Last month’s highly anticipated matchup between Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes and Philadelphia’s Zack Wheeler turned into more of a mismatch.
Skenes will aim to exact some revenge on Wheeler on Wednesday night when the Pirates continue their four-game road series with the Phillies.
Two of the best pitchers in the majors, Skenes (6-7, 3.10 ERA) and Wheeler (8-1, 2.03) squared off in Pittsburgh on May 17. Wheeler threw seven scoreless innings that day, while Skenes allowed five runs in five frames in the Phillies’ 6-0 victory.
“You (face) a guy like Skenes, your starter’s got to be good, keep you in the game, give us a chance to just scratch for a run here or there,” Philadelphia interim manager Don Mattingly said after that contest. “I thought we were able to do that.”
Bryce Harper homered against Skenes.
“Other than one pitch, I thought it was really good against them,” Skenes after the game. “Sometimes you throw a pitch, and they take you yard. You can’t get too hung up on that.”
Fast forward to the present, and Wheeler is in a groove. The right-hander went 4-0 with a 1.71 ERA in June, capped by a 2-1 victory Friday over the New York Mets in which he allowed one run in seven innings.
Skenes, meanwhile, hasn’t been his usual dominant self lately. In fact, the Pirates have lost each of the right-hander’s last eight starts, dating to the matchup against Wheeler.
Skenes’ most recent outing was a 6-4 setback Friday against the Cincinnati Reds in which he yielded four runs in five innings.
“I think it does get frustrating for Paul, for the team, for everybody, for me, when Paul has a start and we don’t win,” Pittsburgh manager Don Kelly said. “We need to find a way to win.”
Skenes is 0-2 with a 2.61 ERA in three lifetime starts against Philadelphia, and Wheeler is 6-1 with a 2.10 ERA in 10 career outings vs. Pittsburgh.
The Phillies and Pirates have split the first two contests of this series.
Pittsburgh rallied from a 5-0 deficit on Monday en route to an 11-7 triumph. Philadelphia drew even Tuesday with an 8-0 victory as Cristopher Sanchez — who finished as the runner-up to Skenes in last year’s National League Cy Young Award race — threw seven scoreless innings.
“Definitely (important to) flush last night and come back the next day,” said Phillies outfielder Justin Crawford, who recorded three hits and three RBIs on Tuesday. “It was good for all of us.”
Trea Turner also homered for Philadelphia in addition to providing an RBI double. He has gone deep in both games of the series and has multiple hits in six of the last eight games.
The Pirates managed only five hits Tuesday — two by Esmerlyn Valdez. The rookie outfielder homered in Monday’s series opener — his fourth straight game with a home run — but settled for two singles and a walk on Tuesday.
“We’ve been resilient,” Kelly said after the game. “We need to find a way. They have a good pitcher tomorrow. We have a good pitcher tomorrow. We need to find a way to bounce back.”
–Field Level Media
