I figured Russ Springer would have something good to say about the record-breaking rookie pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates, and it’s not just because Springer’s middle name is Paul, or that they both share strikeout party experience with LSU and the major leagues.
Russell Paul Springer, former stud right-handed pitcher for LSU and for 10 different major league teams over 18 seasons, likes what he sees in Paul David Skenes, the Pirates’ stud rookie right-handed pitcher, who on Sunday became the first No. 1 MLB draft pick to make the All-Star team the year after being drafted.
Skenes, who transferred from the Air Force Academy to lead LSU to the College World Series title last year, is coming off a game Friday when he struck out eight over seven innings against the New York Mets. That gave him 78 strikeouts through 10 starts to set a major league record for most strikeouts in a pitcher’s first 10 games.
“He’s got a bright future,” said the 55-year-old Springer, who knows about strikeouts, from his home in Pollock, in rural Grant Parish. His baseball career, which earned him distinction as a Louisiana Sports Hall of Famer (Class of 2018), ignited as a freshman at LSU when he averaged 14.5 strikeouts every nine innings for a Southeastern Conference record.
“He looked like a pro ball guy in college,” Springer said of the strapping 6-foot-6 pitcher who whipped through the minors (34 innings, 55 strikeouts) in seemingly no time before being promoted to the bigs in early May. “He’s a big guy, he’s got a great work ethic, he’s very good and he’s intelligent.” Not to mention he’s got a star girlfriend in LSU gymnast Olivia Dunne.
“His fastball is good,” Springer continued of Skenes, whose fastballs often hit or top 100 mph. “People want to talk about his velocity, but what makes his fastball special is that it has so much vertical movement.”
And what about that pitch he calls a “splinker” – a now-you-see-it, now-you-don’t hummer that drops out of sight at the last moment?
Describing it as something combining a fastball, splitter and sinker, Springer said, “You can’t teach that. You’ve either got it or you don’t.”
Skenes, 5-0, with a 2.13 earned run average, is a crowd-pleaser, too, He has won over fans in Pittsburgh just as he did at the Air Force and at LSU. He has that manicured mustache that has fans now wearing fake mustaches when they go to see him pitch, he wears a chain with a silver crucifix, and he has said his favorite song is our national anthem. His patriotism isn’t just talk. His Air Force coach, Matt Kazlausky, said it’s so important to Skenes that he plans to serve in the military in some capacity after his baseball career.
When he got his final strikeout Friday night, many of the home crowd at PNC Park – he attracted a sellout crowd of 37,037 — rose to give him a standing ovation. Standing ovations don’t just happen at home with this guy. After he left a game at St. Louis last month after pitching 6 1/3 scoreless innings, the Cardinals fans at Busch Stadium, known for their class and sportsmanship, gave him a standing ovation.
Not since Stephen Strasburg has a No. 1 draft pick been so celebrated as a rookie, but Strasburg spent a full season in the minors before making his big league debut in 2010, when he was an NL Player of the Week in June. Strasburg, the 2019 World Series MVP for the Washington Nationals, retired earlier this year at age 35 after his career was derailed by injuries.
Springer thinks Skenes, with his work ethic and consistency with his pitching mechanics, will pitch for many years, as he did and even fashioned his best seasons late in his career, finishing 10-2 with the Cardinals in 2007 and ’08 with a 2.25 ERA.
He also said Skenes will only improve. Having watched all of his games at LSU and maybe half of his games with the Pirates, Springer has noticed some ways Skenes could improve.
“He pulls left off the ball,” said Springer, “and his fastball tends to dip toward the first base dugout.” Even so, he thinks a coach or a more experienced pitcher has already told Skenes about that tendency because it has been less of a problem in recent outings.
Skenes fans around here are likely trying to grab tickets to next week’s All-Star Game, which is Tuesday, July 16, within easy driving distance at the Texas Rangers’ Globe Life Field. There’s some talk in the press that he should start, considering it’d be great for the TV ratings.
Think of Skenes facing the likes of American League All-Stars Jose Altuve, Juan Soto, Aaron Judge and Yordan Alvarez. That might just make the All-Star Game fun again.