Paul Skenes steadies his season, pitching his way toward a September push for the Pirates

Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes is heading into September with a clearer sense of what he can look like when his best stuff shows up consistently. The Major League Baseball release tied to his recent run described a month-by-month shift, with July bringing real trouble and August providing a partial correction, even if his overall body of work has not duplicated the immediate impact of his first two seasons.

In July, Skenes struggled to find the form that defined his early success. Across six Major League starts that month, he was tagged with a 6.25 ERA, a figure that, by itself, suggests more than one issue at once. ERA at that level typically reflects command and sequencing problems, with hitters seeing enough reliable pitches to make contact count and turn difficulty into production.

August was the response. According to the MLB report, Skenes posted a 3.10 ERA in four starts during the month, marking a meaningful drop from July. While a deeper look can always reveal whether an ERA is helped by run prevention in the margins, the direction of the change is what stands out here: Skenes moved from a month that undermined his outings to one that kept his team closer to even every time he took the mound.

That matters for the Pirates because late-season rotations depend on predictability. A dominant young starter can also make a bullpen’s workload feel smaller, even if the box score doesn’t show every inning. The practical value of a pitcher who regains stability is straightforward: managers can structure starts and relief usage with fewer “repair jobs” after the starter’s early damage.

The MLB release also framed this as a reminder that Skenes’ first two campaigns were historically strong, setting a high bar for expectations. Through the lens of those early comparisons, August represents progress rather than a full return to whatever his peak looked like at the beginning of his career.

As September nears, what to watch is whether the August improvements hold against increasingly sharp late-season scouting and more deliberate approach from opponents. A pitcher can make one month better with small adjustments, but keeping it there often comes down to how he handles hitters who have seen the repertoire more than once, and whether he can reproduce the same command when the margin tightens.

For now, the clearest takeaway from Pittsburgh’s news cycle is the contrast between July and August. The Pirates are getting their centerpiece back to a healthier shape, and Skenes is positioned to turn that regained rhythm into something more consequential if the calendar moves from “getting right” to “staying right.”