Paul Skenes quietly showed genius adjustment in WBC semifinal

The World Baseball Classic semifinal matchup between the United States and the Dominican Republic featured one of the most exciting matchups the world has ever seen. The star-studded Dominican lineup had steamrolled every hurler in its path up to this point, entering the contest with a tournament-high 14 home runs. However, they'd be taking on the best pitcher in the world in Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes.

Skenes had just come off an epic display of power of his own, striking out seven over four innings against Team Mexico in the quarterfinal. This was going to be a battle of iron against iron, where whoever proved to be stronger would win out. Or so we thought.

Skenes was off to a good start, retiring the first five batters he faced and up 1-2 in the count against Junior Caminero when he hung a sweeper that the star third baseman sent deep into the night.

The potent Dominican lineup had kickstarted many a bludgeoning in much the same fashion. But instead of unraveling, Skenes buckled down and ensured it would be the last run the DR would scratch across. His game plan wasn't to blow them away with whiff-inducing triple-digit heat. Instead, the strategy was something completely different: get crafty and keep them off balance.

Pirates ace Paul Skenes turns in a masterful performance against the potent Dominican Republic lineup by unexpectedly getting crafty

In total, Skenes tossed 71 pitches, logging 4 1/3 innings and allowing six hits and no walks. He struck out just two batters. By the look of the box score, you might think that he didn't have his best stuff. The reality was very different.

Skenes didn't rack up a ton of K's because he didn't try to. Instead of chasing the strikeout, he thrived using the Dominican lineup's aggressiveness against them by pounding the zone and pitching to contact.

Caminero's homer and a pair of infield singles comprised half of the hits that Skenes gave up, and he got big outs when he needed to. The biggest challenge he faced was working out of a two-out bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the fourth, just after Team USA had taken the lead.

It was a reminder to all that Skenes isn't just all power. Sure, his average fastball velocity still came in at 97.6 miles per hour, but he reminded the world that he can reliably throw seven different pitches to confound hitters and keep them off balance.

He threw all seven in this matchup and did exactly that. No one else had been able to tamp down this impressive collection of sluggers before, but Skenes did and set the stage for the Team USA bullpen to finish the job.

Skenes will not pitch in the final, meaning his WBC showcase is over. But in this tournament's run, he showed off exactly why he's the best at what he does. No matter if the situation requires power or finesse, he can meet the challenge and has just the right tool in his arsenal to get the job done.