Pittsburgh Pirates' Paul Skenes Continues Worrisome Trend in Latest Loss

The Pittsburgh Pirates lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night as Paul Skenes continued a problematic trend on the mound.

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes (30) pitches during the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on Aug 10. / Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports

The Pitsburgh Pirates lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night, 4-1. The loss drops the Pirates to 56-60, hampering their fading playoff hopes by putting them 5.0 games back in the National League wild card race.

The loss was also the second in the career of Pirates rookie Paul Skenes, who is the frontrunner for the National League Rookie of the Year. The burly righty went 6.0 innings, surrendering four earned runs on six hits. He walked one and struck out eight. He's now 6-2 with a 2.25 ERA.

It's been a great debut season for Skenes, who also made the National League All-Star Game, but he is starting to post some worrisome numbers, which could suggest that he's wearing down this year.

According to @CodifyBaseball, Skenes's fastball velocity has been dropping steadily.

Fastest 1st Inning Paul Skenes Pitch (MPH):
May 11 - 101.9
May 17 - 100.3
May 23 - 100.3
May 29 - 100.4
June 5 - 101.3
June 11 - 100.4
June 17 - 100.5
June 23 - 99.7
June 29 - 98.9
July 5 - 100.2
July 11 - 99.4
July 23 - 100.2
July 29 - 99.3
August 4 - 99.8
August 10 - 98.6

Fastest 1st Inning Paul Skenes Pitch (MPH):
May 11 - 101.9
May 17 - 100.3
May 23 - 100.3
May 29 - 100.4
June 5 - 101.3
June 11 - 100.4
June 17 - 100.5
June 23 - 99.7
June 29 - 98.9
July 5 - 100.2
July 11 - 99.4
July 23 - 100.2
July 29 - 99.3
August 4 - 99.8
August 10 - 98.6 pic.twitter.com/pLD6HDe8Sj

— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) August 11, 2024

Furthermore, Skenes's number of 100+ mph pitches is also dropping at an insane rate.

100+ MPH pitches by Paul Skenes (MLB games):
first 5 games ---> 53
next 5 games ---> 21
next 5 games ---> 4

100+ MPH pitches by Paul Skenes (MLB games):
first 5 games ---> 53
next 5 games ---> 21
next 5 games ---> 4

— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) August 11, 2024

Now, it's possible that the Pirates have told Skenes that he doesn't need to empty the tank on each pitch, but this is still very worth monitoring. Between the minor leagues and the major leagues, Skenes has thrown approximately 120 innings this year. He threw about 128 innings last season between LSU and the minor leagues, so he has taken on this workload before, but it's possible that he's tiring in his rookie campaign.

Considering that Skenes is the future of the franchises and one of the faces of baseball, you can expect Pittsburgh to be careful with him the rest of the way, especially if they fall further and further behind.

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