"Pittsburgh has probably the best pitcher they ever had in a draft" - Former WS champ John Smoltz heaps praise on Paul Skenes' dominant displays

Former World Series champion John Smoltz praised Pittsburgh Pirates rookie Paul Skenes on “The Dan Patrick Show” on Wednesday. The 22-year-old rookie has taken MLB by storm with his four-seamer, consistently exceeding 100 miles per hour. He has been unstoppable since joining the MLB, posting an ERA of 1.90 and a WHIP of 0.92 in 11 games.

Smoltz, known for his own electrifying fastball during his Hall of Fame career, went bold in his support for Skenes.

"He could throw all four-seam fastballs in a game, let's just say he couldn't throw anything but a fastball, and he could win a lot of big league baseball games," Smoltz said. "Pittsburgh has probably the best pitcher they ever had in a draft and we all know they had a lot of pitchers."

However, Smoltz’s praise comes with one condition: Skenes must stay healthy and not depend on overpowering velocity entirely.

If Skenes can remain healthy and refine his craft, the sky is the limit for him. Going by the early performances, he could end up being the future face of the Pirates.

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Paul Skenes in the running for the NL Rookie of the Year Award

The National League Rookie of the Year race has many potential contenders building a case for the award. Players like Shota Imanaga and Jackson Merrill are making strong cases of late. However, one name has consistently risen to the top: Paul Skenes.

In 11 starts, Skenes has given up only 14 earned runs over 66 innings while striking out 89 opposing hitters.

All eyes will be on Paul Skenes as the season progresses, to see if he can keep up his fiery performance. Injuries have a way of ruining a good beginning, though and unless something goes wrong unexpectedly it’s hard to think anyone else would take the NL Rookie of the Year honors home.

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