Paul Skenes completed one of the best rookie seasons a pitcher has ever had at one of the most famous ballparks in baseball, even if it is the new Yankee Stadium and not the venerable old one.
The former LSU star and Pittsburgh Pirates phenom only tossed 2 innings in his last start of 2024 on Saturday afternoon because the team didn’t want to overextend him. But in true Skenes fashion, the 22-year-old made those 2 innings memorable, retiring all 6 New York batters he faced on just 23 pitches, 17 of them strikes.
As a bonus highlight in the 1st inning, Skenes struck out the Yankees’ 2 most feared hitters, Juan Soto and Aaron Judge, getting Soto looking before striking out Judge swinging to end the frame. Skenes added a strikeout in the 2nd inning, getting Jazz Chisholm Jr. looking to end his brief, 2-inning Bronx cameo.
Six up, six down. And then Skenes sat down for good, officially ending his historic rookie season with an 11-3 record in 23 starts, a 1.96 ERA, 170 strikeouts in 133 innings and a 0.95 WHIP.
Paul Skenes' 2024 rookie season:
23 starts
11-3 record
1.96 ERA
133 IP
170 K
0.95 WHIP pic.twitter.com/3FBtEKpizR— MLB (@MLB) September 28, 2024
The Pirates ended up winning the game, 9-4, their 2nd straight victory over the Yankees in the final regular-season series of the season. Skenes won’t be pitching in the playoffs when they start next week, but he served notice in 2024 that his October moments will surely be coming in the future.
Just ask Soto and Judge, who got their 1st taste of Skenes on Saturday and ended up walking back to the dugout after striking out.
https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1840080347939197215
Skenes’ girlfriend, current LSU gymnastics star Livvy Dunne, had a memorable reaction in the stands to Skenes striking out Soto and Judge in that 1st inning.
Skenes wowed just about everyone who watched him in a rookie season for the ages.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
