do battle in the 2024 edition of the Subway Series, as well as Clayton Kershaw’s return to the Los Angeles Dodgers and why a lot is riding on his performance.

Later in the show, Jake and Jordan answer some listener emails that include some curious performance incentives that are in players contracts, whether the Atlanta Braves are cursed and what’s the biggest trade rumor that never went down.

(2:15) - Pirates wasting a golden chance

(9:43) - Yankees need to fix their lineup

(16:33) - Where do the Mets go from here?

(21:10) - Clayton Kershaw is returning

(26:47) - We need to talk about…

(33:44) - Listener mailbag

(48:40) - Are the Braves cursed?

(54:30) - The Mariners and their blown lead

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