Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes was knocked around by the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday night, allowing a career-high five runs in a 5-3 loss at frigid PNC Park.
Skenes (1-1), who was electric in his first two starts this season, was spotty this time around. The 22-year-old reigning National League Rookie of the Year allowed six hits with a walk and seven strikeouts as his ERA more than doubled from 1.46 to 3.44.
Victor Scott II had two hits, including a two-run triple off Skenes in the third. Brendan Donovan had two hits for St. Louis and followed Scott’s first-career three-base hit with an RBI single that put the Cardinals up 3-0.
Sonny Gray (2-0) breezed through five innings for St. Louis, surrendering just one run and three hits. Gray’s only mistake came on a sinker to Bryan Reynolds in the fourth that the designated hitter sent into the right-field seats for his second homer this season.
With a game-time temperature of 38 degrees and a wind chill that dipped into the 20s, Skenes seemed primed for another dominant performance when he raced through the first two innings.
Instead, three of the first four batters in the third reached and all three scored on a night that Skenes was more hittable than usual.
Andrew McCutchen’s run-scoring groundout in the ninth made him the 221st player in major league history to with 1,100 RBIs.
(AP Photo Gene J. Puskar)
Advertisement
Cardinals knock out Skenes, Pirates 5-3
Advertisement
Latest Sports
Sports
7 hours ago
Sports
7 hours ago
Sports
7 hours ago
Sports
yesterday
Sports
yesterday
ADVERTISEMENT
Most Read >
ADVERTISEMENT
Latest Sports
Sports
7 hours ago
Sports
7 hours ago
Sports
7 hours ago
Sports
yesterday
Sports
yesterday
Advertisement
ADVERTISEMENT