Paul Skenes is reaching a Pirates level untouched for more than a century

Every time Paul Skenes takes the mound right now, it feels like the franchise record book needs another update. Tuesday night’s 3-1 win over the Colorado Rockies at PNC Park became the latest entry in what is quickly turning into one of the most dominant stretches any Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher has produced in more than a century.

For 6 1/3 innings Tuesday, Colorado did not record a hit. The Rockies looked completely overmatched from the first pitch of the night, as Skenes struck out the first six batters he faced before Willi Castro finally interrupted the streak with a bunt single in the third inning.

That’s where Skenes is right now. Teams are trying to manufacture offense before they even attempt to swing normally.

By the end of the night, Skenes had thrown eight scoreless innings while allowing just two hits, no walks and striking out 10. It was the kind of performance that no longer feels surprising, which somehow makes it even more absurd.

Since getting shelled on Opening Day by the New York Mets, Skenes has looked like a pitcher visiting from another era. Over his last eight starts, he owns a 1.09 ERA and 0.53 WHIP across 49 1/3 innings. And perhaps the wildest stat of all: he has not walked a batter since April 13.

No Pirates pitcher has gone longer between walks since the mound was moved to its current distance in 1893. That is historic command paired with elite stuff, which is a terrifying combination for the rest of baseball.

The company Skenes is now keeping tells the story better than anything else. He joined Bob Veale and Steve Blass as the only Pirates pitchers in the modern era to throw back-to-back starts of at least eight scoreless innings while allowing two or fewer hits. Skenes is the only one of them to do it without issuing a walk in either outing.

Across all of Major League Baseball, only Cy Young, Billy Pierce and Mat Latos have accomplished the same feat. That’s a list spanning 121 years of baseball history.

Paul Skenes has Don Kelly recalling one of baseball’s most dominant runs

Long before he ever managed Skenes in Pittsburgh, Don Kelly was playing in Detroit during Justin Verlander’s peak years. Every Verlander start felt predetermined before the game even began, he said — and Skenes starts now feel the same way.

“Back in 2011 with (Verlander), every time he took the mound, you were shocked when he gave up a hit,” Kelly said after Tuesday's game. “Paul is on that type of run right now.”

That is not a comparison thrown around lightly. Verlander’s 2011 season remains one of the defining pitching performances of the century. He won the Cy Young, won MVP and carried an aura every fifth day that made opposing lineups look defeated before first pitch. Skenes is beginning to create that exact atmosphere.

What makes it even more impressive is how completely unaffected Skenes appears by all of it. Most young pitchers ride emotional waves. A bad outing can lead to mechanical panic. A dominant start can lead to overconfidence. But Skenes remains remarkably even-keeled.

That calmness is part of what separates him. The Pirates are watching a pitcher with overwhelming stuff, elite command and the mentality to handle both superstardom and adversity without changing a thing.

That combination is extraordinarily rare. And right now, it’s producing a level of pitching Pittsburgh hasn’t seen in generations.

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