In only his second big league season, Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes is already one of the best pitchers in baseball. He won the NL Rookie of the Year in 2024 and also finished third in NL Cy Young voting.

Back in July, the Pirates were in the desert facing the Arizona Diamondbacks. At the time, the organization was inducting Randy Johnson into the D-Backs Hall of Fame. Skenes knew The Big Unit was at Chase Field and didn't hesitate to approach him and get as much as advice as he could.

After all, Johnson was also in a league of his own when he came up to the Majors. The first thing he asked Skenes was insightful.

Via ESPN's Jeff Passan:

“It all depends on what you're looking for,” Johnson said. “Are you looking for a good game, a good season or a good career?”

Skenes obviously said the latter. He's already motivated to be one of the best, but the Pirates have been cautious with his workload to make sure he doesn't get injured early on in his career. Johnson admitted Skenes is already a mile ahead of where he was at in the early stages of his own career in many ways, especially when it comes to mechanics.

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It remains to be seen how long Pittsburgh will limit Skenes' innings. But if he wants to be a great, Johnson made it clear what he'll have to do — either convince the Bucs to let him have no innings restriction, or search for a new ball club that will allow him to be on no limit.

“This is your career,” Johnson said.

Paul Skenes is already dominating this year. In four starts, he has a 2.94 ERA and 2-1 record, striking out 26 hitters in 24 innings of work.

“It will be a mental mission for him,” Johnson said. “I understood throughout the course of my career that if I can talk myself through a game, I will realize my mission. I trained myself to put me in those positions for success, get me through that. I know the pitchers can do these things I talk about, but they're not allowed to. And that, to me, is mind-boggling. It makes no sense to me. You're not going to see a pitcher grow mentally or physically if you take him out of situations.”

Skenes threw 133 innings last year, compiling a mind-boggling 1.96 ERA, but he made just 23 starts. Hopefully, the Pirates let him hit at least 30 appearances in 2025. He's certainly hungry to do so.