PITTSBURGH — The almost maniacal preparation Paul Skenes pours into every start already is the stuff of legend, just two years into his career.
Still, even the Pittsburgh Pirates ace knows no matter how his pregame routine goes, he’s never really sure what kind of stuff he’s going to have on a given day until he steps onto the mound and the leadoff hitter steps into the box.
Many times, such as in Milwaukee, it nearly is perfect.
Then there are afternoons like against St. Louis, when the command that seems to come so easily looks far more ordinary than extraordinary.
Skenes’ third pitch of the game landed in the right-field seats at PNC Park courtesy of Cardinals rookie JJ Wetherholt. Three batters later, Jordan Walker turned on a sweeper that didn’t sweep and sent it into the first row of bleachers in left to give the Cardinals the early momentum on their way to a 10-5 victory and a four-game sweep.
The loss dropped Skenes (4-2) to 0-5 against the Cardinals, though that number is a little misleading. His career ERA versus St. Louis sits at 2.95, even after allowing five runs, four earned, in his first rocky performance since a bumpy opening day in New York against the Mets.
That number is telling of the almost impossibly high standard Skenes has set for himself during his rapid rise from first overall draft pick to arguably the best pitcher in the game.
“Nobody expects more out of Paul Skenes than Paul does out of himself,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “I think when he has a game like today or the opener, we have to find a way to pick him, because he picks us up all the time.”
Yet given a chance to put a halt to Pittsburgh’s first rough patch this season, Skenes didn’t quite have it. He fell behind Wetherholt 2-0 before the St. Louis second baseman turned on a 95 mph fastball — a tick below the usual 98-99 range Skenes sits at — and laced it into the seats above the Roberto Clemente Wall in right.
Ivan Herrera followed with an infield single. Two batters later, Walker pounced on an 83 mph sweeper that caught the inside part of the plate. The ball sailed just over the glove of Pittsburgh left fielder Jake Mangum, sending the Cardinals on their way to their first four-game sweep at PNC Park since 2019.
Asked why St. Louis might have his number — relatively speaking — the 23-year-old Skenes responded with his typical mix of sarcasm and blunt truth.
“They score more runs than us,” he said.
Skenes settled in — his nine strikeouts were a season high — but when the Cardinals were able to make contact, they made things happen. They added a run in the third after an infield single by Alec Burleson and a throwing error by rookie shortstop Konnor Griffin led to an RBI single by Nolan Gorman. In the fifth, Burleson flipped his bat at a changeup well off the plate and dumped it into left field to drive in Wetherholt.
“I think that sometimes teams go up there, try to work his pitch count, try to get that up,” Kelly said. “It doesn’t seem to be the case. They’re going up there swinging and trying to get their swing off. … They put some good swings on the ball today.”
The Pirates fell to 16-16, hardly the horrific start of a year ago that cost former manager Derek Shelton his job, but it also has them off the pace a bit in the hyper-competitive NL Central with first-place Cincinnati coming in for the weekend.
“I mean, every team is going to have skids,” Skenes said. “Just got to get back to who we are and just play our game. Not try to do too much. Just think we’re trying to do too much a little bit, especially today. Just got to be us.”
Pittsburgh second baseman Brandon Lowe said the quiet part out loud about how spoiled the Pirates have become when Skenes’ familiar No. 30 is standing on the mound.
“It’s pretty difficult when you sit there and you’re saying, ‘Oh, he struggled’ and he gave up three (runs),” Lowe said.
Lowe, one of a handful of veterans acquired in the offseason to surround the Pirates’ young core that includes Skenes and the 20-year-old Griffin, is not concerned about the last week snowballing into something that would put a damper on the positive vibes created during a season that began with plenty of promise.
“When you’re in the training room, you’re in the tubs and stuff like that, showers, you just kind of have conversations and talking with these guys for a long time,” said Lowe, who hit his eighth home run of the season in the seventh. “They have a pretty good head on their shoulders and the way they look at things. … So it’s just one of those things, you kind of flush the bad ones and focus on the next one.”
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