The Pittsburgh Pirates ace, Paul Skenes, threw his scheduled bullpen session on Friday at PNC Park. He even prepared for his scheduled start on Sunday in the series finale against the Boston Red Sox, but after the Pirates lost the middle game 4-0, manager Don Kelly changed his plans for Skenes.
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“Paul Skenes is having his Sunday start pushed to Wednesday,” Foul Territory reported on X. “Don Kelly told reporters it is not injury-related and that they wanted to give him more rest.”
The Pittsburgh Pirates’ 24-year-old ace is suffering through an uncharacteristic rough patch this year. After recording a sub-2.00ERA in the last two seasons, Paul Skenes has posted a 3.88 ERA across 25 starts. The 2025 NL Cy Young winner also holds a losing record (9-11) for the first time in his career.
Skenes had a disastrous start to the season as well. His ERA spiked to 4.00 across his first four starts. However, Skenes appeared to have recovered his footing (1.62 ERA) by the end of April, back to his usual sub-2.00 ERA. But it did not last long, as he again started struggling during his starts. Skenes delivered only 3 wins in his last 16 starts for the Pirates since May 17.
Despite not suffering from any injuries, Skenes’ velocity has also dropped. His four-seamers, which were above 98 mph in past seasons, have dropped to 96.8 mph this season. With several issues affecting Skenes’ outings for the Pirates, the RHP did not disagree with Kelly’s decision.
“We had talked about it when I showed up to the field today. I threw my bullpen and everything yesterday, and was fully anticipating starting tomorrow,” Skenes said, per MLB.com.
“So, we talked about it when I showed up at the field. Ultimately, it was Donny’s decision, but we had talked about it. And like I said after the last start, I’ll have his back on whatever that is. I don’t necessarily disagree with the decision either.”
Skenes’ last start was against the Miami Marlins, and it was concerning for several reasons. His velocity dipped more than usual. According to reports, his fastball sat at a career-low of 95.7 mph. Against the Marlins, he was pulled after just 65 pitches on Tuesday. He gave up 5 hits, 2 runs, and 1 home run across 5 innings. Though he did not allow more than one earned run, the Pirates lost 2-0.
After Tuesday, his ERA went down to 3.88, but it’s still a career-high number and nowhere near his past seasons. This season, Skenes has pitched on 7 days’ rest once, right after the All-Star break. Pitching on 7-days’ rest, he allowed only 1 run across 7.0 innings against the Cleveland Guardians.
With the forecast predicting rain on Sunday, Kelly will have reliever Lake Bachar start the series finale. He has started 4 games in 41 outings this season. The reliever holds a 3.97 ERA across two teams, the Miami Marlins and the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pirates acquired Bachar on August 3 in exchange for RHP Brandan Bidois, Brian Sanchez, and IF Hyun Seung Lee.
Five games below .500, the Pirates are not faring well in the playoff race. With barely two months left in the season, Skenes’ struggles are affecting a crucial time.
Pirates’ playoff chances fade with every loss
The Pittsburgh Pirates ended last season at the bottom of the NL Central, with a poor 71-91 record. Despite holding a better record (60-65) than they did at this time last year, the Pirates are not doing any better.
The Pirates are still at the bottom of the NL Central and 6.5 games behind the third and final NL Wild Card spot. Four teams are currently ahead of the Pirates, including the Philadelphia Phillies, Miami Marlins, St. Louis Cardinals, and the Cincinnati Reds.
The last time Pittsburgh made it into the postseason was in 2015. They secured an NL Wild Card spot. However, their playoff run was cut short when they lost to the Chicago Cubs 4-0.
37 games are still left for the Pirates to improve their standing in the 162-game season. If Skenes and the rotation can benefit from extra rest, maybe the Pirates will be able to reap the benefits.