Paul Skenes was a little wild in his 2026 spring training debut on Wednesday afternoon against the Atlanta Braves, but the Pittsburgh Pirates flame-thrower and former LSU star still had the strikeout pitch working during his 2.1 innings of work.
Skenes, who will have a busier than usual spring while hoping to make multiple starts for Team USA at the World Baseball Classic, struck out 4 but also walked 4 during his debut at CoolToday Park in North Port, Fla. He only allowed 1 hit though and 1 earned run, as his bid to win the National League Cy Young Award in back-to-back seasons officially got under way on the last Wednesday in February.
Naturally, Skenes began his start against the Braves with — what else? — a strikeout of Atlanta superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. Skenes got Acuna swinging on a 2-2 pitch, not wasting any time showing off his finishing touch.
There would be 3 more strikeouts on tap for Skenes on Wednesday, but there were also those 4 walks, whether it was just pure adrenaline working against him in his spring debut or the fact that he hadn’t pitched in a game situation for quite a while. Whatever it was, Skenes will get ample more time to polish his pitching for the Pirates and for Team USA before the regular season begins in about a month.
Skenes will look to build on an already impressive young career in 2026. He’s been an NL All-Star during his first 2 seasons in the majors, was named 2024 NL Rookie of the Year and made the All-MLB First Team in 2024 and 2025, almost instantly becoming one of baseball’s top pitchers at the ripe old age of 23.
The right-handed phenom ended his collegiate career with a bang at LSU in 2023, winning the Dick Howser Trophy and leading the Tigers to the 2023 College World Series title. Skenes was named the College World Series Most Outstanding Player, setting the stage for what has been an incredible start to his major-league career.
Here are Kalshi’s top contenders for the NL Cy Young Award, which Skenes took home last season in only his second year. Skenes is currently being given a 22% chance to repeat his feat from 2025 with another Cy Young Award season in 2026:
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.
