Don Kelly Addresses Pirates Controversial Paul Skenes Decision
In this story:
PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates took another disappointing defeat and Paul Skenes had a far shorter outing than he usually does.
Skenes threw just 65 pitches in the 2-0 loss for the Pirates against the Marlins in the series opener at loanDepot Park on Aug. 11.
It marks the third-least pitches he's thrown this season and fifth-lowest in his career, lasting just five innings for Pittsburgh.
Only his 37 pitches thrown in the first inning of the Opening Day debacle against the New York Mets at Citi Field on March 26 and his 64 pitches over four innings against the Tampa Bay Rays at PNC Park on April 18, which a rain delay cut short, ended up shorter than this one.
It wasn't the worst outing from Skenes, but it's a bit worrisome that the Pirates ace couldn't go more than 65 pitches in a crucial game.
Don Kelly Talks Pulling Skenes Early
Pirates manager Don Kelly made the move after the fifth inning, bringing in right-handed relief pitcher Yohan Ramírez for the sixth inning.
Kelly making this move worked out well, as Ramírez threw three scoreless innings and posted five strikeouts, giving the Pirates a chance to win later on.
The Pirates skipper said that taking Skenes out wasn't injury-related, that he saw his ace throwing pitches with less velocity and it was time to make the change.
“Took it well," Kelly said on Skenes coming out via SportsNet Pittsburgh. "It’s just one of those things that the ball, I thought, was running armside. Velo' down, leaked out over and Reynolds brought the home run back. Just felt like it was the right time.”
How Did Skenes Pitch vs. the Marlins?
The final pitching line for Skenes wasn't too bad, just five hits, a walk, two runs, an earned run and four strikeouts over those five innings.
Skenes did struggle with hard-hit contact, as the Marlins had eight hard hits off of 15 batted ball events, including five hard hits on seven batted ball events on his four-seam fastball.
His four-seam fastball saw a big drop in velocity, averaging 95.7 mph, 1.2 mph down from his yearly average of 96.9 mph and his fastest fastball coming in at 96.5 mph.
Skenes gave up a solo home run to Marlins right fielder Esteury Ruiz in the third inning and almost gave up two other home runs too.
Marlins first baseman Griffin Conine hit a fastball off of Skenes 104.6 mph and 400 feet to center field to Pirates center fielder Jake Mangum for a fly out in the first inning, which would've been a home run in six MLB ball parks.
He also almost allowed a two-run home in the fifth inning to Conine, 103.1 mph off the bat and 376 feet, but Pirates left fielder Bryan Reynolds robbed him at the wall for the final out.
Skenes Understanding of Getting Pulled
The Pirates ace spoke postgame about getting taken out and leaving the game as early as he did.
Skenes was happy with how he attacked hitters, but understood why Kelly took him out at just 65 pitches.
“I mean, not really," Skenes said to SportsNet Pittsburgh. "If I were the manager, I’d probably do it too. Yeah, just, he walked me through everything and it all made sense. Yeah, wish I could’ve gone more. It is what it is.”
Skenes noted that while he hasn't had a lot of long outings recently, in terms of innings pitched, he's still dealing with high volume, throwing less than 100 pitches in just one other start post All-Star break.
He also noted that he's not the kind of pitcher that shows his frustration after getting taken out of the game and also credits Kelly with being honest with him whenever he does make a pitching change.
“You see guys yelling at the manager at a mound visit, I’ve never done that," Skenes said. "They’re probably will be a point in my career when I do do that, but I’m always straight with Donny and he’s always straight with me. He’s the manager. I don’t ever really argue with it. Like I said, I understand why that was it.”
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.