Fred Toucher agrees with Pirates pulling Paul Skenes from a potential first-ever no-hitter

On this morning's Toucher & Hardy radio program, the guys discussed Paul Skenes, who was close to making history with seven no-hit innings against the Brewers. After throwing 99 pitches, he was pulled before the eighth inning, and reliever Colin Holderman immediately gave up a single to Jake Bauers, ending the no-hit attempt.

Skenes ended the day with 11 strikeouts and 99 pitches, bringing his ERA down to 1.90 with 89 strikeouts in 11 starts. At only 22 years old, he could have entered the All-Star game with a potentially historic performance. Instead, analysts and fans are questioning why he was taken out.

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Pittsburgh manager Derek Shelton defended the decision, citing the need to protect Skenes from potential injury due to fatigue.

"It didn’t really have anything to do with the pitch count," Pirates manager Derek Shelton said after the game. "Everyone makes it about pitch count. It was about where he was at. It was about trusting your eyes, trusting him. When I went to talk to him after that, he was tired. They did a good job of wearing him down, and he gave us everything he had."

While some sports platforms were outraged, the guys, especially Fred, acknowledged the importance of player safety and long-term performance.

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It’s time for the latest Mazz’s Tiers! With the MLB trade deadline so close and with the Boston Red Sox apparently still undecided on what they will be doing at the trade deadline, Mazz decided it was time to rank some of the recent deadline acquisitions in the 2000's that the Red Sox have had! 

But before the tiers, here’s a look at some names that could appear on the list....

Jon Lester was a two-time World Series Champion with the Boston  Red Sox. Lester was a member of the Red Sox from 2006-2014 and won World Championships in 2007 and 2013. He was traded to the Oakland Athletics in July of 2014. Lester would then move on to the Chicago Cubs where he would win his third World Series ring in 2016. 

Prior to the 2018 MLB trade deadline the Red Sox acquired Nathan Eovaldi from the Tampa Bay Rays. Eovaldi would help the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series and then go on to spend another four seasons as a member of the club. He would leave the Red Sox in free agency to join the Texas Rangers and win a World Series in 2023. 

In 2008 the Boston Red Sox traded Manny Ramirez to the Los Angeles Dodgers in a three team trade. The big piece that came in return to the Red Sox in the trade was outfielder Jason Bay. Bay would spend the remainder of 2008 and the entirety of the 2009 season with Boston. 

The Red Sox acquired Eric Gagne to be the setup man for closer Jonathan Papelbon in 2007. However, the addition of Gagne turned out to be an underwhelming one, as he would post a 6.75 ERA to close out the 2007 season. He wasn’t much better in the playoffs, pitching just 4.1 innings while giving up 3 earned runs in four appearances.

2004 - Doug Mientkiewicz and Orlando Cabrera acquired in a four team trade that sent Nomar Garciaparra to the Chicago Cubs

2004 - Dave Roberts acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers for a minor leaguer 

2018 - Steve Pearce acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays for Santiago Espinal

2018 - Nathan Eovaldi acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays for Jalen Beeks

2021 - Kyle Schwarber acquired from the Washington Nationals for a minor leaguer 

2009 - Victor Martinez acquired from the Detroit Tigers for Justin Masterson 

2013 - Jake Peavy acquired in a three team trade. Jose Iglesias was traded to the Detroit Tigers in the deal

2008 - Manny Ramirez traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in a three team trade. Jason Bay was acquired by the Red Sox from the Pittsburgh Pirates

2007 - Eric Gagne acquired from Texas Rangers for Kason Gabbard 

2014 - Jon Lester traded to Oakland Athletics for Yoenis Cespedes 

2014 - John Lackey traded to St. Louis Cardinals for Allen Craig and Joe Kelly