Can Pirates' Paul Skenes continue to put Opening Day blowup in past?
Pittsburgh's star starting pitcher continues to rebound, targeting a second NL Cy Young award.
Can Pirates' Paul Skenes continue to put Opening Day blowup in past? originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
Pittsburgh Pirates starter Paul Skenes escaped. Facing a bases-loaded, zero-outs situation in the second inning against the Tampa Bay Rays ' clutch offense, Skenes on Saturday continued to distance himself from his disastrous Opening Day start. Displaying his 2025 NL Cy Young award-winning composure, Skenes protected his early 2-0 advantage by inducing Hunter Feduccia to ground into a fielder's choice, with Richie Palacios getting called out via runner's interference.
Then he got Taylor Walls to strike out looking on a full-count, 98-mph four-seam fastball, painting the bottom of the strike zone. The Rays' shortstop challenged, but the call was upheld. One of MLB's hottest hitters, Chandler Simpson, committed to swinging at all three splitters he was offered.
The . 338 hitter's groundout ended the inning. The Rays haven't often let pitchers off the hook this season with runners on third base and fewer than two outs.