PITTSBURGH – When it became clear that Pirates rookie right-hander Paul Skenes would be making the fifth start of his major league career against the Dodgers, it was only natural to put the game on the schedule as a definite must-see.
No matter who is on the mound, the Dodgers’ first innings have become something of an event in themselves, considering the three MVPs at the top of the lineup: Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman. And because every Skenes start early in his career felt equally momentous, it was a perfect storm of regular-season intrigue, setting up Wednesday’s game to be a little more special than the average midweek game in June.
As the first pitch approached, rumors grew among the PNC Park crowd, eager to witness Skenes showcase his talents against three of the best hitters on the planet.
But it’s still baseball. Many disappointing results can come from any single plate appearance; The grand visions of epic strikeouts or titanic home runs that punctuate matchups between top-tier talents rarely come to fruition. Pitting two of the best in the game against each other cannot guarantee a memorable outcome, it only sets the stage for one.
But when the stars align and the results of these intense plate appearances match the supersonic talent on said stage? You have to appreciate that when it happens.
Skenes’ first pitch to Betts on Wednesday was a 101 mph fastball in the back of the zone for strike one. His second offering was a 101 mph fastball at the top of the zone that Betts unfortunately took advantage of for strike two. Two pitches later, Betts swung a slider for strike three. The crowd erupted, not realizing that it was simply an appetizer of what was to come.
In less than a minute of real time, Skenes proceeded to throw three consecutive triple-digit fastballs and allowed three consecutive strikeouts on three spectacularly intense swings from Ohtani. The stadium exploded with excitement once again as Ohtani staggered back to the dugout dazed, staring emphatically at the high-octane shootout he had just lost.
The first round went to Skenes, who turned 22 last week.
While everyone in the stadium probably would have loved to immediately move on to the next Skenes/Ohtani at-bat, the rematch was slightly delayed. The Pirates pounced on Dodgers starter James Paxton, forcing him to leave after recording just five outs. When Ohtani came to the plate in the third inning, nearly 50 minutes later, Skenes had a 7-0 lead. With the home fans enjoying a comfortable cushion, the crowd once again focused on how Skenes would attack Ohtani in Round 2.
Again, Skenes greeted Ohtani with 100 mph, and again, Ohtani made a move with significant intent to cause damage, but to no avail. After Ohtani was unfazed by two changes outside the zone for balls one and two, Skenes went back to basics: 99.5 mph above the zone, prompting another cruel and helpless attack from Ohtani for the second strike. He followed another 100 mph heater, from the inside of the plate for ball three, producing an increasingly tantalizing full count.
Having delivered an astonishing five strikeouts on five fastballs from one of the most dangerous fastball hitters of this generation, Skenes regressed once again. They hit 100.1 mph at the top of the strike zone. Out hit a fly ball to center field, rising over the 10-foot wall for a home run.
The second round went to Ohtani, who leads the National League in total bases and also knows a thing or two about throwing 100 mph.
“Yeah, I like to call that ‘big on big,’” Skenes said afterward. “Obviously, I beat him a couple of times before. And I think that was the right pitch to throw there. He’s just a pretty good player. So things like that are going to happen.
“And, frankly, that’s why we play this game, for matchups like that. So I’m not happy to give it up, but it’s part of the game.”
Reflecting on facing Skenes after the game, Ohtani offered his analysis through performer Will Ireton: “The stuff itself was really good. As you saw in my first at-bat, I couldn’t really swing well. But overall, it’s a really good thing.
“More than the velocity, it’s really the angle and release (that makes Skenes difficult to hit), so I made the adjustment in the second at-bat.”
Ohtani’s uncanny ability to adapt on the fly, even after being so outmatched in the first inning, was evident in his third at-bat against Skenes in the middle of an eventful fifth inning. After rookie center fielder Andy Pages hit Skenes with a home run to lead off the inning and Chris Taylor reached on an error, Skenes responded by striking out Betts and Freeman.
Between those two Ks, Ohtani singled to right field on (you guessed it) a high fastball. Although Skenes walked out of the inning to conclude his night without further damage, Ohtani claimed the third and final round of their battle, leaving us all wondering how Skenes will respond in his next match. (The Pirates visit Dodger Stadium from August 9-11, in case you were curious.)
Ohtani might have ended the night with the lead between the two, but Skenes certainly took on the more important task of taming the Dodgers’ lineup and securing a series victory for Pittsburgh with the 10-6 victory. His successful outing provided an exciting encore to what fellow rookie right-hander Jared Jones did on Tuesday in the series opener, pitching six scoreless innings with three of his own dramatic encounters with Ohtani, all of which went in Jones’ favor. (2 K and a GIDP).
Jones, a close friend of Skenes dating back to their days playing travel ball as teenagers in Southern California, handles things just as electric as his ultra-famous teammate, albeit without as much exposure, at least not yet. But with the duo attracting more attention and promise with each successive outing, the future in Pittsburgh appears to be quickly getting brighter, and that feeling was palpable the last two nights at PNC Park.
“It was a great atmosphere,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said Wednesday. “And you know, I think when you have young players that you’ve drafted and developed like we’ve done with (Jared) Jones, Skenes and even (Mitch) Keller, we see that the fans are interested.
“It’s really fun to see this stadium come to life.”