The Announcement
Pittsburgh Pirates rookie pitching phenom Paul Skenes, already an All-Star, is continuing to take Major League Baseball by storm. On Friday, National League manager Torey Lovullo of the Arizona Diamondbacks announced Skenes would start the All-Star game.
The announcement comes after arguably the most impressive performance of his young career on Thursday. He threw 7 no-hit innings with 11 strikeouts at the first-place Milwaukee Brewers before being pulled. With said performance, Skenes lowered his ERA to 1.90 and grew his strikeout total to 89. The performance solidified Skenes as a bona fide Cy Young candidate eleven games into his rookie campaign.
Historic Company
A previous piece highlighted the historic nature of Skenes’ landmark selection. Skenes is already the first player to be named an All-Star within a year of being selected with the first overall pick. With the announcement coming that he will be starting for the National League, the accolades continue to pile up. Per the Elias Sports Bureau, Skenes is now only the fifth rookie pitcher in MLB history to start the All-Star Game. He is furthermore the first rookie to get the nod in 29 years. He follows Hideo Nomo in 1995, Fernando Valenzuela in 1981, Mark Fidrych in 1976, and Dave Stenhouse in 1962. Skenes is also the first Pirates’ pitcher to start the All-Star Game since Jerry Reuss in 1975.
Notable among that set of pitchers is the fact that Skenes was able to get the starting role in the All-Star Game after starting a total of only eleven games. Additionally, he ties Fidrych’s record for fewest MLB game appearances for an all-star starter with a total of eleven games played.
You’ll be able to watch Paul Skenes in the All-Star Game on Tuesday, July 16 at 8:00 PM EST at Globe Life Field in Arlington Texas.
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