Trade Three: Yankees trade Gerrit Cole, Pirates trade Paul Skenes
Finally, we arrive at my masterpiece. This deal has nearly that same je ne sais quoi about it that the Doncic trade does.
Cole is a 34-year-old ace fresh off an injury-plagued season with a hefty remaining contract. However, he has a history of dominance, including his 2023 season when he won the AL Cy Young award, and he's been to the World Series twice (2019, 2024), though he lost in both efforts.
Skenes is the reigning NL Rookie of the Year, a 22-year-old who just authored a 1.96 ERA in his first taste of big league action. In due time, he'll be up for a massive contract extension that the Pirates probably could afford but won't want to pay, and Pittsburgh could certainly get a haul for him if it opens trade discussions to the whole league, rather than just the Yankees.
The former may not have Davis's ring, nor does the latter have Doncic's proven penchant for performing best under the bright lights of the playoffs, but they're both exceptionally talented performers with track records of success.
Plus, sending Skenes, one of the game's brightest young stars, to the league's most storied franchise (in this case, the Yankees), just has that same "are you kidding me?" feel to it that the Doncic deal had in spades.
Would the Pirates ever do this trade in a million years? No, but the same could have been said for the Mavericks with Doncic until last week.