Inside Paul Skenes newest pitch: Why Pirates ace keeps his arsenal a mystery

Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes throws seven pitches regularly. Skenes has a fastball, sinker, sweeper, slider, split finger, changeup and curveball. Of course, Skenes doesn't throw all of those pitches at the same frequency, as he tends to set the table with his electric fastball and sit hitters down with any number of his breaking pitches, namely his sweeper.

Skenes is not a fun pitcher to face, and as he prepares for the World Baseball Classic, he is Team USA's undisputed ace now that Tarik Skubal will only make one start. Skenes is slated for at least two, and will pitch a few spring training outings as well to prepare for Opening Day. But the question remains: Has Skenes added anything new to his arsenal?

Has Paul Skenes added a new pitch to his arsenal?

Eno Sarris of The Athletic claimed Skenes added a new pitch this winter. Per Sarris, Skenes will throw an even slower version of his sweeper, which he pitches 15.8 percent of the time. Sarris has coined this Skenes pitch a 'sleeper'.

Skenes throws a hard splitter and changeup, as well, making his breaking stuff some of the best in the game. Skenes succeeds where other pitchers fail, as he is able to control his velocity in such a way that even when hitters can identify what's coming, they often whiff. For example, while Skenes throws his fastball the most out of any of his pitches, what the above chart doesn't recognize is which fastball he went with. Skenes throws a slower version of his fastball with more movement, and one that is straight gas when he needs it most. If he's able to achieve the same goal with his sweeper, watch out.

Now, it should be noted that Skenes denied having a new pitch. Frankly, there'd be little benefit to him admitting he has a new tool to work with. There's also a chance Skenes misinterpreted the question, as a slower sweeper technically isn't a new pitch, but a variation of what he was already throwing.

"I genuinely have no idea where that came from, so I couldn't tell you anything about it," Skenes said toKevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “No. It’s just pretty much the same stuff, hopefully better. But yeah, no more made-up pitches.”

Skenes sweeper doesn't really need a revamp, as it had a 32.8-inch vertical drop and a 5.7-inch vertical break, plus a horizontal break of 11.4 inches. Skenes sweeper can reach 90 MPH, but traditionally comes in somewhere in the mid-80's. This is why it's such a dangerous pitch – Skenes fastball can rise to close to 100 MPH, if not more. That change in velocity is nasty.

Realistic expectations for the Pirates and Paul Skenes in 2026

Pedantics about Skenes aside, the Pirates do have high expectations for the 2026 season, and that starts with their ace. Skenes won the NL Cy Young award last season despite receiving miserable regular run support. Pittsburgh tried to address that some this winter, adding the likes of Brandon Lowe, Ryan O'Hearn and Marcell Ozuna, among others. The lineup, top to bottom, should look much better than it did in 2025. Whether that leads to better results remains a mystery (much like Skenes supposed new pitch), but if Pittsburgh could even finish middle of the pack in average runs scored, it'd be a major improvement.

What the Pirates do have is one of the best pitching staffs in baseball. Behind Skenes is Bubba Chandler, a former top prospect, and eventually Jared Jones, who is making his return from major surgery.

Needless to say, the pitching staff should not be a problem for this team. Skenes, of course, sets the standard. Having one of the most distinguished pitch arsenals in baseball sure helps matters, new pitch or not.

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