Pirates' Spencer Horwitz Faced 'Electric' Paul Skenes
Before reaching the big leagues in 2024, Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes and first baseman Spencer Horwitz faced each other in the minor leagues. Now, the dual threat of Horwitz and Skenes are teammates on the Pirates.
Horwitz and Skenes began the 2024 season in the minors and crossed paths when the Blue Jays Triple-A affiliate, the Buffalo Bisons, faced the Pirates' Triple-A affiliate, the Indianapolis Indians, in a six-game series at the end of April and into the first week of May. Skenes and Horwitz faced off in two games, and the 2024 Rookie of the Year left a strong impression on the Pirates' new first baseman.
"We faced (Paul) Skenes twice and he was tough," Horwitz said in a Q&A with MLB.com's Jim Lachimia. "I mean, he obviously has electric stuff and an electric presence on the mound. And you saw how his year turned out in the big leagues. There’s nothing fake about that. But really the whole Pirates organization, to me, is known for pitching. They always have power arms and they always attack, attack, attack."
Horwitz was acquired from the Cleveland Guardians on Dec. 10 for a trio of pitchers, including right-handed starter Luis Ortiz. Earlier in the day, Horwitz was part of a trade that sent All-Star second baseman Andrés Giménez to the Blue Jays.
Skenes' starts against the Bisons were his final two before he was called up to the big leagues. The Pirates' ace pitched six shutout innings and allowed four hits, one walk and struck out 7 batters on April 30. In his second start against Buffalo on May 5, Skenes pitched 4.1 innings, allowed three hits and two runs, walked two and struck out four.
Six days later, Skenes toed the slab for the Pirates in his MLB Debut against the Chicago Cubs.
Horwitz, 27, went 2-5 with a pair of singles and a strikeout. Across the six-game series, the left-handed hitting first baseman was 10-29 with a home run and 5 RBIs. Horwitz made his 2024 debut in the big leagues on June 7 for the Blue Jays and stayed with the team for the rest of the season.
Horwitz played in 97 games for the Blue Jays and batted .265/.357/.433 with 12 home runs and 40 RBIs in 381 plate appearances. Before he was called up from Triple-A Buffalo by Toronto, Horwitz batted .335/.456/.514 with 4 home runs and 38 RBIs.
