PHOTO: Pirates rookie Paul Skenes honors mom with cleats tribute & floral finery on Mother's Day
For Paul Skenes' mother, Karen, Saturday marked one of the proudest occasions that a parent can hope for. After years of hard work and sacrifice, she and her husband, Craig, got to watch their son pitch in the big leagues.
Last week, the 21-year-old pitcher received word that he would be getting called up to the Pirates. Skenes, a graduate of LSU, was selected by the Pirates with their first overall pick in the 2023 MLB draft. On Sunday, Skenes honored Karen for Mother's Day.
In celebration of the occasion, Skenes shared a picture of himself with his mother at PNC Park ahead of the Pirates' Sunday affair against the Chicago Cubs. In her hand was a bouquet and a pair of cleats. A day earlier, Skenes had gone four innings, striking out seven and allowing four earned runs in a game that his team would eventually win.
A native of California, Skenes inked a $9.2 million signing bonus with the Pittsburgh Pirates after he became the team's third overall draft pick since 2011. In his senior year pitching at Louisiana State University, Skenes went 13-2, pitching to a 1.69 ERA as he helped his team win their first College World Series since 2007.
Despite being touted as one of the top pitching prospects in the game, Paul Skenes did not make the Pirates roster after spring training. Instead, the 6-foot-6 starting pitcher was sent to Triple-A Indianapolis after GM Ben Cherington declared the young stud needed to "check some boxes."
"Paul Skenes strikes out 7 in his first career start!" - MLB
In Indianapolis, Skenes continued to dominate, just as he had done in college. Before his promotion, Skenes boasted a 1.32 ERA and 45 strikeouts over the course of 27 innings of work.
Paul Skenes brings his headstrong attitude to MLB
During his days at LSU, Skenes was noted for his intensity and was known to call out teammates who he felt were not working hard enough. After four innings, Skenes now has a 6.75 ERA, despite demonstrating powerful and consistent pitching. After the outing, the rookie told ESPN:
""You can chalk it up to a number of things. But it just wasn't as sharp as it's been."
While some may say the youngster is being too difficult on himself, there are still 6.5 games between his team and the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central. Lack of quality pitching has contributed to the team's woes, and with an addition such as Skenes, the team expects solid improvement in that category.