Coming off 'weird' loss, Skenes gets the ball in Cincy

CINCINNATI -- When a winning streak ends, the only choice is to try and start a new one. Paul Skenes cruised into his last start with three straight wins before dropping his first game of the second half to the Cubs.

With the Pirates in the thick of the NL Wild Card race and the Trade Deadline just a few days away, Skenes will have to get back on track against the division-rival Reds on Friday. Skenes is 9-9 on the year and has an ERA almost 1.70 points higher than his first two MLB seasons. Here’s everything to know ahead of Skenes’ 23rd start of the year.

Last time out
The only way Skenes could describe his latest outing, against the Cubs, was “weird.” He struck out a season-high 11 batters but gave up five earned runs on six hits to tally his ninth loss of the season.

In the contest, Skenes was cruising through four innings but lost steam in the fifth and sixth. He gave up three runs in the fifth and after allowing two batters in the sixth to reach base, he was pulled at 105 pitches. Isaac Mattson entered and let both runners score. The rest of the bullpen allowed six more runs in 3 2/3 innings.

Facing Cincinnati
Friday will be Skenes’ third start of the year against the Reds. He won the first and earned a no-decision in the second start just over a month ago on June 26. Skenes finds plenty of success against Cincinnati, holding a 5-0 record and 1.38 ERA in seven career starts. Reds star shortstop Elly De La Cruz is 4-for-15 off Skenes.

Stat to know: 2.84 xERA
Skenes seems to be unlucky in his third season, tallying a 2.84 expected ERA. The mark is 0.81 points lower than his actual ERA. While 2.84 is higher than his xERA in the last two years of 2.65 (2025) and 2.50 (2024), Skenes is still posting as one of the best in the business. The 2.84 xERA is in the 92nd percentile of MLB.