Paul Skenes allows career-high 9 hits as Pirates fall to Blue Jays

Colin Beazley, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on May 23, 2026

Published in Baseball

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TORONTO — Paul Skenes’ first trip north of the border did not go as planned.

Skenes was charged with four runs and allowed nine hits, including five extra-base hits, in the Pirates’ 5-2 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday afternoon at Rogers Centre. Both hit totals are career-highs.

The Pirates are once again a .500 team at 26-26. They’ll look to avoid their first road sweep of the season on Sunday.

While Skenes didn’t have his best stuff, striking out just two, the Pirates didn’t give him support. They were once again stymied by a left-hander, as veteran Patrick Corbin allowed just one run on five hits in six innings, striking out seven.

Corbin retired 14 batters in a row after allowing consecutive singles to start the second inning. With two outs in the sixth, Bryan Reynolds singled up the middle. The Blue Jays kept Corbin in to face the right-handed Marcell Ozuna, and Ozuna lined a double to right-center to score Reynolds from first and tie the game.

Skenes allowed a homer to George Springer on an 0-2 fastball to start the game, then walked Daulton Varsho on four pitches. Afterward, he largely settled down. He had just one 1-2-3 inning, coming in the third, but never allowed more than one baserunner at a time.

But the Blue Jays chased him in the sixth with four consecutive hits. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. led off the inning with a single down the right field line, then Yohendrick Pinango singled to center. Skenes thought he’d struck out Jesús Sánchez on a checked swing — and he had — but third base umpire Alex MacKay disagreed. Four pitches later, Sánchez lined a double to right to score a run, then an Ernie Clement single brought in one more. Just like that, Skenes’ day was done.

Both pitching coach Bill Murphy and manager Don Kelly were ejected in the sixth, with Murphy immediately following MacKay’s call. Kelly followed a few minutes later, as home plate umpire Alan Porter missed Henry Davis’ initial attempt to challenge a ball call.

The Pirates scored four runs on Tuesday against Cardinals lefty Matthew Liberatore, but their season-long struggles against lefties continued against Corbin. It’s the seventh time (in 13 starts) that a lefty has allowed one or fewer runs in five or more innings against the Pirates.

It was over when…

… Skenes was hit hard in the sixth. Yohan Ramirez did well in immediate relief, getting a double play grounder from Andres Gimenez (that still brought in a run) and a Lenyn Sosa strikeout to end the sixth, but allowed a no-doubt homer to former Pirate Tyler Heineman to start the seventh.

On the mound

Strangely, Skenes is struggling in day games. In six starts this season during the day, Skenes is 1-4 with a 6.57 ERA (18 earned runs in 24 ⅔ innings). At night, Skenes has a 0.51 ERA in 35 ⅓ innings.

At the plate

The Pirates had one last opportunity in the eighth, drawing back-to-back walks against right-hander Yariel Rodriguez and moving to third when Rodriguez threw a pickoff into center. Ozuna brought in Konnor Griffin from third with a groundout, but left-hander Adam Macko stranded two runners with Jhostynxon Garcia’s broken-bat grounder back to the pitcher.

The Pirates finished 0 for 6 with runners in scoring position, stranding seven. They’re 0 for 15 with runners in scoring position to start the series.

Most valuable player

Corbin entered the game with a 4.23 ERA. Starting 363 games in the majors isn’t a fluke, but the Pirates made the 36-year-old look like he was in his prime.

Up next

The Pirates will need a win for a .500 road trip on Sunday afternoon, with an early 12:15 p.m. start for a nationally televised game (Peacock). Mitch Keller (4-2, 3.86 ERA) will start against Blue Jays ace Dylan Cease (3-2, 2.98), who signed a $210 million deal with Toronto in free agency. The game can be heard on the radio on 93.7 The Fan.