Phillies Have Cracked the Code To Beat Pirates Star Paul Skenes

The Philadelphia Phillies have the number of the defending NL Cy Young Award winner.

Jul 1, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes (30) throws a pitch during the second inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

One of the biggest challenges the Philadelphia Phillies have faced during the 2026 MLB regular season has been inconsistency in their lineup.

Scoring runs has been a challenge at times during the year. The Phillies haven’t been great against left-handed pitching, with their right-handed batters failing to take advantage of the platoon advantage consistently.

Losing right fielder Adolis Garcia, the most productive right-handed batter against southpaws, certainly hasn’t helped. But when it comes to facing stars such as Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Philadelphia answers the call.

When most teams see Skenes on their schedule, they know they are in for a long day. The reigning National League Cy Young Award winner has mowed down opponent after opponent as an intimidating force on the mound.

Phillies have dominated Paul Skenes in 2026

Jun 26, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes (30) delivers a pitch against the Cincinnati Reds during the first inning at PNC Park. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

However, when it comes to facing the Phillies, he hasn’t had an answer. Philadelphia has crushed Skenes in both of their matchups this season, looking like the only team that has figured him out.

As shared by Tim Kelly on X, Skenes has thrown nine innings against the Phillies thus far this season. He has a 12.00 ERA, giving up 13 total runs, 12 of which were earned. A .300/.378/.600 slash line has been produced against him. The most impressive part of the Philadelphia offensive output against him is the home runs.

Skenes has done a wonderful job of limiting hard hits and damage throughout his career. The Phillies haven’t been fazed by that, hitting three home runs against him; he has allowed a career-high-tying 11 already in 2026.

Against everyone else, Skenes has looked more like the dominant pitcher everyone has become accustomed to seeing on the mound. In 88 innings against everyone else in 2026, he has a stellar 2.76 ERA and only eight home runs allowed.

Paul Skenes vs. Phillies in 2026: 12.00 ERA over nine innings

Paul Skenes vs. everyone else in 2026: 2.76 ERA over 88 innings

— Tim Kelly (@TimKellySports) July 2, 2026

Having that kind of success against a pitcher as dominant as Skenes is certainly confidence-boosting for the franchise. They know they can handle and produce against one of the best pitchers in baseball.

It is also encouraging because Skenes is someone Philadelphia could run into during the postseason. Pittsburgh is one of the teams battling it out for a playoff spot in the NL, and the Phillies could certainly win the NL East. A matchup in October is certainly within the realm of possibility.

If the two Pennsylvania teams meet again down the road, Philadelphia will have plenty of confidence doing it again against one of the best pitchers in the world.

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