Pittsburgh Pirates' Paul Skenes Baffles Again, Joins Another Historic Pitching Group

Paul Skenes gave up a run in the first inning on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Rays, but then settled in and continued the dominant and historic start to his career. With the effort, Skenes has now joined some of the best strikeout artists in baseball history.

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes (30) reacts after pitching the seventh inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at PNC Park on June 23. / Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The Pittsburgh Pirates lost to the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday afternoon by a score of 3-1 but you can't blame Pirates' starting pitcher Paul Skenes, who put together seven innings of one run ball.

The righty allowed a run in the top of the first but then buckled down, firing six scoreless innings after that. In total, he allowed just the one run on six hits. He walked one and struck out eight. Despite the no-decision, Skenes has a very impressive 2.14 ERA and he's joined an elite group in baseball history.

Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

most strikeouts in 1st 8 career app (since at least 1901):

1955 Herb Score: 77
1983 Jose DeLeon: 73
1998 Kerry Wood: 72
2010 Stephen Strasburg: 68
2014 Masahiro Tanaka: 66
1966-68 Nolan Ryan: 64
2024 Paul Skenes: 61

most strikeouts in 1st 8 career app (since at least 1901):

1955 Herb Score: 77
1983 Jose DeLeon: 73
1998 Kerry Wood: 72
2010 Stephen Strasburg: 68
2014 Masahiro Tanaka: 66
1966-68 Nolan Ryan: 64
2024 Paul Skenes: 61 https://t.co/VGvJEGnFoY

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) June 23, 2024

Skenes has struck out those 61 batters in 46.1 innings and has posted a 4-0 record. He's also got a 0.99 WHIP, showing how good his control is and how hard he is to hit off of.

The No. 1 pick in the draft just last year, Skenes is justifying the unbelievable hype that surrounded his major league debut in May. He helped lead LSU to the College World Series title a year ago and is dominating major league hitters just a year later.

After the loss, the Pirates are now 37-40 and they remain in third place in the National League Central. They are 7.5 games back of the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Pirates will open up a big divisional series on Monday night when they travel to Cincinnati to take on the Reds at 7:10 p.m. ET.

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