Player News
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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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Skenes (10-2) got the win Monday over the Marlins, giving up one run on six hits and one walk while striking out nine over six innings. Skenes was sharp yet again Monday, holding the Marlins to one run through six innings. Skenes recorded nine strikeouts and surpassed Cy Blanton in 1935 for the most strikeouts by a Pirates rookie in franchise history. Skenes now has 151 strikeouts this season, making him the fifth pitcher since 1920 with 150 or more strikeouts in his first 20 pitching appearances. The 22-year-old lowered his ERA to 2.10, and he now has 14 quality starts in his first 20 big-league appearances.
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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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General manager Ben Cherington acknowledged Sunday that there is a range of innings that the Pirates don't want Skenes to surpass this season, which could lead to the right-hander's starts becoming more abbreviated over the final month of the campaign, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports. Cherington didn't offer up a firm number in terms of a potential innings limit for Skenes, but a workload-management plan already looks to be in place for the phenom rookie. As Stumpf notes, Skenes was lifted after six scoreless innings in his most recent outing Thursday against the Reds, despite having thrown just 87 pitches while exhibiting no signs of wearing down. The 87 pitches were Skenes' fewest in a start since his MLB debut back on May 11, and a workload around that level could become the norm for the 22-year-old down the stretch if the Pirates choose not to shut him down. Across his 17 starts in the majors, his seven starts at Triple-A Indianapolis and his two Grapefruit League appearances, Skenes has thrown 134.1 innings in 2024. He covered 129.1 innings in 2023 between his college season at LSU and his brief time in the minors upon getting selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the First-Year Player Draft.
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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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Stats
| Year | Team | APP | GS | INN | W | L | S | K | BBI | HA | ERA | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | PIT | 21 | 21 | 126.0 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 158 | 32 | 92 | 2.07 | 0.98 |
Next Matchup
| Situation | Record | ERA | INN | ER | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| vs CINCINNATI | 2 | 0.75 | 12.0 | 1 | 16 |
| @ GREAT AMERICAN BALL PARK | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last 7 Games
| DATE | Opp | W | L | S | INN | HA | ERA | BBI | K | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9/16 | @  |
- | 1 | - | 6.0 | 4 | 2.25 | 1 | 7 | 0.83 |
| 9/09 | vs  |
1 | - | - | 6.0 | 6 | 2.38 | 1 | 9 | 1.17 |
| 9/03 | @  |
1 | - | - | 5.0 | 4 | 2.57 | 4 | 6 | 1.60 |
| 8/28 | vs |
- | - | - | 5.0 | 5 | 3.13 | 1 | 6 | 1.20 |
| 8/22 | vs  |
1 | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 3.00 | 1 | 9 | 0.50 |
| 8/16 | vs  |
1 | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 4.50 | 4 | 6 | 1.17 |
| 8/10 | @  |
- | 1 | - | 6.0 | 6 | 6.00 | 1 | 8 | 1.17 |
Upcoming Games
| date | Opp | time | Scheduled Starter |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9/19 | @ |
7:15 PM | Erick Fedde |
| 9/20 | @ |
6:40 PM | Nick Martinez |
| 9/21 | @ |
1:10 PM | Rhett Lowder |
| 9/22 | @ |
1:10 PM | Not Announced Yet |
| 9/24 | vs  |
6:40 PM | Freddy Peralta |
| 9/25 | vs |
6:40 PM | Tobias Myers |
| 9/26 | vs |
12:35 PM | DL Hall |