Paul Skenes adds 10 K’s, All-Star nod to growing Cy Young case
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Paul Skenes is living up to his phenom status as one of the top pitchers in the game today. In just his 2nd MLB season, the former LSU ace is already pushing for his first career Cy Young Award.
On Sunday, Paul Skenes faced the Seattle Mariners and was brilliant during his 5 innings in the game. He did not walk a batter and scattered just 5 hits, striking out 10 batters in the process. It’s a season high in strikeouts for Skenes and his 3rd career game with double-digit strikeouts.
Skenes’ final pitch of the outing was a 97 mph pitch that painted the corner and caught Julio Rodriguez to end the 5th inning. The Pirates, still playing it careful with Skenes’ pitch count, lifted the starter after 78 pitches in the game.
During Skenes’ start, news was announced that he is heading back to the All-Star Game, making it 2 appearances in 2 seasons for Skenes. He was the National League starter for the 2024 All-Star Game.
For now, Skenes is projected to make one more start for the Pirates before the All-Star break. That start, if he makes it as scheduled, is for Saturday, so it’s possible Skenes will not be able to participate in the game this time around.
Regardless of how his next start plays out, Skenes is already the frontrunner for the 2025 NL Cy Young Award. According to BetMGM, Skenes leads the pack at -135 with Philadelphia Phillies ace Zack Wheeler the closest competition at +105, and fans can track all the odds through the Louisiana sports betting app.
It’s not hard to see why, with Skenes tied for the MLB lead among pitching WAR at 4.8. (Wheeler is the co-leader in that metric.) Skenes also leads the NL in ERA at 1.94, but he currently holds a losing record of 4-7 overall.
Of course, a lot of Skenes’ record has to do with the overall offensive struggles of the Pirates. Unfortunately, it is incredibly tough for a pitcher with a losing record to make serious headway with Cy Young voters, but we may soon find out if Skenes can buck that trend.
Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.
