Skenes (4-8) took the loss Friday against the Twins, giving up two runs on five hits and no walks in five innings. He struck out six.
Skenes started fast, retiring the first nine batters he faced, but a single by Byron Buxton and ensuing blast by Trevor Larnach resulted in a pair of runs against the hurler. The last-place Pirates could be starting to manage the All-Star right-hander's workload, as Skenes has failed to reach the 90-pitch threshold in any of his past four starts, which may be something for fantasy managers to monitor post-All-Star break. Through 121 innings for the campaign, he boasts a 2.01 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 131:30 K:BB.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Fans 10 in no-decision
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Skenes pitched five scoreless innings, allowing five hits and no walks in a no-decision Sunday at Seattle. He struck out 10.
Despite a short 78-pitch outing, the Pittsburgh ace managed to notch his first double-digit strikeout performance of the season. Skenes completely dominated the Mariners lineup to mark his fifth walk-free start of the season while allowing just one extra-base hit -- a Julio Rodriguez double in the third. Skenes now sports a stellar 1.94 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 125:30 K:BB across 116 frames. The 23-year-old was named to his second consecutive All-Star team Sunday and is currently scheduled to make his last appearance before the break at Minnesota next weekend.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Runs up pitch count in no-decision
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Skenes didn't factor into the decision in Tuesday's 1-0 win over the Cardinals, allowing five hits and a walk over five innings. He struck out five.
The 23-year-old phenom found himself locked in an unlikely pitchers' duel with Andre Pallante, but Skenes bowed out early after needing 88 pitches (59 strikes) to record his 15 outs. He's failed to last more than five innings in three of his last four starts but has remained effective despite the inefficiency, posting a 2.70 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 23:10 K:BB through 20 innings over that stretch. Skenes will look for his first win since May 28 in his next trip to the mound, which is scheduled to come on the road early next week in Kansas City.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Loses duel against Misiorowski
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Skenes (4-7) took the loss Wednesday, giving up four runs on four hits and two walks over four innings as the Pirates were downed 4-2 by the Brewers. He struck out four.
Matched up for the first time against Milwaukee phenom Jacob Misiorowski, Skenes was the first young ace to flinch, putting the first three batters on base in the second inning en route to a four-run frame for the Brewers. While Skenes didn't take any further damage, he was lifted after 78 pitches (50 strikes) with the Bucs having once again failed to provide him with any offensive support -- they didn't get on the board until the seventh inning. It's the first time since May 1 that the 23-year-old right-hander has been tagged for more than two runs, and Skenes will take a 2.12 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 110:29 K:BB through 106 innings into his next start, which lines up to come at home early next week against the Cardinals.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Blanks Cubs across five frames
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Skenes did not factor into Friday's decision against the Cubs, allowing four hits and two walks while striking out five across five scoreless innings.
Friday was just the third time in 15 starts this season that Skenes failed to make it to the sixth inning. He still managed to keep the Cubs off the board, thanks in large part to an assist from the Pirates' fielders in the fifth inning to throw Ian Happ out at home. Skenes has allowed one earned run or fewer in each of his last seven starts, and his 1.78 ERA and 0.85 WHIP (across 96 innings) are both third best in the National League among qualified starters. He's in line to start against the Tigers on the road next week.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Stellar again in no-decision
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Skenes did not factor into the decision Sunday against the Phillies, allowing one unearned run on two hits and one walk over 7.2 innings. He struck out seven.
Skenes was dominant again Sunday, allowing a lone unearned run in the third inning while pitching into the eighth for the third time in his last five starts. However, Skenes was stuck with another no-decision -- he has just one win in his previous eight starts despite posting a 1.51 ERA in that span (across 53.1 innings). Overall, Skenes is 4-6 with a 1.88 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 92:20 K:BB over 14 starts (91 innings) this season. He's currently lined up to face the Cubs on the road in his next outing.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Handed tough-luck loss
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Skenes (4-6) allowed a run on three hits and a walk over eight innings Tuesday, striking out eight and taking a loss against Houston.
It was another terrific outing for Skenes that was dampened by the Pirates' lack of offense. He rolled through six shutout frames before serving up a solo homer to Christian Walker in the seventh inning. It was the first home run allowed by Skenes since May 1 and just his fifth of the year through 83.1 frames. He tossed 68 of 99 pitches for strikes and tied a season best with 21 whiffs. Skenes fell to 1-4 over his last seven appearances despite posting a 1.77 ERA during that span. He'll carry an impressive 2.05 ERA and 85:19 K:BB into his next matchup, which is expected to be at home against the Phillies.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Stellar in loss
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Skenes (3-5) allowed one run on three hits and a walk over eight innings Sunday, striking out nine and taking a loss against the Phillies.
Skenes was in elite form Sunday and completed eight innings for the second time in his MLB career. He didn't allow a hit until the fifth inning and gave up just three singles in the outing. Skenes tossed 71 of 102 pitches for strikes and generated a career-high 22 whiffs, including seven with his fastball that averaged 98.2 mph. Since coughing up five runs against the Cardinals on April 8, he's produced a 2.03 ERA with a 42:13 K:BB over his last seven outings. Skenes has produced a quality start in three of his five losses this season. He'll carry a 2.44 ERA into his next matchup, which is lined up to be at home against the Brewers.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Gives up one run in no-decision
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Skenes did not factor into the decision against the Mets on Monday, allowing one run on six hits and three walks while striking out six across six innings.
Skenes was able to pitch himself out of trouble for most of the night, with his lone blemish coming in the fourth inning on a Jeff McNeil RBI double. Skenes generated nine whiffs and 16 first-pitch strikes on 92 pitches and managed to log his sixth quality start of the season. Across 54.2 innings this season, the 22-year-old ace has a 2.63 ERA and 1.01 WHIP, which rank seventh and fifth, respectively, in the National League among qualified starters. Skenes is slated to face the Phillies on the road this weekend.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Six strong innings despite loss
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Skenes (3-4) took the loss Tuesday against the Cardinals after allowing two runs on three hits and four walks in six innings. He struck out six.
While Skenes matched a season high in walks, he also tied a season best with just three hits allowed. After issuing only four free passes through his first six starts in 2025, Skenes has now given up eight walks in his past two outings. On a positive note, the star right-hander has lasted at least five innings in each of his eight appearances this season. He'll take an excellent 2.77 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 47:12 K:BB over 48.2 frames into his scheduled next start, which lines up for next week in a difficult assignment against the Mets.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Serves up three homers in loss
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Skenes (3-3) was charged with the loss Thursday against the Cubs after surrendering three runs on five hits and four walks over five innings.
The right-hander was staked an early 2-0 lead and kept Chicago off the board through four frames, but Dansby Swanson, Kyle Tucker and Seiya Suzuki hit solo homers during the fifth inning to saddle Skenes with the loss. The 22-year-old set season worsts with two strikeouts and four walks, and it was also the first time this year he didn't work into the sixth inning. The performance breaks a run of three straight quality starts for Skenes, though he still has an impressive 2.74 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 41:8 K:BB on the campaign.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Dominates Dodgers for third win
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Skenes (3-2) picked up the win Friday, allowing five hits over 6.1 scoreless innings in a 3-0 victory over the Dodgers. He struck out nine without walking a batter.
In a battle of early NL Cy Young candidates, Skenes came out on top against Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The Pittsburgh ace racked up 37 called or swinging strikes among his 108 pitches (69 total strikes), and his nine Ks were his highest total so far in 2025. Skenes will take a 2.39 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 39:4 K:BB through 37.2 innings into his next start, which lines up to come at home next week against the Cubs.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Allows two runs in loss
Rotowire
Skenes (2-2) took the loss against the Guardians on Saturday. He allowed two runs on six hits and one walk while striking out four across seven innings.
Skenes got the start Saturday despite operating on just four days of rest. He gave up the first run of the game on a Steven Kwan single in the third inning before yielding a solo homer to Kyle Manzardo in the seventh. Skenes bounced back to strike out two of the last three batters he faced, but he wasn't able to get enough run support from the Pirates' offense to avoid the loss. Skenes leads the National League with 31.1 innings tossed across his five starts, and he ranks third and eighth in WHIP (0.80) and strikeouts (30), respectively. He's slated to make his next start next week on the road against the Dodgers.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Stingy in first win of year
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Skenes (1-0) picked up the win Wednesday, allowing an unearned run on three hits over seven innings in a 4-2 victory over the Rays. He struck out six without walking a batter.
Last season's NL Rookie of the Year was dominant once again, firing 72 of 102 pitches for strikes, and the only run to cross the plate against Skenes was helped along by an Isiah Kiner-Falefa throwing error in the sixth inning. Skenes has a 1.46 ERA and 13:2 K:BB through his first 12.1 innings in 2025, and he'll look to keep rolling in his next start, which lines up to come at home early next week against the Cardinals.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Brings home NL ROY
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Skenes was named the 2024 National League Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year on Monday.
This award comes as no surprise for Skenes, who earned 23 first-place votes and seven second-place votes in a landslide victory. The flamethrower posted an eye-poping 1.96 ERA and 0.95 WHIP with 170 strikeouts over 23 starts (133.0 innings) during his rookie campaign. However, Skenes already has his sights on next season, per Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "I was super pleased with this year, going out there and competing. But there's more work to be done."
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Tagged with tough-luck loss
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Skenes (10-3) took the loss Monday against the Cardinals, allowing one run on four hits and one walk while striking out seven over six innings.
The Pirates failed to give Skenes any run support Monday, which spoiled an otherwise strong start by the rookie. Skenes continues to impress, as he now has 15 quality starts in his first 21 appearances. The 22-year-old has been fantastic as of late, allowing just four earned runs in his previous five starts combined. Skenes' ERA sits at a minuscule 2.07 with a 0.98 WHIP and 158 strikeouts through 126 innings.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Throws season-low 82 pitches
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Skenes did not factor into the decision in Wednesday's loss to the Cubs, allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits and one walk while striking out six in five innings.
After some shakiness early, Skenes retired seven straight batters to keep the Cubs off the scoreboard in his final three innings. Skenes departed with a 10-3 lead, but the Pirates' bullpen fell apart in the 14-10 loss, keeping Skenes' record at 8-2. The 22-year-old rookie has slowed down ever so slightly in August, allowing multiple earned runs in four of five starts this month, pitching to a 3.18 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 33:10 K:BB in 28.1 innings. Of greater concern is Skenes' pitch count -- he threw a season-low 82 pitches Wednesday after throwing 87 his last time out. Pirates general manager Ben Cherington stated last week that Skenes is on an unspecified innings limit, making Skenes' workload difficult to project over the final month of the season.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Dazzles again in eighth victory
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Skenes (8-2) earned the win over Cincinnati on Thursday, allowing two hits and one walk while striking out nine batters over six scoreless innings.
Skenes gave up a walk and a single in the first inning but came out of the frame unscathed on the scoreboard. He was absolutely dominant thereafter, yielding only one more baserunner, who was wiped out on a subsequent double play. Recent conversations in the Pittsburgh organization have centered on shortening Skenes' outings at some point moving forward, but it's not clear if that was a consideration Wednesday, as the rookie phenom was pulled after six frames despite a modest 87 pitches -- his fewest since his MLB debut May 11. Regardless, Skenes has been efficient and excellent enough to be an elite fantasy option even with a slightly reduced workload. He now has a 2.16 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 130:25 K:BB over 104 innings covering 17 starts.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Outings could be shortened
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The Pirates currently have no plans to shut Skenes down but are considering shortening his starts, Ken Rosenthal, Stephen J. Nesbitt and Zack Meisel of The Athletic report.
Skenes has thrown 125.1 innings this season between the majors and minors, which is just a few innings shy of how many he threw in 2023 between college and the minors. With the Pirates' playoff odds looking remote, it could make sense to tap the brakes a bit on Skenes' workload. When/if the team implements Skenes' innings restrictions and whether it would announce it beforehand isn't clear, creating some potential headaches for fantasy managers. While a full shutdown currently looks unlikely, the report notes that the Pirates have a possible incentive to shut Skenes down, as the pitcher would earn an additional year of service time if he finishes first or second in the National League Rookie of the Year voting, resulting in him reaching free agency a year earlier.
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Pirates' Paul Skenes: Season-high four walks in win
Rotowire
Skenes (7-2) picked up the win in Friday's 5-3 victory over the Mariners, giving up two runs on three hits and four walks over six innings. He struck out six.
Despite a season high in walks, the rookie right-hander still came away with his 12th quality start in 16 trips to the mound for Pittsburgh. Skenes' workload in his first full professional season may be catching up to him -- he's walked 11 batters and hit two more with pitches over his last four starts and 23.1 innings -- but the 22-year-old has still produced a solid 3.47 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 9.3 K/9 over that stretch. He lines up to make him next start at home next week against the Reds, and the Pirates could move to a six-man rotation over the final weeks of the year in order to provide young arms like Skenes and Jared Jones (lat) some extra rest.
