Paul Skenes strikes out eight in win vs. Guardians

Skenes gave up six hits, walked two and struck out 11. He fell to 9-9 with the loss. Skenes kept the Cubs off the scoreboard for the first four innings before running into trouble. After getting the first out of the fifth inning, four consecutive Cubs hits led to three runs. In the sixth inning, Skenes again retired the first batter before allowing two baserunners to reach. At that point, he was removed. Both runners came around to score as the Cubs would add five runs to extend their lead to 8-0. Skenes saw his ERA bump up to 3.65. He’s lined up to face the Reds on the road next Thursday.

That means the team will push Mitch Keller to next week. It makes sense to use Jones, who is clearly on a pitch count, in the first start after the break because it means the bullpen will be fresh.

The star right-hander racked up seven strikeouts on the afternoon while allowing only one base on balls. The Pirates provided him with 14 early runs of support, so all Skenes had to do was keep the train on the tracks in this one. The only damage against him came on an RBI double by Jackson Chourio and a fielder’s choice by Gary Sanchez in the fourth inning. Skenes got nine whiffs on 82 pitches on the day, posting a CSW of 28 percent. He finishes the first half of the season with an 8-8 record, 3.57 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and a 130/24 K/BB ratio across 108 1/3 innings in his first 20 starts.

Skenes was hardly dominant in striking out four and giving up eight hits, but very importantly, his stuff rebounded some tonight. He averaged 97.1 mph with his fastball. That 0.8 mph better than his season low from an ugly start against the Phillies last week, and his first time over 97 since May 28. His fastball spin rate was also back up to 2,150 rpm. He exceeded that mark in each of his first 14 starts, but he was below it his last four times out, bottoming out at 1,988 last week. So, that’s encouraging. The Skenes of 2025 probably isn’t walking through that door Sunday against the Brewers, but the bleeding seems to have stopped. He’s 7-8 with a 3.58 ERA.

It’s a colossal bummer for baseball fans hoping to see Misiorowski hurling triple-digit heaters during next week’s Midsummer Classic, but this was always the expected outcome here. Skenes, Misorowski and Meyer are all taking the ball for their respective club’s first-half finales on Sunday, which means there was zero chance they would be able to pitch in the All-Star Game just three days later. Luzardo, Ashcraft and O’Brien are headed to the game for the first time in their respective careers. It’s likely going to be Shohei Ohtani taking the ball to start for the National League based on how things are lining up from a schedule standpoint.

Skenes’ command was off tonight, and his fastball velocity was down 0.7 mph from his season average. Still, he probably could have gotten through four allowing one run with just a little help. In the second, he should have had Gabriel Rincones Jr. struck out on what was called ball three, but the Pirates were afraid to challenge the pitch after already burning one. He went on to walk, and then, with the bases loaded, Justin Crawford hit a little chopper to third that Nick Gonzales got no outs on after his throw home hit Alec Bohm. Trea Turner went on to homer in a five-run inning. In the fourth, the Phillies hit Skenes very hard, but Bryce Harper’s two-run double could have been caught if the Pirates didn’t have an infielder in Tyler Callahan playing left. No pitcher in the league has been let down more by his defense this year than Skenes. It’s not wholly responsible for his decline, but it’s a big part of it. He’ll take a 3.63 ERA into his next start against the Braves.

After getting through the first inning without any issue, Skenes surrendered four-straight hits to start the second inning, which resulted in two runs coming across to score, and then walked Matt McLain to load the bases with no outs. The Reds would then hit back-to-back sacrifice flies to drive in two more runs and push their lead to 4-1, driving Skenes’ pitch total up to 56 by the end of the second inning. He would power through from there, keeping the Reds off the board while getting through five innings of work, but the rough inning was enough to give Skenes his worst start since May. He’ll look to bounce back in his next start, which is scheduled for Wednesday against the Phillies.

Skenes gave up four hits, walked two and struck out eight. The 24-year-old right-hander fell to 6-7 with the loss. Skenes allowed a lead-off inside-the-park home run to Jake McCarthy. The other Rockies run came on an RBI single by TJ Rumfield in the third inning. Skenes was otherwise excellent on a day where the Pirates offense could only push across one run. His ERA is 2.86. Skenes is lined up to face the Reds at home next weekend.

Skenes racked up 10 strikeouts on the day while allowing only one base on balls. All of the damage done against him came on a pair of solo home runs in the second inning by Heriberto Hernandez and Joe Mack. Aside from that, Skenes was brilliant, he just didn’t get the necessary run support. The 24-year-old hurler got a whopping 23 swings and misses on 104 pitches in the game — 12 on his fastball — while posting an elite CSW of 35 percent. Now 6-6 on the season, he’ll bring a stellar 2.85 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and a 99/16 K/BB ratio (82 innings) into Saturday’s matchup against the Rockies in Colorado.

Skenes generated 19 swinging strikes and needed 103 pitches (62 strikes) to work through six innings against Los Angeles’ star-studded lineup. It was his third straight start where he eclipsed 100 pitches. Max Muncy proved to be the primary thorn in his side, accounting for three of the six hits he allowed, including a game-tying single to shallow right with two outs in the sixth. The 24-year-old fantasy ace holds a stellar 2.84 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 89/15 K/BB ratio across 76 innings through 14 starts. He’ll close out a two-start week with a favorable home matchup against the Marlins on Sunday.