Paul Skenes, assured of remaining with Pirates, faces Brewers

A day after the Pittsburgh Pirates’ front office declared its intention to keep ace Paul Skenes for the long term, the right-hander will get the start Friday against the visiting Milwaukee Brewers.

Skenes, who has been the subject of trade speculation, will oppose Brewers ace Freddy Peralta in the second game of a four-game series.

With the Pirates among the worst teams in the majors and struggling to generate offense, rumors emerged that Pittsburgh could attempt to move Skenes (3-5, 2.44 ERA) ahead of this year’s deadline and try to replenish its position-player talent pool.

Pirates general manager Ben Cherington adamantly denied those whispers on Thursday.

“No, it’s not part of the conversation at all,” Cherington said of putting Skenes on the trade market. “… We’ve just got to get better. Let’s play better baseball, and that’s going to lead to winning more games. Then, let’s wake up and see where that takes us when we get to July.”

The Pirates won back-to-back games on Tuesday and Wednesday against the Cincinnati Reds, their first winning streak since April 22-23. However, Pittsburgh fell 8-5 on Thursday in the series opener against Milwaukee.

Ironically, the five-run effort in the loss was a noteworthy effort from the Pirates. It ended their major-league-record-tying streak of scoring four runs or fewer in 26 consecutive games.

Pittsburgh has scored more than four runs in only one of Skenes’ 10 starts this season.

The Pirates lost the past four games Skenes started. His most recent start was particularly frustrating. Skenes threw a season-high eight innings, allowed only one run on three hits and one walk while matching a season high with nine strikeouts — and still wound up with a 1-0 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday.

Skenes will pitch against Milwaukee for the first time at home. His only other career start against the Brewers was masterful as he tossed seven hitless innings, striking out 11 and walking one batter on July 11, 2024, at Milwaukee.

The Brewers hope Peralta can outshine Skenes, last year’s National League Rookie of the Year, and continue his own impressive beginning to the campaign.

Peralta (5-3, 2.59 ERA) has had uneven results since tweaking his groin during a start against the Chicago Cubs on May 4. Peralta avoided serious injury and pitched on May 12 at Cleveland, where he gave up four runs and three walks during the game in which he surpassed the 1,000-strikeout mark for his career.

The 28-year-old right-hander bounced back strong, throwing five innings, allowing one run on three hits and two walks and striking out five over five innings in a 5-2 victory over Minnesota on Sunday. That result snapped the Twins’ 13-game winning streak.

Peralta has been a marvel of durability, never missing a start last year nor this year.

“He’s just getting better. He’s coming into his own. And he’s been so consistent for us,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said recently.

Peralta is 2-2 with a 3.55 ERA in 22 career appearances (13 starts) against the Pirates. In Pittsburgh, Peralta is 2-2 with a 3.63 ERA in 14 career appearances (nine starts).

The Brewers will hope Christian Yelich can provide some offensive support for Peralta. The designated hitter was 2-for-32 (.063) in his previous eight games before hitting two homers and driving in four runs on Thursday.

–Field Level Media