On a sunny Friday at Wrigley Field, Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes made his second major league start against the Chicago Cubs. He threw 100 pitches and struck out 11 batters, including seven in a row. The Pirates held an 8-0 lead and only one baserunner for the Cubs had been Michael Busch who walked in the fifth inning.
Skenes, who will turn 22 on May 29, is a top baseball prospect and was the No. 1 overall pick by the Pirates in last year’s amateur draft. He signed a contract with the Pirates that included a $9.2 million signing bonus after helping LSU win the national championship. Before being called up by the Pirates, he had a 0.99 ERA in seven starts with Triple-A Indianapolis. In his major league debut against Chicago last weekend, Skenes pitched four innings of three-run ball, striking out seven batters and walking two.
