Highly touted Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes made his Major League debut over the weekend, baseball fans everywhere took notice.

Now, the Pirates' youngster, appearing on The Pat McAfee Show, explained what he ate before Saturday's start – as well as every start before that.

Said Skenes, “Chicken Alfredo before every start, I got some crap from some of the guys before my last one because I had this just ginormous plate of Chicken Alfredo a couple hours before I was going to pitch. They were basically telling me they wouldn’t even make it out to pitch, they’d just be sitting on the toilet if they ate that before their outing. But that’s just what I do, every outing it helps me keep my energy.”

While baseball players, and pitchers in particular, are known for being superstitious or having a routine – the Pirates prospect may not be able to stick to that pregame meal for a long time. Such carb-heavy fare usually is less easily tolerated the older one gets.

Skenes isn't the only MLB star with an odd pregame meal. Some other notable examples include Philadelphia Phillies star Bryce Harper eating Eggo Waffles. Houston Astros pitcher Justin Verlander once told Conan O’Brien he eats Taco Bell before games.

Paul Skenes makes hyped MLB debut for Pirates

 

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes (30) delivers a pitch in his major league debut against the Chicago Cubs during the first inning at PNC Park
© Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Skenes made his Major League debut for the Pirates against the Chicago Cubs on May 11.

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His first pitch of the game to Mike Tauchman was measured at 101 MPH, so the hype was real. Four more pitches in the at bat touched 100 MPH, including a foul tipped strike three.

Skenes then struck out Seiya Suzuki on three pitches, none of which were fastballs. Two Major League batters faced, two strikeouts.

Skenes pitched into the fifth inning with a 6-1 lead, but after surrendering a lead-off double and then a single, Derek Shelton replaced the rookie with reliever Kyle Nicolas.

He went a total of four innings while allowing three runs on six hits. He struck out seven batters while walking a pair in a game that the Pirates won 10-9.

Statistically, it wasn't the best debut for the right-handed pitcher, but it was the beginning of what will hopefully be a successful MLB career for the man who was ranked as a top-10 prospect in baseball heading into this season after being the top-overall pick in 2023.

Before he even joined Pittsburgh, Skenes tantalized at the college level with LSU. After transferring from Air Force for the 2023 season, Skenes put up a 13-2 record with a 1.69 ERA and a 209/20 K/BB ratio. The Pirates saw all they needed to make him the No. 1 overall pick.

And the right-hander quickly proved why the Pirates was correct in their decision to draft Skenes first overall. He climbed all the way up to Double-A during his first of professional baseball, and then began the 2024 season at Triple-A – where he put up an astonishing 0.99 ERA and a 45/8 strikeout to walk ratio over his seven starts.