On April 5, Paul Skenes stood at the podium in front of assembled media in Pittsburgh for the first time this season. A variety of topics were discussed -- the state of the team, new pitches he added to the repertoire -- but one of the most pertinent at the time was that he was not pitching in the team’s first home series against the Yankees. He had started twice on the Pirates' opening road trip, so he was going to miss the Bombers.
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It’s the logistics of the sport, but it was fair to feel disappointed that Skenes was going to miss a chance to face Aaron Judge. The two are among the faces of the game and their sport. Before each Pirates game, an animated video plays on the scoreboard highlighting some of baseball's most marketable players. Thirty players are shown, but the four at the front are Judge, Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto and Skenes. In just one year, Skenes had established himself as one of the game’s best.
The baseball world missed out on a chance to see Skenes and Judge square off in April. We are on track to see it on Tuesday night.
Skenes was named the starting pitcher for the National League team for the Midsummer Classic on Sunday, becoming the first player in franchise history to be named an All-Star in each of their first two seasons and the first Bucs starting pitcher to get the nod in consecutive seasons since Bob Veale in 1965-66.
Judge is slated to bat third in Aaron Boone’s American League lineup, practically ensuring everyone of a first-inning matchup against Skenes at Truist Park.
“It’s a huge honor, so thank you Doc [NL manager Dave Roberts] for giving that to me,” Skenes said, sitting on stage with AL starter Tarik Skubal on Monday afternoon. “The All-Star Game is something that I was lucky enough to do last year. I don't imagine the scenario where I would turn down starting the All-Star Game. It's just such a huge honor to be on this stage and play with all these unbelievable players, some of them that I've watched for years. To be able to share a field with them is an awesome experience. It’s great to be back.”
When manager Don Kelly shared the news with the team, bottle of champagne in hand, well, it still wasn’t a surprise for Skenes, who hadn’t made plans for the All-Star break. It may not have quite been a Ruthian calling of his shot, but a matter-of-fact delivery of predicting that he would be an All-Star speaks volumes. Skenes had no fear of a sophomore slump or being outpitched by his peers. He knew he was going to Atlanta come July.
“I didn’t make plans over the All-Star break or anything,” Skenes said in Seattle. “So, yeah, I’m super stoked. It’s definitely an honor.”
“For me, it was easy in the sense of, obviously what Paul's done with performance should override and supersede anything, which he's done that,” said Roberts. “... For me to have Paul represent the National League and [as] the first and only Pirates pitcher to [start] in back-to-back All-Star Games -- unprecedented -- and it wouldn't surprise me if he does it next year as well. It's an honor to have him toe the rubber for the National League.”
The honor is certainly deserved. Skenes leads all National League starters in ERA with a 2.01 clip. He is also in the top six in innings pitched (121), strikeouts (131), games started (20) and quality starts (12). Outside of a very brief eyebrow raise early in the year that his fastball was only sitting in the upper-90s and his arm slot was being tracked at a lower angle, Skenes has been as dominant as that historic 2024 season when he won NL Rookie of the Year and finished third for the NL Cy Young.
“It's incredible,” shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa said. “In my opinion, he's the best pitcher in the league.”
“The thing about him that is not surprising, but the most fascinating, is he wants to be great, and he’s always looking for that next edge, the next thing to be the best,” Kelly said.
It’s a performance that should put Skenes on Cy Young watch throughout the second half of the season. If there is one thing that could hold him back, it’s his 4-7 record, something that is out of his control and has partially defined his season.
Coming into the year, Skenes spoke of the “legacy” of Pirates baseball and returning the franchise to greater things. It hasn’t happened so far. The Bucs have had a turbulent season, firing Derek Shelton as manager on May 8 and struggling mightily at the plate and on the road. Skenes has been credited with just one pitching win since the start of May, a 14-start stretch where he’s posted a 1.84 ERA.
The focus is still on winning, but much of the discussion for Skenes this year has been about controlling what he can control. That has yielded a new sinker, more efficient outings and numbers that are arguably better than last year.
“It’s been a learning experience all around,” Skenes said. “I think I’m kind of thinking of it as however many games under .500 right now, it’s only a lost season, it’s only a failure of a season if you make it that way.”
Jessica Camerato contributed reporting to this story.