Seated at a coffee shop minutes from his offseason workout facility in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., Paul Skenes’ face lit up when discussing another pitcher from the Pirates’ 2023 draft class, Khristian Curtis.
Skenes was the marquee selection, Curtis a project — though one Skenes was warning would help the big league club soon. The Pirates took Curtis in the 12th round, two days and 346 picks after drafting Skenes first overall.
Under the radar at the time, Curtis has impressed in three Major League outings this season. He has a 1.64 ERA in 11 innings, emerging as a bulk option — and potential future starter — due to his elite stuff and willingness to challenge hitters.
“He’s a prototypical guy: strong, tall, big body and someone we feel can be a starter in the big leagues,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “With his pitch mix and how consistently he’s been able to attack with it, it’s been impressive.”
While Curtis has certainly pitched well, what might be most impressive is that he’s here at all.
Before pitching a single inning at Texas A&M, his dream school, Curtis had major surgery on his right elbow to relieve recurring nerve issues and install an internal brace similar to what Jared Jones endured.
If that wasn’t serious enough, the surgery was also botched. It was supposed to be a nerve transposition procedure where Curtis’ ulnar nerve was relocated. For whatever reason, the nerve was never fully stitched down, and the suture — which was not dissolvable — began fraying Curtis’ ulnar nerve in half.
“They said if I would have kept throwing, I could have ended up with a severed nerve,” Curtis said, discussing the January 2021 procedure.
Curtis rehabbed but continued to experience pain early in the 2022 season. He said he went back to his original surgeon, who wanted to prescribe a round of steroids in order to finish the season, before ultimately seeking out a second opinion.
Five starts into his sophomore year, Curtis had pitched to a 1.42 ERA … but also said he “felt like someone was jabbing my elbow.” So, on April 1, 2022, he had another surgery, this surgeon removing the stitches in the nerve and installing a graft to protect it.
It fixed the pain, though Curtis still has limited feeling in his right ring and pinky fingers. Though he’s gotten used to them, Curtis said he still experiences some random sensations in his hand.
Making matters worse, after surgery ended his 2022 season, Curtis learned his scholarship had been revoked. Upset at how he had been treated, Curtis entered the transfer portal and quickly found a fit at Arizona State.
In the desert, Curtis played for former Major Leaguer Willie Bloomquist and a well-respected college pitching coach in Sam Peraza, who’s coached more than 20 pitchers who’ve become MLB draft picks.
“The first thing ASU told me was, ‘You’re an asset to us. We need you. We want you,’ ” Curtis said. “It was a no-brainer for me.
“Bloomy played in the big leagues for a long time. He knows what it takes to be a Major Leaguer. Outside of the injuries, I wanted to learn from him and pick his brain. Just go out there and compete.”
Which Curtis certainly did, despite some subpar results. In 2023, Curtis pitched in 15 games (14 starts) and had a 7.03 ERA. He walked 35 and struck out just 58 in 64 innings, though MLB scouts liked his stuff.
MLB Pipeline rated Curtis as one of that draft’s top day three picks. Meanwhile, the Pirates outlined a development plan they envisioned for Curtis and met his signing bonus demands ($500,000).
Curtis’ earned above-average grades for his hard cutter, which can occasionally behave like a slider. His fastball velocity (95-96 mph) has also continued to play up because of the extension Curtis gets with 6-foot-5 frame.
But due to time missed with injuries, how to put all of that together — along with Curtis developing his changeup and curveball — was still a work in progress, requiring refinement at the pro level.
“I had to re-learn how to use my hand from my first surgery,” Curtis said. “I was going through a bunch of issues and struggling with consistency and strength. The stuff was there all year. It was just whether I knew where it was going or not.”
Why Curtis’ elbow gave him problems wasn’t terribly hard to identify, in hindsight. As a high school senior, he was still about the same height but only weighed 175 pounds. Rail thin, basically.
He also saw an unusual uptick in velocity, his four-seamer jumping from 90-92 mph to 95-97 and an occasional 98 in his final outing before graduating. His frame simply wasn’t equipped to handle that level of force.
As a pro, Curtis has filled out to 215 pounds, while his feel for pitching has similarly increased. He hasn’t been afraid to challenge hitters, and he’s learned how to keep things simple, resisting overthrowing to make a pitch and simply trusting his ability.
“Even if I fall behind, I’ve noticed that my stuff is good enough,” Curtis said. “All it takes is one good pitch in the right spot, and it’ll be successful.”
What Curtis has gone through gives him a different perspective that only grew coming up through the Minors: at Bradenton in 2024, Greensboro and Altoona in 2025 and Double-A through the Majors this year.
While other prospects have received more hype, Curtis — perhaps due to his draft position — has flown under the radar, only recently making it to No. 15 on MLB Pipeline’s list of top Pirates prospects.
He might’ve taken a circuitous route to get here. But Curtis refuses to take any part of his journey for granted.
“I had a lot of outside factors that I couldn’t really control,” Curtis said. “But I wouldn’t have traded it for anything, overcoming adversity and being where I am today.
“The way I look at it, once you get drafted, that doesn’t really matter. We’re all Pittsburgh Pirates and just want to do whatever we can to help the team win.”
Jason Mackey: Jason.Mackey@pirates.com and @JMackey_PGH on X.