Paul Skenes' no-hit bid may have secured historic decision on Pirates ace
By Austin Owens
Paul Skenes has rapidly become one of baseball's most well-known players. The Pittsburgh Pirates flamethrower continues to amaze in each of his outings. Through his first 11 big league starts, the rookie out of LSU is 6-0 with a jaw-dropping 1.90 ERA. With explosive strikeout stuff, Skenes has fanned 89 batters in just 66.1 innings of work. 11 of those came in his last outing.
On Thursday, Skenes took the mound against the Milwaukee Brewers and to say he dominated was an understatement. He tossed seven no-hit innings, walking only one batter and punching out 11. Unfortunately, his pitch count nearly reaching the century mark forced Derek Shelton to go the bullpen.
However, this outing may have earned Skenes the opportunity to showcase his skills on one of baseball's biggest stages.
Could Paul Skenes start the MLB All-Star Game?
With MLB All-Star Week kicking off on Friday, we are just a few days away from the MLB All-Star Game in Texas only July 16. With MLB games still to be played over the weekend, starting pitchers for the All-Star Game have yet to be announced but Skenes is now in contention for that honor.
To even make the National League All-Star team was quite the accomplishment for Paul Skenes as he has only been in the big leagues for a little over two months. Now he has the chance to make history. USA Today MLB insider Bob Nightengale reported just how likely it is that Skenes gets the ball on in Texas.
The NL All-Star starting pitcher won’t be announced until Monday, but every indication is pointing towards Pirates rookie sensation Paul Skenes.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) July 12, 2024
NL manager Torey Lovullo says all of the starters are deserving, ‘‘but in particular, Paul Skenes. He's been an unbelievable addition…
There is some truth to the fact that voting for the MLB All-Star Game has become somewhat of a popularity contest but that may actually be a good thing. Fans get the opportunity to voice their opinion on who they want to see take the field. Oftentimes, these are players out of their market they do not get the opportunity to witness often.
Torey Lovullo, the Arizona Diamondbacks and 2024 NL All-Star manager, recognizes this and is willing to give baseball fans the entertainment they are calling for. Though it is not official, it appears that Paul Skenes is on his way to being the first rookie to start the MLB All-Star Game since 1995.
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