Paul Skenes

2025 Player Outlook

It didn’t take long for Skenes to take the world by storm, as he posted a 1.96 ERA (2.44 FIP), 33.1 percent strikeout rate, and 0.95 WHIP across 133 IP. Of pitchers with at least 130 IP in 2024, Skenes was the only pitcher in baseball with at least a 50 percent ground ball rate and 30 percent strikeout rate. He handled 150+ IP between the majors and minors last season, so he’s ready for a full workload (180+ IP) in 2025. The upside is immense, and he should get enough run support from the Pittsburgh offense, making him the first or second pitcher off the board in fantasy drafts (depending on what we are counting Shohei Ohtani as). Skenes is an electric, dynamic talent with a repertoire and skillset to dominate all starting pitching categories. He’ll be off the board by the early second round in most drafts (12-teamers) this season.