Important Final Month for Paul Skenes After Slipping in ROTY Race

A short time ago, Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes looked like the runaway favorite to win the National League Rookie of the Year. Fast forward to the present and Skenes looks to be second in the race.

Skenes took the baseball world by storm after making his widely-anticipated debut in May, less than a calendar year after he was selected with the top pick in the 2023 draft after a dominant season at LSU.

The 22-year-old is certainly deserving of serious consideration to win the award. Entering his start on Tuesday against the Cubs in Chicago, he leads all rookie starting pitchers with a 2.23 ERA, which is also the lowest mark of any starting pitcher since his first start on May 11.

Skenes has racked up impressive strikeout totals, with a whopping 136 in 109 innings pitched. He does so while featuring strong control and lighting up the radar gun with triple-digit fastballs and a a mid-90s splitter/sinker hybrid.

But looking at the Rookie of the Year betting odds provided by FanDuel’s sportsbook, San Diego Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill has overtaken Skenes as the heavy favorite.

Merrill, 21, is also having a terrific season in his first year with the Padres. He’s batting .291 with an .816 OPS, 22 home runs, six triples, 21 home runs, 79 RBIs and 16 steals. Like Skenes, Merrill was selected to the All-Star team.

There are also two factors working in Merrill’s favor. For starters, he’s been up with the Padres all season. Skenes, meanwhile, was in Triple-A for the first six weeks of the year. Secondly, Merrill is on a team that looks destined for the postseason. The Padres hold the top wild card spot while the Pirates have fallen 10 games off the pace.

If Skenes wants to reestablish his position in the race, he’ll need to end the season on a high note, starting with his first September outing on Tuesday night.

DAILY FANTASY BASEBALL

Skenes is one of two prominent National League starters on the mound on Wednesday. Atlanta Braves left-hander and National League Cy Young frontrunner Chris Sale will face the Colorado Rockies at Truist Park.

Sale leads the league with 15 wins in his first season with the Braves. He’s made 25 starts and has posted a 2.58 ERA and has struck out 197 batters in 153.2 innings.

For a daily fantasy lineup, Sale could be had for $11,600 while Skenes would cost $10,900, so some slight savings if selecting Skenes.

However, Sale has a couple advantages. As FanDuel points out, the Rockies have struggled against left-handed pitching over the past month while the Cubs have hit right-handed pitchers hard during the same span. The veteran left-hander has also gone a perfect 8-0 with a 2.78 ERA at home this season,

But given the $700 in savings to allocate elsewhere, Skenes might be the better value pick, especially so considering his need for an excellent finish to overtake Merrill and become the first Pirates’ player to win Rookie of the Year since Jason Bay in 2004.

The last time Skenes pitched at Wrigley, he tossed six no-hit innings and struck out 11 before being removed after 100 pitches.