Former LSU star and Pirates phenom Paul Skenes notches 100th MLB strikeout

Former LSU pitcher and current Pirates star Paul Skenes hit another milestone on Monday night, notching his 100th career strikeout when facing the Houston Astros. It took Skenes just 13 starts to hit the mark.

Skenes rise to the big leagues has been meteoric. Just two years ago, he was pitching at Air Force. A year later, he led LSU to a national title and went on to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft.

Now, Skenes is a runaway favorite for Rookie of the Year and managed to start the All-Star game two months into his big league career. Skenes owned a 1.93 ERA entering the night, which led all major league starters with 70 or more innings under their belt.

Skenes’ strikeout rate of 34.2% is second only to Garrett Crochet of the White Sox but his K/BB ratio of 29.6% leads the MLB.

It might be tough given his lack of innings, but Skenes is mounting a strong case for Cy Young too.

Skenes became just the sixth player in the history of the sport to reach 100 Ks in 13 starts or less.

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