Paul Skenes Sees Pirates All-Star Starting Rotation in Near Future
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PHILADELPHIA — Paul Skenes is an All-Star once again, but he isn't the only Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher that earned the honor this season.
Skenes and fellow right-handed starter Braxton Ashcraft both earned All-Star nods and are representing the Pirates for the National League at the 2026 All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park.
The 2025 NL Cy Young Award winner earned his All-Star nod outright, while Ashcraft came on as a replacement for Skenes, marking first time that two Pirates pitchers have been in the All-Star Game since 2023 (Mitch Keller, David Bednar)
Both won't feature for the NL, as they pitched on July 12 and July 11, respectively, but the moment is still a big deal for both of them, as it also the first time two Pirates starting pitchers have made the All-Star team since 2015 with A.J. Burnett and Gerrit Cole doing so, which bodes well for the season ahead.
Skenes Confident in Pirates Starting Rotation
The Pirates rotation features Skenes, Ashcraft, Keller and also Bubba Chandler and Jared Jones.
It's a promising starting pitching group, with one of the best pitchers in baseball in Skenes, a burgeoning All-Star in Ashcraft, a veteran in Keller, a rising rookie in Chandler and Jones back from a serious elbow injury.
Skenes came up with the younger pitchers in Ashcraft, Chandler and Jones and he sees the latter two them joining them at the All-Star Game in the near future.
“Yeah it’s not surprising," Skenes said about Ashcraft. "Just seeing how he works and goes about his business, how he thinks about the game. Super deserving. I mean he’s pitched, he’s been an All-Star all year.
“It’s cool because he was one of the first guys I met when I got into Pro ball. I’m in Altoona, Pennsylvania and I was shut down and I was kind of just hanging out and he was one of the first guys I met at that time. I was on the same team as Bubba [Chandler] and now we’re on the same team, having success in the major leagues.
“It’s special. It’s special to see him do it. It’s special to do it with him and it’s gonna continue. I think Bubba will be an All-Star at some point, Jared [Jones] will be an All-Star at some point. So to be able to share the experience with them is cool.”
Can Pirates Rotation Reach Skenes' Goals?
The Pirates surely have the talent to all become All-Stars, but they'll need better results as the years go on.
Skenes hasn't been as dominant as he was his first two seasons, but still has a 1.02 WHIP and a .216 batting average allowed, along with 130 strikeouts, a 10.55 K/9, 1.99 BB/9 and a 5.42 K/BB, all amongst the top 5-15 marks in baseball this season.
Ashcraft has excelled in his first season in the starting rotation, with a 9-3 record in 19 starts, a 3.43 ERA over 113.1 innings pitched, 128 strikeouts to 27 walks, a .235 BAA and a 1.11 WHIP, plus a 10.16 K/9, a 2.14 BB/9 and a 4.74 K/BB.
He's posted 10 quality starts, while also ranking high in the major leagues in most stats, making it even more impressive in just his first full season in the rotation.
The Pirates need more from Keller, who's struggled this season with a 5.14 ERA, the fourth-highest in baseball, and from Chandler, who's given up the most walks in baseball (55).
Jones is still on an innings restriction and pitches limit, but threw six perfect innings in his most recent start vs. the Atlanta Braves at PNC Park on July 8, showing him getting back to his best form that he had as a rookie in 2024.
It won't come as an easy feat, but all five Pirates starting pitchers have the potential to become All-Stars, they just have to put it together.
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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.