Pirates ace Paul Skenes shelled in ‘frustrating’ Opening Day start against the Mets

NEW YORK — Paul Skenes stared out toward the mound from the third-base dugout, motionless. Only his fingers moved, scratching beneath his dark, full beard. This was unfamiliar territory.

Thursday was supposed to be his day. Another step in a rise that already included a Cy Young award in 2025 and a World Baseball Classic that pushed him onto an international stage, flexing as the best in the world. He’s the easy favorite to repeat as Cy Young winner this year.

Instead, on Opening Day at Citi Field against the Mets, Skenes failed to get out of the first, yielding five earned runs in just two-thirds of an inning. It matched the most runs he’s allowed in a start and marked the shortest outing of his career. He allowed more runs Thursday than he did in the first inning of all 32 starts combined last year.

“They did a really good job in the moment,” Skenes said after his club’s 11-7 loss. “I don’t know, maybe a little frustrating, but I just got to execute. But they did a good job.”

It wasn’t all on Skenes. Center fielder Oneil Cruz misread a Brett Baty line drive, breaking in before it carried over his head. Three runs scored on a bases-clearing triple. Then, on the very next play, Cruz lost a Marcus Semien fly ball in the sun, making it a 5-2 game.

Even so, Skenes didn’t have his best stuff. He lacked command of his seven-pitch mix, walking two and hitting a batter in the nine plate appearances he made it through. He had little feel for his breaking pitches. When he got ahead, he couldn’t put hitters away. The Mets, one of the best lineups in baseball, wouldn’t give in. Wouldn’t chase his mistakes. Seven of the first eight batters reached base.

After 37 pitches in the inning, in the unseasonable warmth of Flushing, manager Don Kelly made the call to remove his ace.

“Paul is a competitor,” Kelly said after the game. “He wants to stay out there and pitch. It’s a really tough thing going to get him in the first inning right there. But at the bottom of it is Paul’s health. When you get up close to 40 pitches in an inning, you’re into dangerous territory with a starting pitcher.”

The physical danger is one thing. The box score is another: when Skenes isn’t stellar, the Pirates don’t have a chance. Often, even when he is stellar, they still find ways to spoil his starts with a lack of run support.

For all the supposed growth of the Pirates, adding Brandon Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn as veterans to the mix, too much of the belief still runs through Skenes. He’s not just their anchor. Not just their stability. He’s their credibility. Their relevance. He’s the reason the most optimistic people in Pittsburgh — and inside that clubhouse — can cling to the idea that this team has a path to the playoffs.

“Paul means a ton to Pittsburgh,” added Kelly. “I mean, he embodies it every single day that he shows up. We talked about a lot too. It’s the days in between his starts that really separate him and make him great. And he lives it out every single day.”

Yet baseball has a way of making even the giants look human, like it did Thursday. 

You felt it when Kelly walked to the mound. You felt it when the collective gasp from the Citi Field crowd cut through the moment, louder than some of the cheers. Because this wasn’t supposed to happen. As much as Mets fans came to see their team, there was something else, too. They came to see the best in the world.

He was supposed to last longer than this. Instead, it unraveled.

“It’s nice to get it out the way,” Skenes said with a smirk.

This is the burden that comes with greatness. He has lived up to every bit of the hype. The learning curve that usually comes with the big leagues never touched him.

“He’s can’t-miss TV,” said teammate and fellow starter Mitch Keller. “I want to be locked in for everything. He’s so special. You just never know when you’re watching this type of talent. You’re locked in and always watching.”

Thursday offered nothing to lock in on.

Inside the clubhouse, Skenes draped himself in a blue towel. The outing was over. There’s no reason to dwell. Not when you’ve established yourself as the most prominent starter in baseball. Not when it’s only your first start of the season.

“Just got to look at it, kind of pitch by pitch,” he said. “I’ll rewatch it at some point, but I’m not as upset about this, for me personally, as people would probably think.”

You can question the Pirates.

But you can’t question Skenes.