MLB Announces Paul Skenes News on Thursday

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Chris Phelps | Last updated Jan 22, 2026 10:44 PM ET

Paul Skenes and the Pittsburgh Pirates did not have the 2025 MLB season they were hoping for, finishing with a 71-91 record, good for dead-last in the NL Central. This also marked the 10th consecutive season the Pirates have missed the postseason, with their last appearance coming in the NLWC in 2015.

While Pittsburgh may have disappointed in 2025, the same cannot be said about Skenes. The second-year pitcher out of LSU finished the season pitching 32 games, securing a 10-10 record. The former LSU star also tallied career-highs of 386 strikeouts and a league-leading ERA of 1.97, while only allowing 136 hits and 45 runs.

Skenes even followed up his NL Rookie of the Year campaign in 2024 with a second All-Star appearance and his first NL Cy Young Award, which goes to the league's best pitcher.

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes in 2025Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

But Skenes was not done there. On Thursday, MLB Network released its Top 100 players for the 2026 season, and Skenes cracked the top 10, coming in at No. 7. The Pirates star notably improved his ranking from last year, when he was slotted at No. 15.

Skenes was also notably the second-highest ranked pitcher of this year's top 100, with Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani coming in at No. 1. Detroit Tigers standout Tarik Skubal was the only other pitcher in the top ten, placing at No. 8.

Outside of Ohtani, the only players ranked ahead of Skenes include Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge (No. 2), Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (No. 3), Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (No. 4), Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez (No. 5) and Mets outfielder Juan Soto (No. 6).

"We have reached the finish line!" the MLB wrote on X. "The top 10 players in baseball according to @MLBNetwork ’s #Top100RightNow! "

We have reached the finish line!

The top 10 players in baseball according to @MLBNetwork’s #Top100RightNow! pic.twitter.com/CDUw2wuqoR
— MLB (@MLB) January 23, 2026