If Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Jacob Misiorowski was intimidated by the prospect of going head-to-head with Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes, the rookie didn’t show it. Misiorowski outdueled the Pirates’ ace Wednesday in just his third major-league start.
Misiorowski was masterful in the start, picking up eight strikeouts and allowing two hits over five scoreless frames. With the start, Misiorowski has a sterling 1.13 ERA over his first 16 innings in the majors.
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Misiorowski must have been excited about the matchup, because he came out throwing heat. The rookie threw 12 pitches at 100+ mph during the first frame, picking up two strikeouts in the process.
Skenes apparently felt compelled to match the Brewers’ rookie. After a leadoff walk, Skenes also registered two strikeouts in the first inning. He hit 100+ mph once in the frame.
That was enough to push the start into rarified air. It was just the seventh time in the pitch-tracking era that both starting pitchers have touched 100 mph in a game.
After a 1-2-3 inning from Misiorowski in the second, Skenes found himself in some trouble. A leadoff walk and two consecutive singles loaded the bases against Skenes who no outs. A groundout and a double brought in two runs, giving the Brewers an early lead. The team would tack on two more runs before the inning ended. All four runs scored were charged to Skenes.
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It marked the first time in his major-league career that Skenes gave up more than three runs in an inning, and only the third time he’s allowed more than three earned runs in a game.
Misiorowski didn’t run into trouble until the fourth inning, when he allowed the first two batters to reach base. He was able to work out of the jam, picking up a double play and a strikeout to escape without giving up a run. That strikeout came via a 102 mph fastball just on the edge of the zone.
Skenes mostly settled in following his rough second inning, but the damage was done. In addition to scoring four runs off Skenes, the Brewers also ran up his pitch count. Skenes was removed after just four innings of work. It was the shortest start of his career — excluding his abbreviated final start last year.
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Skenes allowed four runs on four hits in his four innings of work.
Despite yet another strong inning — in which he notched two more strikeouts — in the fifth, Misiorowski was removed from the contest at that point. He threw just 74 pitches.
His final pitch was among his best of the day, as he froze Pirates infield Isiah Kiner-Falefa with a 95 mph slider that caught the inside of the strike zone.
The Brewers led 4-0 when both starting pitchers left the contest.
This story will be updated.
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