Paul Skenes is one season away from rare air with Tarik Skubal

When it comes to Major League pitchers, there’s Paul Skenes and Tarik Skubal — and the rest of the sport is playing catch-up.

Last season, both went wire-to-wire in their respective Cy Young races. There was no late surge. No September debate. No “but what about this guy?” moment. They entered as favorites and never let go.

Now here’s what makes 2026 different — and historic. If Skenes and Skubal both repeat, they’ll accomplish something baseball has seen only once: two pitchers winning back-to-back Cy Young Awards at the same time.

The last duo to do it? Pedro Martinez and Randy Johnson, in 1999-2000. That’s the air Skenes is breathing now.

Let’s put this in perspective. Through 55 career starts, Skenes owns a 1.96 ERA — the lowest of any pitcher in the Live Ball Era (since 1920). Not “for his age.” Not “since integration.” Since 1920, period.

He already has a Rookie of the Year, a Cy Young Award and a résumé that looks too good to be true. In 2025, he joined Fernando Valenzuela and Dwight Gooden as the only pitchers to win Rookie of the Year and a Cy Young within their first two seasons.

No one in history has opened their career with Rookie of the Year and two Cy Youngs in their first three years. That's what's sitting in front of Skenes right now.

Paul Skenes and Tarik Skubal can make Cy Young history with back-to-back wins

Skubal is chasing a third straight Cy Young, which would put him alongside Johnson and Greg Maddux as the only pitchers to win three consecutively. Skenes is chasing something different: the kind of early-career dominance that forces baseball to recalibrate its expectations.

Want to understand how absurd that is? Only Clayton Kershaw and Sandy Koufax have posted three sub-2.00 ERA seasons in the Live Ball Era (minimum 20 starts). No one has done it three straight to begin a career. Skenes could — before he turns 25.

Pirates fans have seen flashes before. We’ve seen promise. We’ve seen “the next big thing.” But this is different. If 2025 made Skenes elite, 2026 could make him era-defining.

One more season, one more Cy Young, and suddenly, Skenes isn’t just the best young pitcher in baseball. He’s standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Skubal as the defining arms of this generation — chasing a piece of history that hasn’t been touched in over 25 years.