Photo provided by Matt Lynch
When Vern Law was inducted into the Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Fame earlier this season, he threw out the first pitch ahead of a game against the Colorado Rockies at PNC Park.
On the receiving end of the ceremonial toss was Paul Skenes. The first pitch proved to be symbolic and served as foreshadowing in a way — from one to another.
Law became the first Pirate to be named the National League Cy Young when he was awarded the honor in 1960. Skenes, meanwhile, became the third Pirates Cy Young recipient (Doug Drabek won in 1990) when it was announced he won the 2025 award on Wednesday night.
Not only did Skenes win the award, but he did so unanimously. He became the first Pirate to ever win Cy Young in unanimous fashion and the first pitcher to do so in the National League since Sandy Alcantara in 2022.
“Winning it is one thing; it being a unanimous decision is another,” he explained. “It’s pretty special. The Cy Young Award is the Cy Young Award.”
Skenes finished the 2025 season – only his second in the big leagues – with an MLB-best 1.97 ERA and a Pirates’ franchise record for strikeouts in a single-season by a right-handed pitcher with 216.
In another disappointing season in Pittsburgh, Skenes was the bright spot, and had it not been for year-long offensive struggles from his teammates, the Pirates’ ace would have had a much better record than 10-10.
But not even a .500 record could deter voters from naming Skenes the top pitcher in the National League. 55 starts into his big-league career, a strong case could be made that he’s already the top pitcher in baseball.
“Obviously the voting’s evolved, not just in this award, but all the awards,” said Skenes. “It’s gonna continue to evolve. It shows what’s valued in this game on an individual level.”
The 23-year-old became the third pitcher in MLB history to win Rookie of the Year and Cy Young in each of his first two seasons along with Fernando Valenzuela (Dodgers, 1981) and Dwight Gooden (Mets, 1985-85).
He made more history during the season when he became the first pitcher to start the All-Star Game in each of his first two seasons when he took the mound for the National League in the Midsummer Classic in Atlanta.
Despite yet another phenomenal season, Skenes didn’t allow himself to think about the Cy Young until his year ended.
“I’ve been through it before,” Skenes said on staying focused. “Rookie of the Year, but before that, pitching in the College World Series with the Draft hanging over my head. I’ve dealt with this before. It’s not new. I think I know how to compartmentalize it. It’s hard. It’s definitely hard to show up every day and push that out of your mind. I’m glad nobody’s said anything. Nobody in the locker room said anything about it to me.”
But despite all the individual accolades Skenes has earned in his brief Major-League career, his main goal remains the same.
Skenes wants to win, and he wants to win in Pittsburgh.
“The focus needs to be winning a World Series in Pittsburgh. We haven’t done it since 1979. That’s 46 years. It’s not the longest drought in Major League Baseball but that’s something we’re working to change from within the clubhouse,” he said. “I know the organization is doing the same thing.”
Winning in Pittsburgh is no easy task, but it’s one that shouldn’t be as difficult given that the team has one of the two best pitchers in baseball. A case could certainly be made for American League winner Tarik Skubal.
The Pirates have an entire offseason to build a roster capable of pushing for the team’s first playoff appearance since 2015. While Skenes is confident in what the Pirates are capable of in 2026, he understands that confidence has to translate to more wins.
“We just gotta get everybody pushing in the right direction. I think it’s gonna be better next year but talk is cheap. We have to show up and do it. I have confidence that we’re going to and we’re going to get better. But there’s a long way to go. I’m excited for the challenge.”
Skenes has already followed in Law’s footsteps as a Cy Young winner. It’s an impressive feat not many can accomplish.
But matching Law as a World Series champion in Pittsburgh is an even more daunting task, and one that will take much more than Skenes’ personal brilliance.
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