Pirates' Paul Skenes Wins Pitcher of the Year Award

Skenes earned 21 first-place votes, three second-place votes and one third-place vote from a blue-ribbon panel of 24 members, which includes former players, executives and managers, plus writers and broadcasters.

Detroit Tigers left-hander Tarik Skubal received one first-place vote, 18 second-place votes and four third-place votes, while Boston Red Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet earned two first-place votes along with four second-place votes and 11 third-place votes.

Skenes had just a 10-10 record in 32 starts with the Pirates, but a 1.97 ERA over 187.2 innings pitched, 216 strikeouts to 42 walks, a .199 opposing batting average and a 0.95 WHIP, along with a 10.36 K/9, a 2.01 BB/9 and a 5.14 K/BB.

He ranked amongst the best pitchers in the MLB, with the lowest ERA, tied for the fourth most strikeouts, the fourth lowest WHIP, the sixth lowest batting average and the 10th most innings pitched, plus the fifth best K/BB, seventh best K/9 and ninth best BB/9.

Skenes also ranked highly in the National League, with the lowest WHIP, the fourth lowest batting average, tied for the second most strikeouts and the fourth most innings pitched, as well as the second best K/BB and both the fifth best K/9 and BB/9.

He'll likely finish the season as the National League Cy Young Award winner, making him the first Pirates pitcher to do so since Doug Drabek did in 1990 and the third overall, with Pirates Hall of Famer Vern Law winning the Cy Young Award, with no league distinction, in 1960.

Skenes also had one of the best pitching seasons in recent years and made some MLB history along the way.

He is the first NL pitcher with a sub-2.00 ERA and 200+ strikeouts since right-hander Jacob DeGrom did it with the New York Mets in 2018. He is the first MLB pitcher to finish with a sub-2.00 ERA in a season since right-hander Justin Verlander did so with the Houston Astros in 2022.

Skenes is the first pitcher in MLB history to finish with 200+ strikeouts and a sub-2.00 ERA and still not have a winning record, since ERA became a stat in 1913.

He is the first qualified pitcher to post a sub-2.00 ERA in a season at 23 years or younger, since right-hander Dwight Gooden did so at age 20 with the Mets in 1985.

Skenes also made Pirates history, with his 216 strikeouts the most for a right-handed pitcher in the live-ball era (since 1920). Only Ed Morris, who had 326 strikeouts in 1886 and 298 strikeouts in 1885, the most and second most in a season in franchise history, has more than him.

His 216 strikeouts rank seventh most in a season in franchise history and fifth most in the live-ball era.

Skenes is just one of three Pirates pitchers to lead the MLB in ERA, with right-hander John Candelaria last doing so in 1977 and right-hander Cy Blanton doing it first in 1935, according to OptaStats.

He is just the third Pirates pitcher that had a sub-2.00 ERA and threw 130+ innings in multiple seasons, with right-hander Babe Adams doing so in 1909 and 1919 and right-hander Howie Camnitz in 1908 and 1909.

His 1.97 ERA was the lowest for a Pirates starter with 30 or more starts since Camnitz in 1909, who had a 1.62 ERA in 30 starts.