Can Pirates phenom Paul Skenes win the NL Cy Young Award after winning Rookie of the Year?
USA TODAY Sports’ Gabe Lacques shares his expectations for Paul Skenes ahead of the 2025 MLB season.
Sports Seriously
Bubba Chandler is a 6-foot-3, 218-pound right-handed starting pitcher.Chandler made seven starts with the Indianapolis Indians last season after his promotion, and has made nine with them this season.
INDIANAPOLIS — Bubba Chandler always envisioned a brief stint in Indianapolis en route to the big leagues.
Until the days leading into the 2021 Major League Baseball Draft, Chandler planned to eventually represent Clemson at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine. The quarterback only spent a few weeks on campus before the Pittsburgh Pirates selected him in the third round. They held other plans for his right arm.
When baseball teammates ask how good he really was at football, Chandler tells them he’d probably be playing for the Chicago Bears, who took quarterback Caleb Williams first overall.
“Probably not, but no one will ever know, so I can say whatever I want about it,” Chandler said.
Chandler made his 16th start for the Indianapolis Indians on Sunday, spread over two seasons. With little left to prove in Triple-A, it may be his last start at Victory Field. In his second start against Louisville in five days and fourth already this season, he allowed two runs on seven hits in 4 1/3 innings, walking two and striking out eight.
Comparatively, that counts as a rough outing for Chandler. The 6-foot-3, 218-pound ace carries a 2.17 ERA with 56 strikeouts against 16 walks in 37 1/3 innings. The 22-year old’s fastball reaches triple digits, headlining a four-pitch arsenal.
Chandler said a rough three-outing stint in spring training taught him patience. He also admits he’s eager for the call. So are fans of the last-place Pirates, with Chandler’s good friend Paul Skenes carving up hitters but little else to look forward to this summer.
“I can’t lie, I do have social media, so I always see it,” Chandler said of the buzz from Pittsburgh. “I try to tell myself, wherever my feet are is where I’m going to put everything. Whether it’s here or last yar at Double-A, or hopefully soon in the big leagues, live every day like it’s your last and live in the moment.”
The hype increasingly seems very real. Chandler took all of one pitch to make an electric first impression on Brett Sullivan after the catcher was traded from the San Diego Padres organization April 17.
“He’s a stud,” said Sullivan, who spent parts of the past two seasons in the majors and has caught two of Chandler’s starts.
“You feel it, you know? It’s one of those guys, you gotta be locked in back there, because he’s coming at you with his best stuff. … Right away, pitch one, I was like, ‘This fastball is a little different.’”
Velocity, though, accounts for merely one reason Sullivan believes the prospect can thrive in the majors. The accompanying change-up gives hitters fits. The slider has increasingly become a strikeout pitch. Chandler mixes in a curve, too, with increasing confidence and in a variety of counts.
Most important, though, might be Chandler’s mindset, one which comes across as ruthless as the linebackers and rush ends he once faced. He wants to win. More to the point: He wants to dominate.
“I really don’t want you to touch first base, and I just want you to sit in the dugout and pout — until your next at-bat, so you can do it again,” Chandler said.
Chandler said he and Skenes share a mutual obsession on details. That comes across in how Chandler describes nitpicking his performances in Indianapolis — constantly seeking improvement in the margins.
He wants to boost his first-pitch strike percentage, as well as his putaway percentage — how often a two-strike count results in a strikeout. Sullivan said he talks with Chandler between innings to discuss which secondary pitches need more attention on a given day.
“For his age, his preparation is ahead of his time,” Sullivan said. “You just tip your cap to him, because he has an electric arm, but it’s more than that. In the clubhouse, off the field; he’s just a great kid.”
Chandler grew up an hour east of Atlanta, but a world away. His hometown, Bogart, has fewer than 1,500 residents. No irony in that “Bubba” nickname. Roy Ruben Chandler is not a city boy.
Still, he’s taken to Indianapolis over last summer and this spring. The quality of golf courses pleasantly surprised. Purgatory, The Fort, Brickyard and Country Club of Indianapolis rank among his favorites.
While Chandler awaits his imminent promotion, he’s also enjoying his Indianapolis baseball experience. With Sunday’ 4-3 victory, the Indians improved to 26-17 in the International League West, a half game behind first-place Nashville.
“We have so much fun,” Chandler said. “There’s truly a joy in winning.”
The Indians begin a six-game road series at Toledo on Tuesday. Chandler may not be on the bus back for the Memorial Day opener of a home stretch against Nashville.
He gave up football as an 18-year-old because he could already see how close he was to the big leagues. That decision should pay off any day now.