SI

Paul Skenes Made Rays Batter Look Foolish With Ridiculous Pitch

Tim Capurso

Skenes throws a pitch against the Rays.
Skenes throws a pitch against the Rays. / Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
In this story:

Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes made plenty of hitters look foolish en route to winning the 2024 National League Rookie of the Year Award.

Skenes has wasted no time in doing so once again in '25, the sequel to his historic rookie year. In his second start of the season on Wednesday against the Tampa Bay Rays, Skenes delivered a pitch to Rays designated hitter Yandy Diaz that will probably have other fellow right-handed batters calling in sick when they are scheduled to face Skenes.

On his first offering of the day to Diaz, Skenes threw a 98-mph pitch that sharply broke inward and slightly downward towards Diaz's hands as it headed toward home plate. The Rays veteran swung right through it.

Statcast says the pitch was a four-seam fastball. ESPN's scoreboard agrees. But Rob Friedman, who shared the video on X, wondered out loud if the pitch was Skenes's new two-seamer that he added this offseason.

Skenes, seeking to gain another edge on hitters, told reporters in the spring that he added a running two-seamer and a cutter into his already-impressive arsenal. If that was indeed the running two-seamer, it's going to be another nightmare for hitters to deal with when they dig into the box against the Pirates right-hander.

More MLB on Sports Illustrated

Published |Modified
Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

Home/MLB