Pirates rookie Paul Skinis named starter for National League All-Star Game

Pittsburgh Pirates rookie Paul Skinis will make his National League debut in Tuesday’s All-Star Game in Arlington, Texas.

The 22-year-old right-hander was the No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft and has started just 11 games in the majors.

Arizona Diamondbacks coach Torrey Lovullo informed Skinis and the public of his decision Friday morning by interviewing Skinis on “The Dan Patrick Show.”

“Paul, first of all, how are you? I just wanted to congratulate you. I have selected you as the National League starter for the 2024 All-Star Game,” Lovullo said. “I’m really excited for you. Incredible honor. Well deserved. We’re very excited to announce this.

“You represent so many great things that this game needs. It’s a great story. The way you came on the scene, and the way you did it with such humility, was remarkable. It would be a pleasure to be your manager. It would be a pleasure to see you throw your first pitch.”

Patrick Lovullo asked, “Is Paul on the pitch count?”

“I’m not going to go back,” Lovullo replied, laughing.

“We’ll see what happens there. We’ve got 11 guys to get there. Paul’s going to have a big zero in the first half for us and we’ll just keep going from there,” Lovullo said.

Skinis went 6-0 with a 1.90 ERA when he pitched seven hitless innings with 11 strikeouts in a 1-0 win Thursday over Milwaukee.

The 6-foot-6 Skinis made his Major League debut on May 11 and has struck out 89 batters and walked 13 over 66⅓ innings this season. He has the most strikeouts with an ERA under 2.00 in 11 games since the ERA became an official statistic in 1913, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

He became the fifth rookie to make an All-Star Game—the first in nearly 30 years. He joined Hideo Nomo (1995), Fernando Valenzuela (1981), Mark Fidrych (1976), and Dave Stenhouse (1962).

Skinis is also the first Pirates player to start the Midsummer Classic since Jerry Royce in 1975.

This report was informed by information from Field Level Media.