Paul Skenes pitched five shutout innings against the Chicago Cubs on Friday, when the Pittsburgh Pirates were able to squeeze out a 2-1 win in 10 innings. It marked the 10th start this season in which Skenes allowed one or no runs, but he once again did not factor in on the decision as he left the game when it was scoreless to begin the sixth inning.
We’ve seen an unprecedented lack of run support for Skenes so far in his career and especially in 2025, as the right-handed starter now has a 1.78 ERA in 15 starts, but only a 4-6 record to show for it. Going back to May 12, Skenes has made seven starts and has allowed a total of four earned runs in 47.1 innings. That’s a 0.76 ERA. The Pirates are 4-3 in those games while Skenes actually has a losing record next to his name during that stretch at 1-2.
We know, win/loss records for starting pitchers doesn’t really matter. Skenes being 4-6 with an ERA below two says everything you need to know about the Pirates and nothing about the 23-year-old’s effectiveness on the mound. At some point though it could lead to frustration for the star pitcher on the Pirates.
Former big-league pitcher and current Cubs analyst Jim Deshaies sympathized with Skenes during Friday’s game by calling out another Pirates young star Oneil Cruz and his lack of hustle. It was uncharacteristic of Deshaies to rag on a player, but it goes to show that retired or not a pitcher will always stand up for his own.
Cruz hit a line drive toward the gap in left center to begin the top of the sixth inning. Ian Happ raced over to cut the ball off as Cruz ran to first. However, Cruz’s effort brought out criticism from Deshaies. “Not a big fan of Cruz kind of cruising down to first base there,” he said on Marquee Sports Network.
Deshaies, who pitched in parts of 12 MLB seasons and is mainly remembered from his time with the Houston Astros during the 1980s, got to the root of his frustration watching Cruz stroll into first base. “You don’t need to try and win a gold medal, but you know a little harder than that just in case there’s a little misplay out there,” Deshaies said. “You’re in a scoreless game in the sixth inning, if I’m Skenes sitting in the dugout…the lack of run support he has gotten and the frustration that leads to, and I watch that I’m thinking c’mon man you gotta give me a little more than that.”
Cruz did get into scoring position by stealing second base and was able to get to third base with only one out after a ground out. The Pirates stranded him at third, but Cruz actually drove in the first run of the game on a fielder’s choice in the eighth.
The center fielder also helped Skenes out on defense, starting a perfect relay to end the fifth inning after Kyle Tucker doubled to left center. Cruz fired the ball in to Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who finished the play by throwing out Happ at home.
It just seemed so out of left field from Deshaies. He’s not the type of announcer who would typically call out a player’s effort, but I guess he’s even getting tired of the Pirates not giving Skenes any run support and Deshaies is the announcer for a division rival!
