Pirates’ Paul Skenes Falls Short in Cy Young Race

Two days after he was crowned as the 2024 National League Rookie of the Year, Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes was once again up for a major award.

Skenes was one of three finalists for the NL Cy Young along with Atlanta Braves left-hander Chris Sale and right-hander Zack Wheeler of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Though Skenes won the prized Rookie of the Year award, he finished third in this year’s Cy Young race. Sale was named the winner and Wheeler finished second. Skenes received one second-place vote as well as 13 third-place votes, three fourth-place votes and four fifth-place votes.

Even without winning, it was quite impressive to see the 22-year-old Skenes a finalist for the award after he was drafted with the first pick in last year’s draft and made just 23 starts since he was called up in the first half of May.

For context, the two other finalists in the National League are established veterans. Sale has pitched 14 seasons in the big leagues, has been an All-Star eight times and finished in the top six of the voting seven times.

Wheeler, a 10-year veteran, has twice been an All-Star and has received Cy Young consideration twice, including a second-place finish in 2021.

But Skenes needed a total of 133 innings under his belt to be on the podium in the race, and what an impressive run it was for the big righty in his first season.

Skenes finished the year with an 11-3 record and a 1.96 ERA with 170 strikeouts in 133 innings. He only walked 32 batters, posted a 0.947 WHIP and limited opponents to a .198 batting average.

From the time he made his MLB debut on May 11 against the Chicago Cubs at PNC Park, Skenes led all starting pitchers in ERA. He also become the first pitcher in over a century to post a sub-2.00 ERA through the first 23 starts of his career and set the Pirates’ rookie record for strikeouts in a single-season.

Although he didn’t win this year, if Skenes’ 2024 performance is a sign of things to come, this won’t be the last time he’s tabbed a finalist. And he just might win one — or multiple — when all said and done. He’s just that good.