Everything That Went Wrong for Paul Skenes in His Disastrous Opening Day Performance vs. Mets

Paul Skenes had a rough afternoon in Queens.

The reigning National League Cy Young winner failed to get out of the first inning during the Pirates’ Opening Day showdown with the Mets. He entered the bottom half of the first inning with a 2-0 lead after Brandon Lowe hit a two-run home run in the top of the inning. Skenes couldn’t hold the lead.

He allowed five runs on four hits, with two walks and one hit batter, while only getting two outs. He threw 37 pitches before Pittsburgh’s manager, Don Kelly, pulled him.

Skenes opened the inning against Francisco Lindor and immediately got behind 3-0. He wound up walking the Mets’ shortstop on seven pitches. Juan Soto followed by lining a single to center on a 1-2 count. Skenes had two strikes on both of the first two batters and failed to put them away. That’s what started the trouble.

With runners on first and third, Bo Bichette fell behind 0-2, then lifted a changeup into right field to score Lindor and cut Pittsburgh’s lead in half, 2-1. That’s when the wheels fell off.

Bo Bichette drives in the first run of the season 👏 pic.twitter.com/6nr7jR5AjV
— New York Mets (@Mets) March 26, 2026

Skenes allowed an infield single to Jorge Polanco, then got ahead of Luis Robert Jr. 1-2, and, again, failed to put him away. He walked Robert to load the bases after a 10-pitch battle.

Brett Baty stepped in and immediately swung and missed at a 90 mph changeup. Skenes went back to the well on the next pitch, and Baty sent it to deep center, where Oneil Cruz misread the ball, initially started in, before attempting to sprint back and catch it. He didn’t. It landed a few feet before the warning track for a bases-clearing triple, giving the Mets a 4-2 lead.

BRETT BATY CLEARS THE BASES! 😤 pic.twitter.com/4DC171U0DS
— New York Mets (@Mets) March 26, 2026

Marcus Semien came to the plate and on the very next pitch, a 97 mph fastball, hit a harmless-looking pop-up to center. Cruz, again, struggled with it, losing the ball in the sun and gifting Semien the gift of an RBI double, and the Mets a 5-2 lead.

Semien keeps it going! 💪 pic.twitter.com/fTHKEgT6PK
— New York Mets (@Mets) March 26, 2026

Carson Benge was up next in his first major league at-bat, and Skenes was not messing around. He threw three upper-90s fastballs by him, with the rookie helplessly swinging at each for a quick strikeout.

Francisco Alvarez was up next with Semien still on second and two outs. Skenes got ahead 0-1, then hit the Mets’ catcher with a 97 mph sinker. That was all Kelly needed to see, and he took his ace out.

Skenes got two strikes on five of the nine hitters he faced and was only able to get two of them out, one of which came on Bichette’s sacrifice fly. That’s where the problem was. He got ahead and couldn’t put hitters away.

It was the shortest start of Skenes’ career, and he had never failed to get through two innings before. His previous shortest start came on September 28, 2024, against the Yankees, when he was pulled after two perfect innings as part of a plan to save his arm at the end of his rookie season. Other than that, his shortest start came on September 16 last year when he only lasted 3 2/3 innings against the Cubs.

Entering the 2026 season, Skenes had made 55 career starts, and he’d only allowed five runs once, and had only given up more than three five times.

Wednesday’s result was shocking, and his ERA leaving the game is 67.50. It was by far the worst start of his young career.