Former LSU Baseball Star Paul Skenes Heavy Favorite To Win NL Rookie of the Year

Skenes continues dismantling opponents in his rookie campaign, frontrunner to take home some hardware.

Jun 23, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes (30) reacts after pitching the seventh inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports / Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Former LSU All-American pitcher Paul Skenes made his MLB Debut for the Pittsburgh Pirates in May and hasn't looked back.

In the midst of a historic rookie campaign, Skenes is living up to the hype. In fact, he's exceeding expectations.

Entering Friday night, the 22-year-old had a 2.06 ERA through nine MLB starts, allowing three runs or less in each of them. The only showing in which he allowed three earned runs was in his MLB debut.

Then, he shined again on Friday.

The stellar start marked Skenes' 10th major league start, and the ninth in which he recorded at least seven strikeouts. The showing set the Major League record for the most strikeouts in a player’s first 10 games to start a career.

Now, he's the frontrunner to win the 2024 National League Rookie of the Year.

Paul Skenes through first 10 career MLB starts:
5-0 W/L
2.12 ERA
59.1 IP
78 Ks
1.01 WHIP pic.twitter.com/saNylC6A3h

— MLB (@MLB) July 6, 2024

“There's a different atmosphere in the ballpark when he pitches,” said Pittsburgh Pirates managet Derek Shelton before Friday's game. “... I do think there's a different buzz in our ballpark, and I think our players enjoy that."

According to MLB.com, here are a few accomplishments for Skenes through 10 starts:

• Skenes and Masahiro Tanaka are the only pitchers to ever strike out at least 70 hitters while issuing 12 or fewer walks in their first 10 starts. Tanaka had 79 strikeouts to 10 walks, while Skenes has 78 punchouts to 12 walks.
• Skenes' 78 strikeouts through his first 10 starts ranks eighth among pitchers since 1901. The only pitchers in the 21st century to eclipse him are Tanaka and Stephen Strasburg with 79. Of all of those pitchers, Skenes’ 14 runs allowed is the fewest.

• Skenes has recorded seven or more strikeouts in nine of his 10 career outings, setting the Major League record for most within a player’s first 10 career games.
• Skenes has thrown 74 pitches at 100+ mph -- more than twice as many as the next closest starting pitcher (José Soriano of the Angels with 36).

“He’s consistent,” Bryan Reynolds said. “Just shows up, does his thing and doesn’t get rattled. He just competes. His stuff plays, obviously. He’s special.”

Currently, Skenes is the odds on favorite to win the NL MVP at -300 odds, according to DraftKings.

San Diego Padres rookie outfielder Jackson Merrill sits with the second best odds to win the award at +360.

More on Skenes and his time with the LSU Tigers:

Skenes, the No. 1 overall selection by the Pirates in last summer’s MLB Draft, is the 84th Major Leaguer in the illustrious history of LSU Baseball. The 21-year-old Skenes will arrive in Pittsburgh after dominating Triple-A this season, allowing three earned runs in 27.1 innings and striking out 45 batters.

The Lake Forest, Calif., native, led LSU to the 2023 College World Series title and was presented with the Dick Howser Trophy as the best player in NCAA Division I.

Skenes, who was also the 2023 D1 Baseball National Player of the Year and the SEC Pitcher of the Year, compiled a 13-2 record and a 1.69 ERA in 122.2 innings with 20 walks and an SEC-record 209 strikeouts. He finished No. 1 in the nation in strikeouts (209), strikeouts per nine innings (15.33) and WHIP (0.75).

He finished No. 2 in the nation in ERA (1.69), No. 3 in strikeout-to-walk ratio (10.45), and No. 5 in hits allowed per nine innings (5.28). He was voted the Most Outstanding Player of the College World Series, as he was 1-0 in two starts with a 1.15 ERA in 15.2 innings, allowing two runs on seven hits with two walks and 21 strikeouts.

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