Friday’s highly anticipated pitching matchup between Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Yoshinobu Yamamoto night half-delivered on expectations. While Yamamoto, the National League’s ERA leader entering the game, struggled with control allowing three runs in five innings, Skenes exhibited stellar form leading to a 3-0 victory for the Pirates over the reigning World Series champions.
Skenes’ Performance
Skenes’ statistics for the game:
- Innings Pitched: 6 1/3
- Hits: 5
- Runs: 0
- Strikeouts: 9
- Walks: 0
Paul Skenes
Of his 108 pitches, 69 were strikes. By mainly relying on his four-seam fastball, which averaged 98 mph and peaked at 99.7 mph, Skenes effectively countered one of MLB’s strongest offenses. Notably, he recorded more swinging strikes (18) and called strikes (19) than he allowed balls in play (15).
One of his standout pitches was a changeup to Tommy Edman, ending the sixth inning, which showcased his pitching prowess:
“Paul Skenes, Filthy 89mph Changeup. 👌 And K Scream! 8th K”
— Rob Friedman @PitchingNinja
This performance marks Skenes’ successful redemption against the Dodgers, after facing them twice last season with a disappointing 5.73 ERA. His current ERA stands impressively at 2.39, with 39 strikeouts against only four walks allowed in 37 â…” innings.
On the other hand, Yamamoto managed to keep his ERA at a remarkable 1.06, with two of the three runs he allowed being unearned. As the season progresses, there’s a good chance these two pitchers could contend for the National League Cy Young Award.
