Depending on when you read this, the Pirates are currently three, four or five games under .500 but that doesn’t mean they’re not one of the big stories today in the MLB.
That’s according to ESPN’s baseball insider Jeff Passan.
He made the comments on The Pat McAfee Show Monday.
Why? Rookie pitcher Paul Skenes and Jared Jones.
“The Pittsburgh Pirates, all of the sudden, with those two guys, have become one of the most exciting teams to watch in all of baseball,” said Passan.
“He’s perfect for Pittsburgh,” said McAfee, a Plum native.
Passan pointed out that Skenes has made the ESPN host and former NFL punter interested in baseball.
“You care about baseball right now, it’s unbelievable,” said Passan. “God bless that man for getting drafted there, because you would not care otherwise.
McAfee believes Skenes has the potential to chance the game and he described what attracts him to baseball.
“I like balls hit far, I like balls thrown fast, that’s what I f***ing like!” said McAfee. “This guy’s good for baseball, for me personally, especially because he’s a Pirate now so it’s a little bit closer and I got friends that went to the game and they’re like ‘you should f***ing see this guy’.”
Passan says he believes Skenes is good for baseball because there are not a lot of appointment viewing starting pitchers.
“Paul Skenes is a guy who you can look at on your calendar and say I’m going to watch that guy pitch because I want to see something incredible happen,” said Passan.