On Thursday, 2025 National League Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes returned from the World Baseball Classic to the Pittsburgh Pirates spring training camp, making clear Team USAâs showing fell short of his standard.
It was just two days earlier that the heavily favored USA team fell in the WBC Final to Venezuela in a close-fought contest that came down to the final out. But in the end, Venezuela defeated Team USA by the narrowest of margins, 3-2. For a roster built to win the world championship, it wasnât enough.
After the Pittsburgh Pirates made him the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2023, Skenes has put together a historic start to his career. When the 2025 season wrapped up, he became the first pitcher in MLB history to post ERAs under 2.00 in back-to-back seasons before the age of 23 since Walter Johnson in 1910 and 1911, years that were part of baseball’s pre-1920 “dead-ball” era.
Skenes’ record is even more remarkable considering he did it in his first two seasons as a major league pitcher.
The 23-year-old carried that performance over to the WBC, pitching two games for Team USA with a 1.08 ERA over 8 1/3 innings, getting credited as the winning pitcher in both games.
But when he was asked on Thursday to evaluate his experience as a member of Team USA, Skenes summed it up in three words: “Not good enough.”
Paul Skenes Calls Team USA Showing âNot Good Enoughâ
Heading into the WBC tournament, Skenes appeared to be perhaps the MLB player most excited to join Team USA. A former cadet at the United States Air Force Academy before he transferred to LSU to focus on baseball, Skenes wrote in a Players’ Tribune article on March 9 of his love for his country and what it meant to play for Team USA.
“Those of us who are doing this ⦠itâs not about money or fame,” Skenes wrote. “It really is just about having a genuine love of baseball, and a love for your country.” He added that despite the risk of injury from pitching at a high level in March, “for those of us whoâve answered this call, itâs all worth it. Youâre making a sacrifice, ramping up earlier. Changing your offseason plans.”
Before the tournament Skenes said that he felt the WBC was an opportunity for Team USA to âassert our dominance over everyone else.â
âWeâre America,â Skenes said before the tournament. âThatâs what we do.â
Skenes did his part with two games of dominant pitching, but in the end he left disappointed as the Americans came up short.
Skenes Enjoyed Clubhouse Experience
Speaking at the Pirates spring training facility at Pirate City in Bradenton, Florida, Skenes found one redeeming feature of his WBC experience.
“In terms of being around the guys, that was pretty damn cool, just being in that clubhouse,” Skenes told reporters.
But he was also quick to reiterate his disappointment.
“You know, obviously you want to win,” Skenes said. “Yeah, just got to finish the job.”
In perhaps the least surprising development of spring training, Pirates manager Don Kelly on Thursday announced that Skenes would be Pittsburgh’s Opening Day starter.
“Iâm ready to go,” Skenes said, when told of the announcement, as quoted by MLB.com. “Getting back to campâs nice. Nice that we have a few days left. But itâs go time.”
The Pirates open their 2026 season on the road against the New York Mets at Citi Field on Thursday, March 26, at 1:15 p.m. EDT. The game will be televised by NBC and streamed live on NBCâs Peacock app.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Cy Young Winner Paul Skenes Calls Out Team USA Performance After WBC appeared first on Heavy Sports.