Watch: The anticipated Paul Skenes-Aaron Judge matchup lasted just one pitch

The one matchup that the baseball world wanted to see in the 2024 MLB All-Star Game was Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes going against New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge.

The best young power pitcher in baseball, getting the All-Star Game start just 11 starts into his career, going against the best power hitter in baseball and likely American League MVP winner.

Given the way the regular season matchup between Paul Skenes and Shohei Ohtani went earlier this season, the prospect of the Skenes-Judge matchup was the type of thing that could draw in viewers.

Baseball fans ended up getting that matchup in the bottom of the first inning. It did not exactly match the hype as it lasted just a single pitch, with Skenes getting Judge to ground into an inning-ending fielder's choice.

Skenes did not allow a hit in the first inning, getting Cleveland's Steven Kwan to pop out and Baltimore's Gunnar Henderson to ground out. He ended up walking Yankees outfielder Juan Soto to bring Judge to the plate.

There was some concern that the Skenes-Judge matchup might not happen given the decision by American League manager Bruce Bochy to hit Judge in the fourth spot of the lineup. That could have been a major misstep for baseball fans had they not had a chance to face each other. Soto's walk avoided that, even the the ball four pitch could have easily been called the third strike.

Skenes did not strike out any batters in his one inning of work, but he did get Soto to swing and miss in a manner that few pitchers can.

It is not easy to get Soto to swing and miss that badly at a pitch. Overall it was a strong showing for Skenes given that he faced the American League's leading hitter (Kwan) and the top-three American League MVP candidates in Henderson, Soto and Judge.