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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Andrew Joseph

Paul Skenes absolutely wowed MLB fans with an electric three-pitch strikeout of Shohei Ohtani

Paul Skenes Shohei Ohtani MLB Dodgers

Through his first four MLB starts, former No. 1 overall pick Paul Skenes looked every bit the part of an elite pitcher. That remained true in his first appearance against Shohei Ohtani and that star-powered top of the Dodgers’ lineup.

Starting for the Pirates on Wednesday against the Dodgers, Skenes cruised through his first test against Mookie Betts, Ohtani and Freddie Freeman. But that Ohtani matchup was truly something else. Skenes didn’t take a cautious approach against the reigning AL MVP. Instead, he went right at Ohtani with three straight triple-digit fastballs.

Not many pitchers can make Ohtani look ordinary. Skenes did just that in the at-bat.

Between that velocity and location, there wasn’t much Ohtani could do. The three-pitch strikeout justifiably had MLB fans in awe.

This was how Twitter/X reacted

Yeah, Paul Skenes is no joke.

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