Rare Talent Of Catcher-Pitcher Paul Skenes

by • Featured

By LOU PAVLOVICH, JR.
Editor/Collegiate Baseball

COLORADO SPRINGS, Col. — Paul Skenes is one of the most fascinating stories in college baseball.

As a freshman last season for the U.S. Air Force Academy, the 6-foot-6, 235-pound righthanded pitcher/catcher put up incredible numbers as he was named a Collegiate Baseball first team All-American.

He also was one of five players named Collegiate Baseball Freshmen National Players of The Year.

In 48 games, he hit .410 with 11 homers, 21 doubles and 43 RBI.

As the team’s closer, armed with a 100 mph fastball, he appeared in 18 games and posted a 2.70 ERA with 11 saves. He fanned 30 batters and walked nine.

When he was catching, opposing base runners were only successful stealing 18 out of 27 times.

With his incredible skill set, he has been projected to be a high first round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft.

Now consider this.

This young man was only 6-foot and 165 pounds as a freshman at El Toro High School (Lake Forest, Calif). His fastball topped out at 75 mph.

After a huge growth spurt during his sophomore and junior years of high school, he now stood 6-foot-6 and ultimately added 70 pounds of muscle to his frame.

Once he learned how to use his new body efficiently as a hitter, suddenly his pitching velocity ramped up as he was throwing 92-94 mph as a senior.

When he got to the Air Force Academy a year ago, he made another velocity jump with great instruction and began throwing 100 mph fastballs last spring. In addition, he was crushing pitches as a hitter throughout the season which was reflected in his incredible batting stats.

How did Skenes get to the Air Force Academy?

To read more of this story, purchase the Feb. 25, 2022 edition or subscribe by CLICKING HERE. It delves into many aspects of this rare athlete who catches and also pitches. He explains how he got his fastball up to 100 mph through refining his hitting mechanics, the brutally tough academics at Air Force and much more.