Pirates Superstar Named Top 3 Cornerstone Piece
The Pittsburgh Pirates have struck gold with Paul Skenes.
The 2023 No. 1 overall pick in the MLB Draft has been as advertised and then some since being called up to the big leagues in May. With Skenes' meteoric rise to already becoming one of the best pitchers in baseball in his first season in the big leagues, ESPN ranked him third among the top rookies this season, placing him among the franchise cornerstones.
Skenes only trailed Milwaukee Brewers left fielder Jackson Chourio and San Diego Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill.
"It's basically impossible to split up these three," ESPN writes. "They are the best players on Earth born in each of their birth years and clearly showing why in the majors. I'm inclined to lean toward position players over pitchers, and youth beyond that, but you can really put them in any order. I think they're all 3.5- to 5-win players annually, which means getting MVP votes in their good years and still making All-Star teams in the others."
"Since being called up on May 11, among qualified starting pitchers, Skenes leads the majors in average fastball velocity and ERA, and ranks second in ERA estimators (xFIP, SIERA) along with strikeout rate (behind only Chris Sale in all three categories). When I broke down how Skenes was dominating nine starts into his career, I said he was already a top-five pitcher in the game, that I thought what he was doing was totally sustainable and that he might be the best pitcher in baseball in short order. I still stand by that opinion."
Fellow rookie right-hander Jared Jones was also mentioned, though, he didn't crack ESPN's top 15 rookies. Skenes was the only starter to make the top 15 and one of two pitchers to make the list, alongside Oakland A's reliever Mason Miller.
Through 20 starts in the big leagues, Skenes is 10-2 with a 2.10 ERA and has struck out a Pirates franchise record 151 batters in 120 innings pitched.
Having one of the league's elite pitchers who will give their team a chance to win every time they step on the mound is a huge boon for any franchise. Skenes has already established himself as one of the game's best pitchers 20 starts into his career.
Now, it'll be a matter of Pittsburgh putting a team around Skenes that can help lead to him pitching in big games down the stretch of the season moving forward.
NATHANIEL MARRERO