Paul Skenes: Is His Struggles a Sign of Bigger Issues?

Paul Skeens came into Major League Baseball after dominating at LSU with so much hype. Everyone was talking about Paul Skeens and how good this kid was going to be. Generational talent, flamethrower, nobody could touch him, right? Then he gets Livvy Dunn, the international, world-famous influencer, LSU gymnast. That's his girlfriend. So the two of them are everywhere, right? They're on red carpets. They're going to every big gala, every big event, the SBs and whatnot. The Pirates haven't won anything since Paul Skeens has become a member of their franchise. They've been somewhat competitive, but not this year with Paul Skeens on the mound. The Pittsburgh Pirates have lost 14 games with Paul Skeens as the starter. Now, you might be able to say that is not Paul Skeens' fault. That's the offense. That's the defense. That's the bullpen. No, it is as much Paul Skeens' fault that this team has lost 14 games as Paul Skeens himself. Tonight, they are minus 130, or the Brewers are minus 130 favorites over Paul Skeens and the Pirates with Kyle Harrison coming off the IL to pitch for the Brewers. He's been tremendous at points this year. He got a little tired in July and he was shut down with an injury for the last month, but he's now back on the bump for the Brewers. The Brewers are tremendous at home. The Pirates aren't great on the road in Paul Skeens, whether it be home or road. Paul Skeens hasn't been great. The numbers for Paul Skeens, I mean, this is just shocking. His ERA in July was 6.25. His ERA is 3.9. This guy, we're used to seeing a sub two ERA for Paul Skeens, not sub four. Hits per inning are up to 1.2. Walks per inning is 0.38. And how about this stat for Paul Skeens? Skeens has allowed five runs in the last two starts, five or more earned runs, as many times as he did in his last six starts, three times, as he did in his first 72 starts of his Major League Baseball career. Last two games, back to back, five earned runs given up, and he got racked a couple of starts ago, four starts ago, got lit up. Three starts of five or more earned runs, tying as many times as he had in the previous 72 starts in Major League Baseball for Paul Skeens. That is unbelievable. The question is, why? Why is Paul Skeens having such a difficult time this year? And it comes down to velocity. Look at this. In his first two seasons in Major League Baseball, Paul Skeens threw pitches at 98 or higher, 1,152 times. This year, just 95 pitches have gone over 98 or at 98 or higher. That is an average of four times per start. Previously, it was 28 times. Per start, 28 to 4. That is a dramatic drop in an era of power pitchers, in an era of guys pumping 100 mile-per-hour fastballs all game long. Paul Skeens is down to four pitches on average per start at 98 or higher. You have to ask the question as to whether or not Paul Skeens is healthy. Is he healthy? He was a generational talent. He was seen as a Roger Clemens, a Nolan Ryan, a workhorse, right? But you have to ask about the Tommy John potential because so many of these pitchers who are power pitchers, who have thrown so many innings, who have come through all of this, who have come through so many pitches through college, minors, although he ripped through the minors, into the big leagues.