Pirates Star Named 'Must-Watch' Pitcher In Spring Training
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All eyes will be on Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes as he enters his second season in the big leagues.
MLB.com's David Adler named 12 "must-watch pitchers" heading into Spring Training, and Skenes landed at No. 2. He only trailed the Los Angeles Dodgers' newly-signed right-handed starting pitcher Roki Sasaki, whom Adler compared to Skenes as a prospect both in terms of hype and the stuff they possess.
"Speaking of Skenes — hey, Skenes is back," Adler writes. "And everyone will want to see what he's got in store for baseball in Year 2. The Pirates' young ace stole the show last year with a dazzling rookie season. He enters 2025 as the top contender to seize the title of "best pitcher in the world," and he'll be a Cy Young favorite. Will Skenes be the best in the business this season? The road starts in Spring Training."
Imagine being a photographer and having to stand behind a Paul Skenes pitch 🤣 pic.twitter.com/bKIx9FAMMO
— MLB (@MLB) January 28, 2025
Skenes didn't make his big league debut until May 11 last season and still went on to have one of the greatest rookie seasons in MLB history en route to winning the National League Rookie of the Year and finishing third in the NL Cy Young vote. Skenes finishing third for the NL CY Young Award made him the fifth rookie to accomplish the feat and the first since Jose Fernandez in 2013. Pittsburgh's ace was also the first rookie pitcher to start an All-Star game since Hideo Nomo of the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1995.
The Pirates right-hander went 11-3 with a 1.96 ERA in 23 starts and set a Pirates franchise record for a rookie with 170 strikeouts over 133 innings pitched. Pittsburgh's ace was also the first pitcher in MLB history to have an ERA below 2.20, over 150 strikeouts in their first 21 games and the second pitcher since 1913 to have an ERA below 2.00 through their first 22 appearances.
While Spring Training won't tell the whole story, how Skenes performs as he prepares will give some insight into what could be in store for the 2025 season. If the Pirates star deals in Spring Training, Skenes could be due for an even better season as an encore to his historic rookie year
