Despite it being his first MLB season, Paul Skenes has been pitching like anything but a rookie.
Through four starts, the Pittsburgh Pirates first-year pitcher has been impressive, to say the least. He’s 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA, allowing 15 hits in 22 innings. He’s also walked only five and allowed just two home runs.
Most impressively, however? Skenes has 30 strikeouts to his name, including seven in his Major League debut against the Cubs on May 11 and 11 in his second career start on May 17, also against the Cubs.
On Wednesday — Skenes’ 22nd birthday — he used 96 pitches to strike out nine Tigers in six innings in his fourth career start, helping the Pirates to a 10-2 win.
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How many Ks can the 6-foot-6 right-hander register this season?
Let’s check out the odds at FanDuel Sportsbook as of May 30.
Paul Skenes Regular Season Strikeouts
150+ strikeouts: +100 (bet $10 to win $20 total)
175+ strikeouts: +250 (bet $10 to win $35 total)
200+ strikeouts: +800 (bet $10 to win $90 total)
Although he is yet to pitch a complete game, Skenes is averaging 12.3 strikeouts per nine innings. He doesn’t qualify for the league lead in that category — to qualify for the ERA title or K/9 rate, a pitcher has to throw at least one innings per game played by the team, meaning he’d need to reach 162 by season’s end — but if he did, he would be No. 1 in the MLB.
As of Thursday, the White Sox’s Garrett Crochet averages 12 Ks per nine innings, and he’s pitched 63.2 innings.
For context on just how good Skenes has been through four starts — keep in mind, it’s just four starts — former Padres ace Blake Snell finished atop the league in ERA last year with a 2.25 ERA. As mentioned, Skenes has a 2.45 ERA.
Atlanta’s Spencer Strider led the league in strikeouts last season with 281 in 186.2 innings (32 starts). This season, Skenes is on pace for 207 Ks in 152 innings (28 starts).
So, while Strider averaged about 1.5 strikeouts per inning, Skenes is on pace to average about 1.36.
Skenes’ next start is scheduled for June 5 against Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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