This story was excerpted from Alex Stumpf’s Pirates Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
When Paul Skenes first came to Pittsburgh after being drafted in July of 2023, one of his first stops was to nearby Lawrenceville and the Roberto Clemente Museum. It was important to him to fully know the history of The Great One, and whenever family comes to Pittsburgh for a visit, a trip to the museum is usually on the docket.
“It’s Roberto Clemente. If you’re a baseball fan, you know who he is,” Skenes said. “That’s the legacy in Pittsburgh. We’re trying to fill his shoes.”
Of course that legacy is two-fold. One is of an elite baseball player, and Skenes has certainly established himself in that regard. The other, and greater half, of Clemente’s legacy is the humanitarian work and sacrifices he made trying to help others. It’s the inspiration for one of the game’s highest honors, the Roberto Clemente Award.
This year, Skenes is the Pirates’ nominee for the award, due in large part for his work with veterans and first responders. He entered the year with a goal to raise $100,000 for the Gary Sinise Foundation, pledging to donate $100 per strikeout. Between his contributions and people donating alongside him for his 209 strikeouts, over $150,000 was raised.
“Strikeouts are good, but when it’s greater than yourself, it’s something else to shoot for,” Skenes said.
Some of those proceeds were used Thursday when the Gary Sinise Foundation and Grainger presented more than $100,000 in new equipment grants to four Pittsburgh fire departments. Skenes visited the Monroeville company that day to sign autographs, take photos and help serve a meal to the first responders.
Some of Skenes’ acts aren’t as well publicized. He donates tickets to every home game to local veterans. In May, he volunteered to refresh the outdoor space of the Friends of Fisher House, a home for families whose loved ones are being treated at Pittsburgh’s Veteran’s Hospital. In June, he and Pirate Charities hosted a clinic for over 100 veterans and active-service personnel.
When he was about three years old, Skenes thought he was going to be a fire fighter. He went to the Air Force Academy thinking he was going to serve. When he chose baseball instead, he followed his Air Force baseball coach Mike Kazlausky’s advice that there are other ways to give back. He’s tried to follow through on that.
“The military, it’s a thankless job,” Skenes said. “Military and first responders, you’re not doing it for recognition. I’m just trying to give them some recognition and a good time because they’ve earned it a thousand times over.”
It’s fitting charity work for a Clemente Award nomination since Clemente was a U.S. Marine Corps Reserve infantryman, and Skenes' contributions have not only been noticed locally by first responders, but also by the Clemente family.
“It is amazing to me that, at such a young age, he has accomplished so much,” Roberto Clemente Jr. said on Monday during the Pirates’ Day of Service, where he and Skenes helped distribute groceries for veterans. “It reminds me of dad in some ways. Dad accomplished so much in 38 years. He is on a fast track. I’m hoping he stays healthy because he’s a future Hall of Famer, no doubt, but he’s what it’s all about being a Clemente Award winner. What he does outside the field is amazing. He started young, and he’s going to continue to do great things. We’re very proud of him to be the nominee.”
“He should be on our list of Clemente Award recipients, for sure,” Luis Clemente said. “I’m not supposed to be biased, but it’s so hard.”
Skenes will be in the limelight plenty this award season since he’s the front runner for the NL Cy Young, but a Clemente Award would probably be even more special.
“I think outside of winning a World Series, that would probably be the coolest accolade that I could win. Probably the most meaningful thing that I could win,” Skenes said. “Because it’s not just a baseball thing. I obviously play baseball. I play for the Pirates. But I’m not Paul Skenes the Pirate. I’m Paul Skenes the man who also plays for the Pittsburgh Pirates. That’s kind of the way I see it.
“Just to be nominated for the award is a tremendous honor. To win the award would be unbelievable. I think it would be greater than any other baseball award that there is, just because it’s not about the baseball player. It’s about the human.”