[BUG] npm exec doesn't honor package version #3667

Is there an existing issue for this?

• I have searched the existing issues

Current Behavior

npm x -q --yes --package=<package>@<version> -- <command> doesn't honor <version>, uses incompatible package that is locally available instead.

Expected Behavior

npm x -q --yes --package=<package>@<version> -- <command> honors <version>, does not uses incompatible package that is locally available instead.

Steps To Reproduce

1. Write this package.json:

   {
     "private": true,
     "devDependencies": {
       "pnpm": "=6.12.1"
     }
   }

2. Run npm i
3. [email protected] is now installed locally.

   $ npm x  -q --yes -- pnpm --version
   6.12.1

4. Run pnpm 6.13.0 now: npm x won't honor the version

   $ npm x -q --yes --package="[email protected]" -- pnpm --version
   6.12.1

The docs for npm exec state:

Package names provided without a specifier will be matched with whatever version exists in the local project. Package names with a specifier will only be considered a match if they have the exact same name and version as the local dependency.

Environment

• OS: macOS 11.4
• Node: 16.5.0
• npm: 7.21.0