Paul Skenes Wants To Attack The Strike Zone More
2 weeks agoPittsburgh Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes, who won the National League Rookie of the Year award in 2024 after posting a 1.96 ERA in 133 innings pitched, said he wants to attack the strike zone more in his sophomore season. Skenes was significantly below Braves lefty Chris Sale and Tigers lefty Tarik Skubal, the NL and AL Cy Young winners, respectively, in first-strike percentage at 62.1%. He ranked 71st in overall strike percentage (66.1%) among pitchers with more than 1,000 pitches thrown. Despite not having pitched in a full season at the major-league level yet, the former LSU star is already one of the best pitchers in baseball and is currently ranked as the No. 3 overall fantasy hurler, behind only Shohei Ohtani and Skubal. Pounding the zone more often will only make Skenes more tough, as no hitter in baseball wants to get behind in the count early to a pitcher with his nasty arsenal.
Source: The Athletic - Ken Rosenthal
Source: The Athletic - Ken Rosenthal