Updating Pirates ace Paul Skenes’ National League Cy Young Award Chances

The National League Cy Young Award race is heating up between Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes and Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler.

MLB.com talked to its “panel of experts” for the latest Cy Young poll. And once again, Skenes has pulled ahead, leapfrogging Wheeler after getting 26 of the 32 first-place votes.

“After receiving just six first-place votes in our previous Cy Young poll, Skenes has shot back to the front in commanding fashion — and for good reason,” MLB.com’s Jared Greenspan wrote Wednesday. “No NL starting pitcher is harder to hit than Skenes, who is holding the opposition to a .187 batting average.

“Meanwhile, his 2.02 ERA is the best in baseball among qualified starters. As MLB.com’s Tom Tango recently pointed out, Skenes has been remarkably consistent since breaking into the Majors last May. It doesn’t look like he’s slowing down anytime soon,” Greenspan concluded.

However Wheeler, 35, has a compelling case. His 182 strikeouts and 0.92 WHIP lead the National League. Wheeler is second to San Diego Padres right-hander Dylan Cease with 11.7 strikeouts per nine innings.

Wheeler is running third among NL pitchers with 4.9 WAR, trailing Skenes (5.4) and Phillies teammate Cristopher Sanchez (5.7). In fact, Sanchez finished third in the latest Cy Young poll, followed by Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto and San Francisco Giants right-hander Logan Webb.

Skenes, 23, returns to the mound Thursday when the Pirates open a four-game series at PNC Park with the Cincinnati Reds. Wheeler will take the mound Friday when the Phillies open a three-game series against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field.

If Skenes wins the Cy Young Award, he would be the first Pirates pitcher to earn the honor since Doug Drabek in 1990.

The sophomore right-hander finished third in voting last year behind Wheeler and Atlanta Braves ace Chris Sale, who took home the award for the first time in his career.

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