Pirates' Paul Skenes Throws Complete Game in Loss

Skenes took over the game from the very start, allowing only one base runner through the first four innings and none in six of his eight innings pitched.

The only trouble he faced came in the fifth inning, when he allowed back-to-back singles to right fielder Nick Castellanos and left fielder Max Kepler, putting two runners on for the Phillies with no outs.

The Pirates almost got out of that scoreless too, as Skenes got third baseman Alec Bohm to fly out and then a grounder from center fielder Brandon Marsh, who beat out the throw to first, beating the double play and scoring the go-ahead run.

Skenes didn't initially think he'd necessarily have this strong of start during his preparation, but Skenes recognized that once he started with a good count, he got batters exactly where he wanted them and executed.

"Yeah. Out in the bullpen it wasn't really anything impressive. When I got out there, I was just getting ahead of guys," Skenes said. "That's one of those things that you can't just go coasting with it a little bit. You have to keep pressure on early in the count, and I think I did a better job today than I have in probably most of my starts this year."

Skenes threw his four-seam fastball with exceptional velocity against the Phillies, getting close to the 100 mph limit. He took on Phillies left fielder Bryce Harper in the bottom of the first inning and struck him out on four straight fastballs (98.9 mph, 98.8 mph, 99.2 mph, 99.7 mph)

"Not 100, though. It's getting there," Skenes said on his velocity. "I can feel that my body is moving faster and probably had a little bit better command of my stuff, honestly, these last couple outings, even if the walk numbers have been a little bit high. In terms of velocity and all that, just awareness of my hand and where the ball is going I think has been better. I'm happy about that."

Pirates manager Don Kelly praised Skenes for his performance, particularly on his fastball, but also on him getting soft contact for easy groundouts. He also credited his character for going out there and doing what he does, even if the offense didn't come through like they should.

"It's unspoken," Kelly said. "He's just a competitor, he goes out there and he was really, really good today. He's pitching for team wins, he's not as concerned about personal stuff, which speaks to who he is. He went out there today and pitched really well"

While Skenes was exceptional in this matchup, the Pirates offense was anything but.

The Pirates managed to get more hits than the Phillies, six, but hardly got anything going, throughout the game, going 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position.

The only serious challenge came in the top of the seventh inning after third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes walked and left fielder Alexander Canario singled. The Pirates messed that scoring opportunity up as second baseman Adam Frazier laid a poor bunt down that got Canario out at third base and then shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa grounded into a double play.

Pittsburgh hasn't supported Skenes offensively this season, as despite only allowing 17 earned runs through his 10 starts, they've lost seven of them, with Skenes possessing a 3-5 record in 2025.

They've also only scored 10 runs total in his past six starts since a 10-3 win over the Washington Nationals at PNC Park on April 14. The Pirates offense, itself, hasn't scored more than four runs in 23 games, tied with the 2022 Miami Marlins as the longest such streak since 1980.

Skenes is focused more on what he can do and isn't worried about the offense during his starts, since really, all he has available to him are his pitches and who he's facing on the mound.

"It goes back to exactly what you said: just control what you can control," Skenes said. "Obviously not everything is within my power. Not everything is within any other individual in here's power. That's how we're gonna get going a little bit. Just control what we can control on an individual level. That's been my focus. That's always been my focus. That's probably been a little bit more difficult this last month or so, but there's nowhere else to go but to keep going. Just got to keep going."