Pirates Announce Next Paul Skenes Start
In this story:
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Pirates right-handed starting pitcher Paul Skenes takes the mound at home, where he'll face a top-tier foe.
Skenes will start the series finale vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers at PNC Park on Sept. 4, battling left-handed starting pitcher Blake Snell. First pitch is set for 6:40 p.m.
It is his fourth battle with the Dodgers in his career, pitching against them twice in 2024, his rookie season.
Skenes faced them at PNC Park on June 5, 2024, giving up six hits, two home runs and three earned runs over five innings, but posting eight strikeouts over 93 pitches in the 10-6 win for the Pirates.
His first meeting vs. the Dodgers in Los Angeles came two months later on Aug. 10, where he gave up four earned runs over six innings, while posting eight strikeouts.
This is his second battle with the Dodgers in 2025, as he faced them in the series opener at Dodgers Stadium on April 25.
He had one of his best outings of the season, throwing a season-high 108 pitches over 6.1 innings, giving up five hits, no walks nor runs and posting nine strikeouts in the 3-0 win.
Skenes last faced off against the Boston Red Sox in the series opener at Fenway Park on Aug. 29 and gave up seven hits, two runs and a solo home run over six innings pitched, but still posted seven strikeouts over 95 pitches.
He pitched well enough that the Pirates offense came through and gave him a 4-2 victory for his ninth win of the season.
Skenes is now 9-9 on the season and back to .500 for the first time since April, marking four months at or below .500.
He also has a 2.05 ERA over 28 starts in 2025, with 187 strikeouts to 38 walks, a .198 opposing batting average and a 0.95 WHIP, plus a 10.08 K/9, a 4.92 K/BB and a 2.05 BB/9.
Skenes ranks amongst the best pitchers in baseball, with the lowest ERA, tied for the fourth most strikeouts, fifth lowest WHIP, fifth most innings pitched and tied for the sixth lowest opposing batting average, as well as the eighth best K/BB and both the 11th best BB/9 and K/9.
Right-handed pitcher Carmen Mlodzinski makes his second start for the Pirates in the series opener vs. the Dodgers on Sept. 2. He will battle left-handed pitcher Clayton Kershaw, with first pitch set for 6:40 p.m.
He started vs. the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium on Aug. 27, where he threw three innings, gave up three hits, three walks and an earned run, while posting four strikeouts over 46 pitches.
Rookie right-handed pitcher Bubba Chandler came in relief after Mlodzinski and threw four scoreless innings securing the 2-1 win for the Pirates.
He also started vs. the Chicago Cubs in the series finale at Wrigley Field on Aug. 17, giving up a hit and a run over four innings and striking out three batters over 44 pitches.
Mlodzinski made nine starts for the Pirates, finishing with a 1-4 record, a 5.67 ERA over 39.2 innings pitched, 28 strikeouts to 12 walks and an opposing batting average of .311, before they sent him down to Triple-A Indianapolis on May 21.
He returned to the Pirates on June 11 and came back as a relief pitcher, posting a 2.43 ERA over 37.1 innings pitched and 39 strikeouts to eight walks in 15 appearances.
This marks his 12th start for the Pirates this season and he will look to take on a chunk of innings towards the end of this campaign.
Mlodzinski has a 3-7 record over 27 appearances, a 3.86 ERA over 84.0 innings pitched, 74 strikeouts to 23 walks, a .267 opposing batting average and a 1.32 WHIP.
Rookie right-handed pitcher Braxton Ashcraft starts for the Pirates in the second game of the series on Sept. 3. He will battle reigning NL MVP Shohei Ohtani, who is pitching again in 2025.
He started vs. the Cardinals in the series finale on Aug. 28 and threw a career-high 5.2 innings and 73 pitches, while giving up four hits, one walk and one earned run and striking out five batters in the no-decision.
This marks the fifth straight start for Ashcraft, who made 16 of his first 17 appearances in 2025 out of the bullpen, before earning this recent starting role. Ashcraft also started 69 of the 71 contests he pitched in during his long time in the minor leagues.
He has done well as a starting pitcher, with a 1.42 ERA over 19.0 innings in his last four starts and 20 strikeouts to three walks.
Ashcraft also has a 1.23 ERA over his five MLB starts, as he made his first one in the series opener vs. the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field on June 23, which is the second lowest ERA for a Pirates rookie starting pitcher in five starts with 20 innings pitched since Zack Duke, who had a 0.87 ERA in 2006.
He has a 4-2 record over 21 appearances for the Pirates in 2025, with a 2.58 ERA over 52.1 innings pitched, 48 strikeotus to 15 walks, a .230 opposing batting average and a 1.15 WHIP.
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.