Folks, I've been covering baseball for two decades, and I don't think I've ever seen an Opening Day implosion quite like this.
Paul Skenes, the 2025 NL Rookie of the Year and the face of the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise, lasted exactly two outs on Opening Day at PNC Park. Two. Outs.
The Mets batted around in the first inning, touching Skenes for 5 runs on 4 hits while the 23-year-old phenom threw 37 pitches - most of them nowhere near where he wanted them. By the time manager Derek Shelton mercifully walked to the mound, the damage was done and the sellout crowd sat in stunned silence.
This wasn't supposed to happen. Not to Skenes. Not to the guy who dominated the National League last season with electric stuff and ice-cold composure. This was his first career start of less than 2.0 innings - a stat that tells you everything about how shocking this performance was.
According to reports, Skenes couldn't locate his fastball, his breaking ball hung in the zone, and the Mets - who aren't exactly known for patience - jumped all over him from pitch one.
Look, even the greats have bad days. Pedro Martinez got shelled. Randy Johnson had disaster starts. But on Opening Day? On the biggest stage of the young season? When your team is counting on you to set the tone? That's when these moments sting the most.
The Pirates eventually lost 13-7, with Brandon Lowe hitting two home runs in his Pittsburgh debut to at least give the fans something to cheer about. But this day will be remembered for all the wrong reasons.
Here's the thing about Skenes, though - the kid has shown us he's got the mental makeup to bounce back. He didn't become Rookie of the Year by accident. He's got ace-level stuff and now he's got adversity to overcome. How he responds in his next start will tell us a lot about what kind of career he's going to have.
