Cubs’ Craig Counsell Makes Demoralizing Paul Skenes Comments After Pirates Game originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Outside of Tarik Skubal, there’s no debate that Paul Skenes is the best starter in Major League Baseball.
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There’s even a strong argument to be made that the 23-year-old is by far the top arm in the league, given his age and just what he’s done throughout the first two years of his big league career.
For the Chicago Cubs, they’ll unfortunately have to deal with him for quite some time, unless the Pittsburgh Pirates decide to move on from him, which can’t be counted out given what that organization has done over the past few decades.
However, for now, Skenes is in Pittsburgh, and that has impacted the Cubs. The right-hander again threw the baseball at a very high level in the Pirates’ win over the Cubs on a Saturday, throwing five innings of four-hit baseball, striking out five, and allowing zero earned runs.
He lowered his season ERA to 1.78, entering the outing with a 1.88 ERA.
Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell (11) observes batting practice before the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park.Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
When speaking to reporters after the game, Craig Counsell said about what Skenes has done on the bump. However, he wasn’t too happy when asked what would count as success against the youngster.
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“Winning,” Counsell said, per The Athletic. “What else is there? We can make up a story. We can make up a narrative. But if we don’t win, it’s not going to be a good narrative. That’s what we’re trying to do.”
This is a demoralizing comment, showing that the Cubs don’t have much of an answer for when he’s on the mound.
In Chicago’s defense, it isn’t like many other teams around the league have an answer, either. Skenes is as good as he is for a reason, and the Cubs just have to find a way to scratch together some runs and hope Pittsburgh’s offense doesn’t show up when he’s pitching.
Related: Former Yankees Starter Could Be Perfect for Cubs
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 15, 2025, where it first appeared.