Paul Skenes believes he has the answer to his velocity dip this season.
The Pirates star has not shown his usual prowess this season, and part of it, he thinks, is due to his participation in the World Baseball Classic in March, as he told Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
“There are a lot of other factors, so I don’t want to put everything on that,” Skenes explained. “But I feel like that was kind of the root of it a little bit. It definitely affected the year. Unfortunately, I don’t think I’m the only one.”
Skenes pitched a total of 8 ⅓ innings in two tournament starts for Team USA in the WBC, allowing one earned run.
Skenes continued and clarified that the drop in velocity was intentional at first, but over the course of the season he was unable to ramp up to his usual level.
“Usually, that time of year, you’re kind of ramping up and it’s a little bit slow,” Skenes said. “You can kind of get onto the slope and find your body. One live [batting practice], you’re topping at 97 [mph], and then the next you’re 98, 99. And that wasn’t the case this year…looking back I don’t think that really helped.”
Skenes hasn’t been dreadful this season, posting a 3.91 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 192 strikeouts in 168 innings, but it’s not what Pittsburgh and baseball fans have come to expect from the 2024 NL Rookie of the Year and 2025 NL Cy Young winner.
The lack of a 2027 WBC should help Skenes go through his normal offseason and ramping-up period, which the Pirates will need next season if they want to make the playoffs for the first time since 2015.
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