Paul Skenes By The Numbers: 17 Stats That Prove Why He Won The 2025 Cy Young Award

Since being selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, Paul Skenes has not just met the high expectations that were set for him — he has exceeded them.

The former LSU star made an instant impact in his first season with the Pirates, winning the 2024 National League Rookie of the Year award and finishing third in NL Cy Young voting behind the Braves’ Chris Sale and Phillies’ Zach Wheeler. In his first 23 starts, he went 11-3 with a 1.96 ERA.

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Skenes avoided a sophomore slump and took his game to another level in 2025, establishing himself as a two-time All-Star and a true franchise cornerstone. On Wednesday night, the 23-year-old won the first Cy Young award of his career over the Phillies’ Cristopher Sanchez and Dodgers’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Before Skenes, Doug Drabek (1990) and Vern Law (1960) were the only Pittsburgh pitchers to capture the award.

When you break down Skenes’ stats, the voting results aren’t surprising. Skenes was incredibly dominant this season even compared to other flamethrowers.

Paul Skenes’ Cy Young Season Explained In 17 Stats

Skenes led the NL in the following categories…

1. 1.97 ERA
2. 0.95 WHIP
3. 2.36 FIP
4. 217 ERA+
5. 5.1 win probability added

… and he landed in the NL’s top five in these categories:

6. 7.7 WAR
7. 187 2/3 innings pitched
8. 20 quality starts
9. 216 strikeouts
10. 10.4 strikeouts per 9 innings
11. 2.0 walks per 9 innings
12. 5.14 strikeout to walk rate

How about a little bit of a history lesson?

13. Skenes had the lowest ERA (1.97) of any Pirates pitcher in the Live Ball Era (since 1920).
14. Skenes had the second-best strikeouts per 9 innings rate (10.4) in franchise history behind only Oliver Perez (11.0 in 2004).
15. Skenes had the best strikeout to walk rate (5.14) of any Pirates pitcher on the all-time list.

Oh, and if anyone is complaining about Skenes winning the Cy Young award with a 10-10 record, let’s keep things in perspective.

16. Skenes did not earn a win this season in games in which he allowed more than one earned run, and he registered a win in only two games in which he allowed more than zero earned runs.
17. In the past 15 years, three starting pitchers have won the Cy Young award with a record just one game over .500: Felix Hernandez (13-12 in 2010), Jacob deGrom (10-9 in 2018) and Trevor Bauer (5-4 in 2020). Those pitchers weren’t penalized for lack of run support or bullpen struggles, and Skenes shouldn’t be, either.

Simply put, Paul Skenes’ ridiculous numbers gave him the strongest case for the Cy Young award, and the voters rewarded him for an outstanding season.

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