Pirates’ Paul Skenes to play for USA at World Baseball Classic
Team USA’s rotation for the 2026 World Baseball Classic is already starting to look a step above what they put out in 2023.
Team USA’s rotation for the 2026 World Baseball Classic is already starting to look a step above what they put out in 2023.
Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes is the first pitcher to announce his commitment to the American side for the upcoming tournament, USA Baseball announced Tuesday.
The 22-year-old righty has enjoyed a magnificent start to his career, winning the NL Rookie of the Year last season and finishing third in NL Cy Young voting after putting up a 1.96 ERA with 170 strikeouts over his first 23 major-league starts.
Though he has cooled off this season, with a 2.63 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 54.2 innings pitched over nine starts, the former LSU product is still widely considered one of the best arms in baseball.
Getting the top American pitching talent to commit to Team USA, however, has been a struggle in the past. In 2023, the team sent out a rotation featuring Kyle Freeland, Merrill Kelly, Lance Lynn, Miles Mikolas, Adam Wainwright and Nick Martinez as top pitchers like Cy Young winners Gerrit Cole and Blake Snell opted to sit out.
Skenes has a history of representing Team USA on the world stage, as he suited up for the side three times before going pro.
He now joins captain Aaron Judge as the only players to have formally announced their spots on Team USA.
The American side is looking to rebound at the tournament after losing in the final to Shohei Ohtani and Japan. Their only win at the World Baseball Classic came in 2017 when they downed Puerto Rico in the finals.
The 2026 WBC will be held from March 5 to 17 in Tokyo, Houston, Miami and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Skenes and the rest of Team USA will begin pool play in Houston from March 6-11.
— With files from the Associated Press
