Baseball

The wait for Paul Skenes is finally over. The Pirates announced on Wednesday that they are promoting their top prospect to the Majors. Skenes, a fireballing right-hander, is scheduled to make his first start on Saturday against the Cubs at PNC Park (4:05 p.m. ET), according to the club.

Skenes was the first overall pick in last year’s Draft and is currently ranked as the No. 3 prospect, and top pitcher, in the game by MLB Pipeline. The 6-foot-6 Skenes burst onto the national scene last year with Louisiana State University, being named the Division I National Player of the Year and leading his school to the College World Series title.

Armed with a fastball that consistently registers in the triple digits and a wipeout slider, Skenes certainly lived up to the hype during his time in the Minors this year, where he recorded a 0.99 ERA and 45 strikeouts over 27 1/3 innings with Triple-A Indianapolis. He has also developed his pitch repertoire in his time as a professional, mixing in his changeup, curveball and “splinker” (a sinker-splitter hybrid) more, adding additional weapons to his arsenal.