Pirates' Paul Skenes Leads USA to Win Over Dominican Republic
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PITTSBURGH — Paul Skenes had one of the toughest assignments he'll have in his career in his last World Baseball Classic start.
Skenes got the start for Team USA and faced off against Team Dominican Republic, taking on a great lineup in the semifinals of the WBC at loanDepot Park, home of the Miami Marlins, on March 15.
He had a few issues at times, including giving up his first home run of the spring, but only gave up one run over 4.1 innings and played a big role in Team USA getting a close, 2-1 victory and moving on to the Gold Medal game.
Skenes may not get a chance to pitch again in the WBC, but he put his country in the best chance to win the tournament for the first time since 2017.
How Skenes Dealt with Dominican Republic Lineup
Skenes took on an incredible lineup from Team Dominican Republic, one that had seven 2025 All-Stars and a Silver Slugger Award winner too.
This included the likes of the San Diego Padres duo of third baseman Manny Machado and right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr., designated hitter Junior Caminero (Tampa Bay Rays), first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Toronto Blue Jays), second baseman Ketel Marte and Sliver Slugger shortstop Geraldo Perdomo of the Arizona Diamondbacks, plus outfielders in Juan Soto (New York Mets) and Julio Rodríguez (Seattle Mariners).
Skenes' plan coming into the game was the same, focusing on executing the pitches he needed and not worrying about who he faced.
While he treated this like any other game, even Skenes couldn't deny the greatness of the Dominican hitters he battled with.
"Yeah going in, that's all you can think about, just executing," Skenes said to MLB Network. "I came out of the game and [Tarik] Skubal was like, 'That's the best lineup you're every going to pitch against.' Honestly yeah...going out and executing, that's all you can do, all you can focus on."
Skenes also took time to thank his defense, who he got two important plays that helped him out greatly in his outing, with his six hits a high-mark for him over just 4.1 innings pitched.
Second baseman Brice Turang (Milwaukee Brewers) made a diving stop to end the first inning and then right fielder Aaron Judge (New York Yankees) threw out Tatis at third base to end the third inning, which he did for Skenes in his past start for Team Mexico.
“Just executing. It wasn’t the prettiest or cleanest game I’ve ever pitched, but we saw it last game too, the great defense behind," Skenes said to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. "Judge makes that throw, just makes it really easy to compete. Brice in the first inning. They did a really good job.”
Skenes Discusses Home Run He Allowed
Skenes gave up a surprising home run vs. Team Dominican Republic, one he was impressed with himself.
He left a sweeper up and Caminero smashed it 105.6 mph off the bat and 401 feet to left field to give Team Dominican Republic a 1-0 lead on the solo home run.
It wasn't necessarily a terrible pitch from Skenes, as the pitch was a little above the strike zone and away from Caminero, but the Dominican still sent it out for a homer.
“That was one of the best pieces of hitting I’ve ever seen," Skenes said to MLB Network. "In terms of me on the mound, pitching, that’s probably the best piece of hitting."
Praising the Bullpen and Not Wanting WBC to End
Skenes usually isn't in need of bullpen help in his starts, but he got exactly that from his Team USA relievers.
Right-handed pitcher Tyler Rogers (Blue Jays) came in the fifth inning, as Skenes had allowed two singles with just one out, but got Soto to hit into a double play and ended that scoring opportunity.
Team USA also got a scoreless sixth inning from right-handed pitcher Griffin Jax (Rays), who also pitched for Air Force like Skenes.
Former Pirates closer David Bednar (Yankees) had two runners in scoring position in the seventh inning and worked back to get back-to-back strikeouts to end the inning.
Right-handed pitchers in Garrett Whitlock (Boston Red Sox) threw a scoreless eighth inning and then Mason Miller (Padres) shut it down in the ninth inning for the save and the win.
Skenes was incredibly impressed with the bullpen and that they've done well all WBC, making it a fun pitching staff to be a part of.
‘Yeah I mean, we got a bunch of dogs out there that just got outs," Skenes said in his press conference. "It’s been great. It’s been an honor to watch them, to share a clubhouse with them and just go down the list. It makes it a lot easier to be a starting pitcher when you can get to the fifth inning and that’s the nature of this tournament, the innings are limited for starting pitchers and you can hand the ball off that the bullpen’s gonna get the job done and they’ve done a great job.”
Team USA will wait to see who they face in the final game on March 17 at loanDepot Park, either Team Venezuela or Team Italy, who beat them in the last game of Pool Play.
Skenes and his Team USA teammates understand that they still have a big task at hand, but Skenes is just glad that he gets to be with them one more time.
“It’s been unbelievable," Skenes said to MLB Network. "Just sharing a clubhouse with all these guys for two weeks. Obviously I want to go out there and win and I want to win the tournament, but coming in it’s like, I don’t want this to be the last game because I want to be around these guys a little bit longer. So I’m super glad that this isn’t the last game and that we get to spend a couple more days together because it’s just an unbelievable group of guys.”
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.