In his second MLB season, Skenes earns second career All-Star nod

SEATTLE -- When it comes to Paul Skenes and the meteoric start to his Major League career, it seems that even the loftiest accolades in the game have become reasonable expectations.

Within the span of two years, the 6-foot-6, 260-pound right-hander was named Most Outstanding Player as his LSU Tigers won the College World Series, was picked by the Pirates first overall in the 2023 Draft, started the 2024 All-Star Game for the National League, was named the 2024 NL Rookie of the Year and started for Pittsburgh on Opening Day this year.

So when the news arrived on Sunday that Skenes was named the Pirates’ lone selection to the upcoming All-Star Game presented by Mastercard, which will be played at Truist Park in Atlanta on July 15, it was hardly surprising. The only question remaining is if he’ll be the NL starter for the second consecutive Midsummer Classic.

“I’m looking forward to it,” Skenes said. “It's definitely an honor.”

The decision on who starts the game for the Senior Circuit will be up to NL All-Star manager Dave Roberts, of course, but it’s hard to argue with Skenes’ resume for the current campaign.

Skenes only added to his gaudy 2025 statistics in another sterling outing in Pittsburgh’s 1-0 loss to the Mariners on Sunday afternoon at T-Mobile Park.

He pitched five scoreless innings, striking out 10 Mariners while giving up five hits and not walking a batter. He lowered his season ERA to 1.94, lowest among qualified NL starters. He now has 125 strikeouts against 30 walks in 116 innings in 2025, and his season WHIP is 0.92.

Skenes was statistically dominant on Sunday, but he did get some help from his teammates to keep putting up zeroes.

In the first inning, J.P. Crawford hit the first pitch of the game for a single, and Skenes hit Cal Raleigh with a pitch to put runners on first and second with one out. Jorge Polanco followed with a crisp line-drive single to center, but Oneil Cruz fielded the ball and uncorked a laser of a throw that skipped once before landing perfectly in the glove of catcher Henry Davis as Crawford arrived at the plate.

Crawford did not slide and Davis tagged his belt. The play was confirmed by replay and Davis was ruled to have not blocked the plate, so the Mariners lost a challenge. Randy Arozarena then flied out to end the threat.

“I had the best seat in the house,” Skenes said of the Cruz play. “That was unbelievable. Henry played it perfectly, too. It feels lucky, but I know that Henry and Oneil kind of created luck for me there.”

Skenes was largely on cruise control after that. The Mariners didn’t score until the sixth, when Arozarena took reliever Carmen Mlodzinski deep for a solo homer to left field.

The Pirates couldn’t muster any sustained rallies and were shut out for the third consecutive game. Coming off their own previous series shutting out St. Louis in all three games, they have played six straight shutouts, which ties them with four other teams (1953 Senators, 1949 White Sox, 1919 Cubs and 1903 Pirates) for the longest such streak in history. They will try to regroup in Kansas City on Monday.

“It’s frustrating,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “But [it’s] part of baseball and finding a way to come back tomorrow.”

But Skenes keeps steaming along, and he’ll likely get one more start before suiting up with an All-Star uniform in Atlanta.

After Sunday’s stint, he has a 1.95 career ERA since making his Major League debut on May 11, 2024, vs. the Cubs, which is the lowest mark in MLB (minimum 40 starts). It is also the lowest by any Major League pitcher with at least 40 starts during the Live Ball Era (since 1920).

“It's incredible,” Pirates shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa said. “In my opinion, he's the best pitcher in the league.”

Last year, Skenes reveled in his first All-Star experience at Globe Life Field in Arlington, which occurred a mere 66 days after his big league debut. He mentioned being accepted and welcomed by the hardball heavyweights who surrounded him on the field and in the NL clubhouse.

Once he was in the game, Skenes, who was the fifth rookie to start an All-Star Game, got Steven Kwan, Gunnar Henderson and Aaron Judge out in a hitless first inning, topping out at 100.1 mph. His only hiccup was a seven-pitch walk to Juan Soto.

This year, Skenes will go in as a sophomore who knows he belongs.

“It’s the one time of year that I'm going to be able to share a clubhouse with all those guys,” Skenes said. “So we'll have two days together and I’ll try to learn as much as possible.”