Pirates manager addresses notion of shutting down healthy Paul Skenes this season

Rookie starting pitcher Paul Skenes has completely transformed the short- and long-term outlook for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He has helped drag them to playoff contender status this season, and he looks like he has a chance to be one of the best starting pitchers in baseball and a franchise cornerstone for the foreseeable future.

The one lingering question that has been a concern for this season is whether or not the Pirates might consider shutting him down or cap his innings due to the fact this is his first full year of pro baseball.

Pirates manager Derek Shelton addressed that concern on Tuesday during his weekly appearance on 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh and said the team has no plans to shut down Skenes if he is healthy and that their goal is for him to pitch all season.

Skenes pitched 128 minutes during the 2023 season split between LSU (NCAA) and a few spot starts in the minor leagues after being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 Major League Baseball Draft. So far this season between Triple-A and Pittsburgh he has already logged 93.1 innings. Given how careful teams are with young pitchers arms, as well as how important Skenes is to the Pirates' long-term outlook, it is reasonable to conclude they might like to limit him. They have already pulled him when he had a no-hitter going in two of his first 11 big league starts, including his most recent start in Milwaukee.

There is some precedent for teams shutting down young pitchers like this, as the Washington Nationals shut down Stephen Strasburg in his rookie season when the team was still competing for a playoff spot.

What the Pirates might do is limit his pitch counts in games or perhaps even have him skip an occasional start. That would allow them to keep his innings lower while also keeping him in the rotation all year. They could also try a six-man pitching rotation in the second half, which seems like a real possibility given the depth they have there.

The Pirates enter Tuesday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals just a half game out of a playoff spot in the National League with Skenes set to take the mound. With Skenes, Jared Jones (when he returns), Mitch Keller and Luis Ortiz the Pirates have what is statistically one of the best starting rotations in baseball and are 34-27 since Skenes made his debut in early May. With the addition of another bat or two, they could be a very formidable team in the National League playoff picture.