Pirates

Pirates Preview: Paul Skenes Makes First Start Since All-Star Game

Published

6 months ago

July 23, 2024

The Pittsburgh Pirates squeaked out a 2-1 over the St. Louis Cardinals in the opener of a three-game series at PNC Park on Monday night.

Mitch Keller tossed seven-strong innings and Nick Gonzales drove in the game-winning run in the eighth to help carry the Pirates over their division foes.

Entering play on Tuesday, the Pirates (51-49) trail the Cardinals (52-48) by one game for second place in the division and are a half-game out of a Wild Card spot.

First pitch is set for 6:40 ET and the game will be aired on SportsNet Pittsburgh.

Weather

Sun mixed with a few clouds, with temperatures dropping into the mid-70s as the game goes on. Winds SSW at 6-7 mph.

The Pittsburgh Pirates Will Send Out RHP Paul Skenes (6-0, 1.90 ERA)

The last time Skenes was on the mound was in Arlington, Texas, in the bottom of the first inning of the All-Star Game. Skenes walked a batter but pitched a scoreless inning for the National League.

Skenes was named the National League starter due to an incredible run with the Pirates since he made his major-league debut on May 11.

Since his debut, Skenes has the best ERA of any starting pitcher. He’s also second in strikeouts per nine innings (12.08) and WHIP (0.92) and has the third-best strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.85).

Skenes faced the Cardinals in St. Louis on June 11 and threw 6.1-shutout innings with eight strikeouts. It’s the only time he’s faced the Cardinals in his career.

The St. Louis Cardinals Will Send Out RHP Lance Lynn (5-4, 4.39 ERA)

Lynn was rocked for 10 earned runs against the Nationals in his second-to-last start before the break but rebounded nicely in his most recent. On July 13, he held the Cubs to a pair of runs in six innings and got the win.

The veteran right-hander is in his first season back in St. Louis since 2017 after signing a one-year deal as a free agent in the offseason.

Lynn relies primarily on his lower-90s fastball with a good amount of cutters and sinkers. He will also mix in a few sliders and changeups.

His start on Tuesday will be his 26th against the Pirates in his career, making Pittsburgh the team he’s faced the most. Lynn is 7-8 with a 5.34 ERA against the Pirates. He surrendered three runs in 4.1 innings in the lone matchup of the season last month.

Cardinals Hitters vs. Skenes

Nolan Arenado: 2 for 3, one double
Alec Burleson: 2 for 3, one strikeout
Paul Goldschmidt: 0 for 3, one strikeout
Nolan Gorman: 0 for 3, one strikeout
Masyn Winn: 0 for 3, two strikeouts

Pirates Hitters vs. Lynn

Andrew McCutchen: 12 for 54, four doubles, two RBIs, one walk, 20 strikeouts
Michael A. Taylor: 5 for 17, one home run, one RBI, one walk, five strikeouts
Rowdy Tellez: 3 for 9, one walk, two strikeouts
Yasmani Grandal: 2 for 7, one home run, one RBI, one walk, one strikeout
Bryan Reynolds: 1 for 3, one RBI, one strikeout
Ke’Bryan Hayes: 0 for 3, one strikeout

Tidbits

Oneil Cruz stole a pair of bases in the win on Monday. It was the first time in his career in which the Pirates’ shortstop has stolen multiple bases in the same game.
The last time the Pirates were over .500 at least 100 games into the season was when they finished 82-79 in 2018. Coincidently, they had an identical 51-49 record through the first 100 games of that year.
Paul Skenes was the fifth-ever rookie to start on the mound in the All-Star Game and the first Pirates’ pitcher to do so since Jerry Reuss in 1975.