Paul Skenes has already established himself as one of the biggest young stars in Major League Baseball.

But the reigning National League Cy Young winner hasn’t quite looked like himself during the 2026 season.

Skenes heads into Tuesday’s matchup against the Miami Marlins carrying a 3.96 ERA through 24 starts, more than double the ERA he produced across his first two Major League seasons.

With the Pittsburgh Pirates continuing to slide further out of the playoff picture, their ace is being called upon to find his best form once again.

Command has become the issue

Skenes’ stuff hasn’t disappeared.

His biggest problem lately has been his command.

In his previous start against the Milwaukee Brewers, Skenes allowed three runs on just two hits over five innings.

The unusual part of the outing was the number of walks.

Skenes issued four walks, including three during the fourth inning when all three of Milwaukee’s runs scored.

He threw 93 pitches in the outing and admitted afterwards that he needs to do a better job of getting ahead in counts.

“You can’t walk guys,” Skenes said after the game, acknowledging that trying to be too perfect at times has put him into difficult situations.

The walks are adding up

Skenes has still been one of the better pitchers in baseball when it comes to limiting walks, ranking in the 77th percentile among MLB pitchers in walk percentage.

However, his walk rate has increased during his third MLB season.

After posting a 6.2% walk rate in 2024 and 5.7% in 2025, Skenes is sitting at 6.8% in 2026.

His last two starts haven’t helped.

He has walked four batters in each of his last two outings, after issuing just 10 walks across 11 combined starts during April and May.

For a pitcher who has been so dominant early in his career, those extra baserunners are becoming an area to watch.

Miami has seen Skenes before

The good news for Pittsburgh is that Skenes has already enjoyed plenty of success against the Marlins.

He owns a 2.60 ERA with 26 strikeouts across 17⅓ innings in three career starts against Miami.

His most recent meeting came on June 14 at PNC Park.

Skenes allowed two runs on four hits, walked one and struck out 10 batters.

It wasn’t enough to earn him the victory.

Miami will also have a few hitters who have already faced Skenes, including Otto Lopez and Xavier Edwards.

Rookie catcher Joe Mack also hit a solo home run against Skenes in their previous meeting.

The Pirates need their ace

For Pittsburgh, this isn’t just about one pitcher trying to improve his numbers.

The Pirates are falling further away from the playoff picture, and getting Skenes back to his best could be crucial if they want to build any momentum during the remainder of the season.

Skenes has already shown what he is capable of.

The talent is still there.

The strikeout ability is still there.

But the command has been inconsistent, and that’s something the Pirates will be hoping he can fix against Miami.

Can Skenes find his groove?

That’s the big question heading into Tuesday’s game.

Skenes doesn’t need to reinvent himself.

He simply needs to get ahead in counts, limit the free passes and let his stuff do the rest.

If he can do that, the Marlins could be in for a long night.

And if Skenes can rediscover the form that made him one of baseball’s most dominant pitchers, it could give the Pirates a much-needed boost.

Can Paul Skenes get back to his Cy Young-winning form?

Let us know what you think.