Paul Skenes, Pirates shut out Diamondbacks again

Colin Beazley, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Jul 27, 2025

Published in Baseball

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PITTSBURGH — The Arizona Diamondbacks couldn’t score an earned run in the first two games of the series. They fared no better against Paul Skenes.

The Pittsburgh Pirates shut out the Diamondbacks, 6-0, on Sunday afternoon at PNC Park, their second consecutive shutout win and 13th of the season. Arizona managed one run all series, an unearned run in the 11th inning of a 1-0 win Friday night.

Skenes earned the win, improving to 6-8. He allowed a total of two runs in five July starts, good for a 0.67 ERA.

Arizona starter Zac Gallen took the loss, dropping to 7-12.

Skenes had to work through some traffic, allowing three hits, all for extra bases, in six innings. He stranded a runner on third in the second, third and fourth innings. He finished with nine strikeouts and threw 99 pitches, his most since June 19.

Center fielder Oneil Cruz was the offensive catalyst, as he went 2 for 3 with a walk, a double, two runs and two RBIs. He started the scoring in the second. He drew a walk off Gallen, then scored all the way from first on a Tommy Pham single. Cruz was stealing on the pitch and reached third easily when Pham’s hit dropped into left field, but his hustle and speed meant he scored without a throw.

The Pirates added two more in the third. With second baseman Nick Gonzales on first, designated hitter Bryan Reynolds scored him with a double down the right field line. Reynolds advanced to third on the throw home, then scored on an RBI single from Cruz.

Cruz ripped a double down the line in the sixth, scoring Reynolds from first and putting the Pirates ahead 4-0. Third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes added a two-out, two-run double in the eighth off reliever John Curtiss to end any doubt.

It was over when …

With Skenes on the hill and how the Pirates have pitched this series, even a 3-0 lead felt safe. The fourth run made a series win a near-certainty.

On the mound

After Skenes, relievers Caleb Ferguson and Carmen Mlodzinski finished the shutout. Ferguson needed just eight pitches for a 1-2-3 seventh, then Mlodzinski pitched the final two frames.

In his last eight appearances out of the bullpen, spanning 20 2/3 innings, Mlodzinski has a 1.31 ERA.

At the plate

The Pirates had nine hits, including three doubles. They went 2 for 6 with runners in scoring position and left five hitters on base.

Pham went 2 for 4 with a double, a run and an RBI. Gonzales scored twice.

Most valuable player

Skenes. He has a 1.89 ERA in his first 45 career starts, the second-best mark in baseball history. Per Sarah Langs, the only pitcher to have a better career ERA through 45 starts was Ferdie Schupp, who had a 1.64 ERA for the New York Giants from 1913 to 1917.

Up next

The Pirates head west for a weeklong, six-game road trip. They’ll start in San Francisco before facing the lowly Rockies for three games.

Mitch Keller (4-10, 3.53) will open the trip against the Giants at Oracle Park at 9:45 p.m. ET Monday. The Giants have not yet announced a starter.

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