Bechtold’s Core Four: Pirates Paul Skenes continues to re-write the record books

Skenes starts Monday for the first time since pitching into the ninth inning for the first time in his career.

Welcome to Bechtold’s Core Four, where I preview four Pittsburgh Pirates topics, events, or storylines worth following this week. In this weekly feature, we’ll discover what you would keep an eye on as the week progresses in the world of the Pirates and Major League Baseball. Let’s go.

Recency Bias? Getting the Job Done

Three Pirates rank in the top five in ERA through June and July. Righty reliever Carmen Mlodzinski leads the NL with a 1.42 ERA since the calendar flipped from May, and Skenes sits third at 1.71. Reliever Kyle Nicolas (1.99) ranks fifth among pitchers who have faced at least 97 batters.

If qualified, Skenes would win the NL ERA title. His ERA is 1.93 through 74.2 frames, and if Skenes owned enough innings to qualify, he would rank No. 1 in baseball. Skenes starts Monday against the daunting Houston Astros and the likes of Jose Altuve, Yordan Alvarez, Alex Bregman, Jeremy Pena, and others.

People could accuse me of kissing up to Skenes and overhyping him as the greatest thing since the invention of modern technology. What is there to criticize? Efficiency is the only avenue I can take down that path. Skenes is achieving feats in record stretches that haven’t been earned or seen since 1901. Live in the moment and enjoy this guy. We might never see anyone better, and he’s just getting started.

Starts, strikeouts, and not allowing runs

Skenes earned his first career loss despite a line of 8.1 innings, two runs, no walks, and eight strikeouts. Skenes has struck out 97 batters and is the first pitcher in MLB history to strike out 80 or more batters in his first 12 career starts and allow 20 or fewer runs.

I sat in section 116 Tuesday, which marked the fourth time I’ve seen Skenes pitch in person at PNC Park, fifth overall. It was the first time I’d watched him in a seat behind the plate. It was the first team Skenes faced a team for the second time.

What I witnessed was nothing short of spectacular. Sure, he gave up a leadoff home run to Nolan Arenado to start the fifth, a five-time Silver Slugger and future Hall of Famer. It’s fair to argue that he allowed the winning run to cross the plate following a double, after a dropped third strike, and a liner to right. It was his most efficient outing, and the deepest Skenes pithed into a game this season.

Per MLB’s Sarah Langs, Skenes is the first pitcher since at least 1901 with seven or more strikeouts in at least 11 of his first 12 career appearances. No one else accomplished this in more than nine of their first 12 starts. What Skenes is doing is otherworldly. The Bucs are a significantly better team with Skenes on the roster, and their record has trended over .500 since he debuted on May 11. It’s not hyperbole but reality. A Paul Skenes Day is an event every time he takes the mound.

Nolan Ryan, Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander Didn’t Accomplish This

Skenes accomplished one of the most incredible feats of his career 11 starts into his time in Pittsburgh. Following seven no-hit innings of the Milwaukee Brewers before the All-Star Game, Skenes owns multiple games with zero hits allowed and 10 strikeouts in a single season. Not only did Skenes accomplish it in his rookie season, but less than a dozen starts in the majors as a cherry on top.

It took Nolan Ryan seven seasons to earn the same accomplishment. Max Scherzer did it in his eighth and famously no-hit the Pirates in what could have been a perfect game if not for Jose Tabata taking one for the team in the ninth. Justin Verlander, arguably the best pitcher this century and one of the best all time, checked the box in year 17. Elite company to be in for a guy who closed games at Air Force and only focused on starting once he transferred to LSU. Luckily, and knock on wood, there aren’t many miles on his arm at all, but the Pirates remain cautious with his workload.

Rookie Leader

Skenes is well on his way to winning NL Rookie of the Year in runaway fashion. His 1.93 ERA through 12 starts is tied with Howie Pollet (1941) for the fifth lowest achieved by an NL starter 22 years of age or younger. Interestingly enough, Zach Duke pitched to a 1.81 ERA in 14 starts with the Pirates during the 2005 season.

Skenes became the first No. 1 overall pick to make the All-Star Game the following season and started on the bump for the National League. That’s unheard of in baseball and a significant outlier to the two-to-four-year development play typically implemented for drafted players and international prospects.

Record after record, stat after stat, achievement after achievement continues to rack up for Skenes. Sit back and watch the show tonight from the Space City. Skenes’ stock continues to take off like a rocket ship already set for liftoff.