Former Cy Young winner and World Series champion CC Sabathia knows a thing or two about being an ace, and it’s great to see that he’s still following the game closely while enjoying his retirement.
In a recent media appearance, Sabathia shared his admiration for one of the game’s brightest young pitchers.
Sabathia appeared on The Pat McAfee Show today and heaped praise upon Pittsburgh Pirates rookie Paul Skenes, saying “Paul Skenes is the real deal and he’s gonna be a bonafide ace for a very long time” before adding that he is “electric and I wanna see him in the All-Star Game.”
“Paul Skenes is the real deal and he’s gonna be a bonafide ace for a very long time..
He’s been electric and I wanna see him in the All-Star Game” ~ @CC_Sabathia #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/9oCy5IEPqd
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) June 19, 2024
Skenes has set the league on fire since being called up and is 4-0 with a 2.29 ERA over seven starts and Sabathia believes this is real and not just a hot start given “his makeup and the way that he can command the strike zone and the stuff that he has” that he will be a legitimate ace.
Skenes has 53 strikeouts and just seven walks over 39.1 innings of work and his team is 6-1 in his starts.
Skenes might have come up too late to make the All-Star team, but you would never know given how well he has pitched and how many big-name starting pitchers have gone down with injuries.
The competition in the NL is fierce, as there are so many pitchers likely ahead of Skenes in the discussion that seem like locks, including Zack Wheeler, Chris Sale, Logan Webb, Tyler Glasnow, and the incredible seasons of Reynaldo Lopez, Ranger Suarez, and Shota Imanaga who are the top three in the majors for ERA.
