Ranking Paul Skenes, Jacob Misiorowski and every other young NL Central ace

This is a big week for the NL Central. Not only are the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals facing off in what might end up proving to be a season-defining series, but the other three teams in the division are showcasing their future aces.

Paul Skenes has already arrived on the scene and established himself as arguably MLB's best pitcher in just his second season. He's facing off on Wednesday against Milwaukee Brewers hurler Jacob Misiorowski, who didn't allow a single hit until he was 11 innings into his MLB career. As for the Cincinnati Reds, well, if you missed Chase Burns' MLB debut on Tuesday night, I suggest you go and watch highlights. He was the star of the night.

With every NL Central team having at least one young stud either in or on the verge of the Majors, it feels appropriate to rank the aces, figuring out which team is best set up on the mound for the foreseeable future.

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5) Quinn Mathews, St. Louis Cardinals

There's a lot of young pitching to get excited about for St. Louis Cardinals fans. In the Majors, the Cardinals have Michael McGreevy and Matthew Liberatore, both of whom look like legitimate MLB-caliber starters. In the Minors, they have guys like Tink Hence, Tekoah Roby and Cooper Hjerpe, to name a few, who have a good amount of potential. But the best of the bunch currently on the farm is their top pitching prospect, Quinn Mathews.

Mathews burst onto the scene last season when he made it all the way from Single-A to Triple-A. This season has been a frustrating one, as he missed over a month with injury, but since returning to Triple-A he's been outstanding, posting a 2.30 ERA across four starts. In two of those four, he went five innings without allowing a single run.

When Mathews will make his MLB debut remains to be seen. The Cardinals are a team vying for the postseason right now, so they might choose to rely on veteran talent rather than giving the young southpaw the look he deserves. With that being said, he should be up by early next season at the latest, and when he's in the Majors, he has the potential to lead this Cardinals rotation for years to come. Frankly, it's just hard to rank him above his fellow NL Central peers due to his lack of MLB exposure.

4) Cade Horton, Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs promoted their top pitching prospect, Cade Horton, to the Majors mostly because of injuries suffered by Justin Steele, Shota Imanaga and Javier Assad. But to his credit, he's more than held his own in the bigs. Horton has a 3.73 ERA in eight appearances (seven starts) and 41 innings of work.

Horton hasn't been striking batters out at the electric rate he did in the Minors, but he's been exceptionally good at keeping the ball on the ground (80th percentile ground-ball rate, per Baseball Savant) and he's showcased remarkably strong command. Horton has issued only 10 walks in 41 innings pitched after wildness plagued him at times earlier in his career.

Horton has gone at least five innings in six of his eight appearances and has allowed three earned runs or fewer in all but one of those outings. He's been consistently solid as a 23-year-old and has showcased some elite stuff along the way.

It's fair to question how dominant Horton can be if he doesn't get his strikeout rate up (currently 17.6 percent, well below-average), but the fact that he's been able to keep the ball on the ground and control the strike zone is very encouraging. For him to rank higher on this list, though, he's going to have to find ways to strike people out.

3) Jacob Misiorowski, Milwaukee Brewers

The Cubs promoted Horton because they needed starting pitching help, but the Milwaukee Brewers promoted their top pitching prospect, Jacob Misiorowski, because he was simply too good for Triple-A. He forced his way onto the Brewers' roster, and has been even better than advertised through his first two starts.

Again, he went 11 innings before allowing a single hit. It'd be really tough for him to have gotten off to a better start than he did. He only allowed his first couple of hits and runs in his second MLB start after the Milwaukee Brewers had a very long inning, keeping Misiorowski in the dugout for a very long time.

The one concern with Misiorowski is obvious: Command can be a bit of an issue. He's improved in that regard this season, leading to his call-up, but he still walked 31 batters in 63.1 Triple-A innings and has issued five free passes in two MLB starts (four of which came in his debut).

While he can lose the plate at times, it simply doesn't matter very much when he has the stuff he does. I mean, who is going to hit this video game-like slider? And if a hitter miraculously makes contact, Misiorowski has a fastball that consistently reaches triple digits to turn to.

Misiorowski is the Brewers' ace of the future, if he isn't already the best they have to offer. He's an elite pitcher as is, and if he can improve his command, he might become the best pitcher in the game. He has that kind of ceiling.

2) Chase Burns, Cincinnati Reds

Speaking of electric debuts, Chase Burns might not have held the opposition hitless like Misiorowski, but he still looked mighty impressive against the New York Yankees. He struck out six of the first seven batters he faced and eight overall across five innings pitched without issuing a single walk. His slider was as sharp as ever, and his fastball, like Misiorowski's, reached triple digits.

It might be controversial to have Burns ahead of Misiorowski on a list like this, but it's hard to ignore what Burns, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, accomplished in his brief Minor League career. He didn't get nearly as much press, but he was essentially on a Skenes-like trajectory. It took Misiorowski a lot longer to get to the Majors because his command just wasn't good enough to trust.

Ultimately, this comes down to control. Misiorowski's stuff might be a bit better, but Burns' is not far behind, and he does a much better job limiting walks. I have more faith in his ability to go deeper into games largely because of that. Both of these pitchers are studs, though, and I wouldn't blame anyone in the slightest for flipping them.

A dynamic duo featuring Hunter Greene and Burns is tough to beat, and Cincinnati Reds fans should be thrilled for what's to come.

1) Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh Pirates

Did you have any doubt who'd lead this list? Skenes was considered one of the top pitching prospects in recent memory when he was taken No. 1 overall, and we're seeing why. He's taken the league by storm and then some.

Skenes had a sub-2.00 ERA in his rookie season and finished as an NL Cy Young finalist despite making only 23 starts. Somehow, he's been even better this season, posting a 1.85 ERA in 16 starts and 102 innings of work. Skenes leads the Majors in ERA and leads the NL in fWAR and WHIP while also ranking fourth in the Majors in innings pitched. Not only has Skenes been dominant, but he's been consistently going deep into games.

He's been getting historically unlucky, but that isn't stopping him from shoving every fifth day. He's allowed one earned run or fewer in 10 of his 16 starts, has allowed two earned runs or fewer in 14 of his 16 starts and he's gone at least six innings in all but three of his outings. He routinely goes deep into games while giving the Pirates a chance to win.

We can argue as to whether Skenes is the best pitcher in the game or not. Tarik Skubal deserves his respect in that conversation. We cannot debate whether Skenes is the best pitcher in the NL Central. That ship sailed a long time ago. Since he's only 23 years old, there's reason to believe he, somehow, has room to grow, too. Scary stuff.