Altoona, PA (WJAC) — Pittsburgh Pirates top pitching prospect and first overall draft pick Paul Skenes made his much anticipated Double-A debut Saturday for the Altoona Curve.
“It’s going to be nice having a generational talent and I’m excited to see him pitch in Pittsburgh, hopefully next year maybe, but watching him at LSU he has amazing potential, I can’t wait to see what he brings to the black and gold," one fan told us.
Pitching against the Akron Rubberducks in front of a sold out crowd of over 10,000 people, Skenes debut didn't quite go as planned, as he was yanked from the game after just 2/3 of an inning.
Skenes departed the game in the first inning and was ultimately responsible for Akron's first four runs of the game.
However, the Curve offense did not let his early departure be in vain, as they rallied multiple times throughout the night and eventually went on to win in walk-off fashion.
In the bottom of the 9th inning, catcher Carter Bins lined a single off of the Rubberducks' relief pitcher to give the Curve a 9 to 8 victory.
Saturday's game set a new attendance record at PNG Field, with 10,164 fans traveling to Altoona to watch Skenes' debut.
“I’ll tell you what, tonight is just electric, it’s been so much. Usually we average 3,000 or so fans a game. Just electricity with everybody tonight, everyone was so excited to see Paul pitch," one Curve staff member said.
Skenes' next scheduled start with the Curve will be Wednesday against the Erie Seawolves.
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