Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes has been named one of three finalists for the National League Cy Young Award. He is joined by Los Angeles Dodgers World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Christopher Sanchez. If Skenes wins the award, he will become the third pitcher ever to win the Rookie of the Year and Cy Young Award in his first two seasons, joining Fernando Valenzuela and Dwight Gooden.
Skenes led all of baseball with a 1.97 ERA over 32 starts. He struck out 216 batters, breaking the Pirates’ right-handed record and finishing tied for second most in the National League. Opponents batted .199 against him.
Yamamoto had a 2.49 ERA and struck out 201 batters. Opponents had a .183 average against him, best in the majors. Sanchez carried a 2.50 ERA and struck out 212. Voting for the award took place prior to the post-season.
Minor League Baseball and Rawlings have announced that Altoona Curve shortstop Konnor Griffin was awarded a Minor League Gold Glove at shortstop for the 2025 season. Griffin, who had previously been named the Pirates Bill Mazeroski Defender of the Year and Honus Wagner Player of the Year in the Pirates minor league system, becomes the third player in Altoona franchise history to earn a Rawlings Gold Glove.
Griffin handled 352 chances at shortstop last season and posted a .980 fielding percentage. He played 18 of his 22 regular-season games with the Curve at shortstop, and did not commit an error. He also played 15 games in centerfield in the minors last year without an error.
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