Skenes pulled from no-hitter in 2nd career start

Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes was pulled after throwing six no-hit innings versus the Chicago Cubs on Friday.

Skenes, the first overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, threw 100 pitches before his removal in the Pirates' 9-3 win. He's expected to work with an innings limit while he adjusts to life in the majors.

"Just really, really cool all around," Skenes said, according to The Associated Press. "Wrigley's awesome, you know, playing these guys. Friday day game, I had heard all about the day games at Wrigley and the vibe there. So it was just really, really cool."

The 21-year-old opened his second career start with seven straight strikeouts, finishing the dominant outing with 11 overall.

"It was extremely impressive," Pirates manager Derek Shelton said, according to The Associated Press' Jay Cohen. "I mean, he went right after them."

Skenes, MLB's top-ranked pitching prospect, made his highly anticipated MLB debut Saturday against the Cubs. He allowed three earned runs and struck out seven over four innings.

Ahead of Friday's start, he brushed off concerns that the Cubs would have an easier time facing him the second time around.

Skenes became just the fourth Pirates pitcher to strike out double-digit hitters in a game before his 22nd birthday, and the first since John Candelaria in 1975.

The budding star is tentatively scheduled to make his next start Wednesday against the San Francisco Giants.