The Pittsburgh Pirates are hoping Paul Skenes can pitch like their ace once again and help them make one last push for a playoff berth.
Skenes returns to the mound on Wednesday afternoon when the Pirates host the Detroit Tigers in the rubber match of a three-game series.
Skenes (9-11, 3.88 ERA) was given an extra three days of rest and will face fellow right-hander Jackson Jobe (1-1, 6.23) as Detroit tries to avoid losing any more ground in the American League wild-card race.
According to FanGraphs, the Pirates have only a 3.9% chance of making the playoffs as they enter Wednesday 6 1/2 games behind the San Diego Padres for the final National League wild-card spot with 34 games left -- and with three other teams between them and the Padres.
Braxton Ashcraft pitched like a bona fide ace for the Pirates on Tuesday, allowing one run in eight innings in a 4-1 win.
But if Pittsburgh is to pull off the improbable, it also must have Skenes back in the dominant form he had during his first two seasons and the early part of this season.
But that Skenes has faded over his past four starts, during which he is 0-3 with a 6.52 ERA. His average fastball velocity dipped down to a career-low 95.7 mph in his most recent start last Tuesday at Miami. Skenes' fastball velocity averaged 98.8 mph in his first season.
Skenes has had an occasional strong outing here and there, but has struggled overall for some time. Skenes is 3-6 with a 5.01 ERA over the past two months.
"They have been diving into everything," Pirates manager Don Kelly said about his staff and Skenes as they try to figure out what has gone wrong this season.
Pittsburgh is hoping the extra mental and physical rest will help. Skenes is 2-0 with a 2.00 ERA in three career starts against the Tigers.
Detroit is one game behind the Texas Rangers for the final AL wild-card spot and remains among a group of six teams separated by one game in the standings.
Despite being silenced for the most part by Ashcraft, the Tigers still possess one of the more potent lineups in baseball and hope to compound Skenes' struggles.
One of the more prolific bats has been rookie Hao-Yu Lee, who had three hits in Monday's game. Lee broke the single-season record for hits by a Taiwanese player with 55. Lee is part of the Tigers' youth movement, including Kevin McGonigle, Brett Callahan, Eduardo Valencia and reliever Drew Sommers, that have kept them in the playoff hunt despite trading away ace Tyrik Skubal.
"I think everyone coming up has that same mindset: They want to help the team win," McGonigle said.
Jobe, who has never pitched against the Pirates, will make his third start since being activated on Aug. 8 following Tommy John surgery. Jobe struggled in his most recent outing last Friday against the White Sox, allowing six runs on nine hits, including two home runs, one walk and four strikeouts over 3 2/3 innings.
The Pirates optioned right-handed reliever Isaac Mattson to Triple-A Indianapolis and recalled right-hander Antwone Kelly.
The Tigers outrighted infielder/outfielder Trei Cruz to Triple-A Toledo.
--Field Level Media