Paul Skenes sets Pirates season strikeout mark for rookie

PITTSBURGH — In the home dugout at PNC Park after Paul Skenes‘ evening was done, Bailey Falter asked the rookie how many strikeouts he had on the evening. Skenes claimed to forget, so he started to add up the tally on the Kennametal strikeout counter, mouthing to himself.

“Seven…eight…nine,” Skenes was seen saying on the SportsNet Pittsburgh broadcast before cracking a smile.

It was a nine-strikeout night, but the first one was the one that put him in the record books, passing Cy Blanton for the most strikeouts by a rookie in franchise history. That final punchout was No. 151 on the year for Skenes, who tossed six innings of one-run ball to lead the Pirates to a 3-2 win over the Marlins.

Few in baseball history can match that number of strikeouts through their first 20 games, with the only other pitchers since 1901 being Kerry Wood (179 in 1998), Hideo Nomo (175 in 1995), Dwight Gooden (162 in 1984) and Mark Prior (154 in 2002-03).

“I can’t think of anybody I’ve seen that’s been that strikeout-heavy, especially early in their career,” manager Derek Shelton said. “I’ve watched guys that have done it that have been elite pitchers throughout their careers, but I don’t know that I remember anybody being a rookie that has been like that.”

The thing about it is if you asked Skenes about the history he’s making, it’s not really on his radar.

“It’s a game and I think the biggest thing is focused on being in the moment and staying present,” Skenes said. “All that other stuff is cool, but I think that’s a product of being in the moment and staying present over the course of the season. Just executing individual pitches and then that kind of shows up when you start tallying that stuff up.”

It has tallied up very nicely for Skenes, who is not only in the mix for Rookie of the Year, but is having one of the greatest rookie seasons ever for a Pirates pitcher. Here’s how he compares to other Pirates rookies in the Modern Era (since 1900).

Strikeouts
1. Paul Skenes, 151, 2024
2. Cy Blanton, 142, 1935
3. Kris Benson, 139, 1999

If strikeout rates are more your speed, Skenes’ 11.3 punchouts per nine innings is the highest of any Pirates rookie with at least 100 innings pitched, followed by José DeLeón (9.8 K/9 in 1983) and Jared Jones (9.6 K/9).

Earned Run Average (min. 100 IP)
1. Babe Adams, 1.11 ERA, 1909
2. Red Witt, 1.61 ERA, 1958
3. Paul Skenes, 2.10 ERA, 2024

For those who prefer ERA+, which weighs a player’s earned run average compared to how the rest of the league performed that year, Witt is first with a 241 ERA+, Adams is second at 232 and Skenes was 197 entering the night.

Walks and Hits per inning pitched (min. 100 IP)
1. Babe Adams, 0.85, 1909
2. Paul Skenes, 0.99, 2024
3. Hank Robinson, 1.01, 1912

Skenes finds himself sandwiched between two Dead Ball Era pitchers, and Robinson led the league in WHIP in 1912. The only other pitcher across baseball to have 140 strikeouts and a sub-1.00 WHIP over their first 20 starts since 1901 is Matt Harvey across 2012 and 2013.

Win Percentage (min. 12 decisions)
1. Emil Yde, .842 WP%, 16-3 record, 1924
2. Paul Skenes, .833 WP%, 10-2 record, 2024
3. Babe Adams, .800 WP%, 12-3 record, 1909

Skenes had virtually no chance of catching Blanton and Ray Kremer’s 18 wins as a rookie since he wasn’t called up to the Majors until May 11, but Monday was win No. 10.

And while pitching wins may not be as highly esteemed in some baseball circles nowadays, Skenes doesn’t subscribe to that thinking.

“I’m old fashioned,” Skenes said. “Wins matters. Wins and losses matter, I think. That’s kind of watered down now, but it definitely means a lot.”

Wins Above Replacement
1. Cy Blanton, 7.2, 1935
2. Whitey Glazner, 5.1, 1921
3. Paul Skenes, 5.0*, 2024
* – Entering play Monday

OK, one for the analytics crew to close. Skenes will surely finish second on this list, behind Blanton, who pitched 23 complete games and 254 1/3 innings in 1935. But Skenes isn’t ready to shut down after 120 innings either.

“I’m not tired, really,” Skenes said. “Not feeling anything abnormal. It’s just a matter of finishing in the sprint to the end here.”