Before Paul Skenes became a Major League Baseball ace and the No. 1 pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, he delivered an unforgettable performance.
It was June 22, 2023. LSU was facing elimination against Wake Forest in the Men’s College World Series semifinals. Skenes went pitch-for-pitch with Rhett Lowder in a game that stretched 11 innings and ended with a 2-0 walk-off win for the Tigers. More than 23,000 fans held their breath on every pitch. The stakes were massive. The execution was surgical.
World Baseball Network’s Leif Skodnick was in the press box and described it simply as the best-pitched college game he’d ever seen from both sides. LSU head coach Jay Johnson did not disagree. “You might see four pitchers that were on that mound tonight from both teams that will pitch in Major League Baseball All-Star games,” Johnson said.
Skenes opened the game with a 100 mph fastball. By the time he walked off the mound after eight shutout innings, he had struck out nine, allowed just two hits, and broken the SEC single-season strikeout record with his 203rd of the year. He barely flinched through five 1-2-3 innings, issuing just one walk.
Dylan Crews’ leadoff single in the bottom of the 11th and Tommy White’s walk-off home run sealed the win, but it was Skenes who controlled the game.
“He’s done it all year,” Skenes said. “And for him to come up in the biggest moment like that—it’s fitting.”
After the game, World Baseball Network spoke with Skenes just minutes after one of the greatest performances of his career. His answers reflected the same calm and control he showed on the mound — no overthinking, no ego, just execution and trust in his team.
“The biggest thing is just executing and going out there and preparing throughout the week for facing their lineup,” Skenes said. “Simplifying it that way makes it really easy to pitch in big environments.”
“The only thing we have to do is go out there and attack hitters with our stuff and execute to the best of our ability,” he added. “If you make the game simple, it’s a simple game.”
Skenes’ dominance in Omaha helped cement his status as the No. 1 pick by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2023. Two years later, he’s doing exactly what many expected — overpowering big league hitters the same way he once dismantled college lineups.
And for anyone wondering what greatness looks like just before it breaks through, this was it.
