Chris Sale

Skenes said that he had analysts compare his 2024 numbers to Tarik Skubal's and Chris Sale's numbers, the two pitchers who won Cy Young awards in 2024. "I think there were a lot of times last year where I just put myself in bad positions a little bit," Skenes said. "That's how you win those awards, winning the first two out of three pitches, strike percentage, first-pitch strike percentage, stuff like that. Those are the process-oriented goals I'm focusing on this year a little bit more." Last year, Sale was fourth in first-pitch strike percentage at 69.2 percent, Skubal was fifth at 68.5 percent and Skenes was at just 62.1 percent. In overall strike percentage, Skubal ranked fifth at 69.3 percent, Sale was 36th at 67.2 percent, and Skenes 71st at 66.1 percent. It's hard to imagine Skenes being better in 2025 than he was in his rookie season, but attacking hitters in the zone more would lead to lower pitch counts and the ability for him to pitch deeper into games.