Two of Baseball's Best Pitchers Sat Down and Accidentally Revealed Everything About Modern Pitching

Paul Skenes threw a baseball straight out of the stadium on his first try. Tarik Skubal has been chasing a pitch for two years that refuses to cooperate. And somehow, these two Cy Young Award winners have more in common than you'd think.

The two aces were swapping war stories about pitching when they landed on a subject that got them equally fired up: the sweeper, a horizontal-breaking slider that has become essential to the modern game. Their conversation on the first episode of "Sources Tell Jeff Passan" tells you everything about what separates good pitchers from great ones.

How Skenes' Best Pitch Was Born From Embarrassment

Skenes transferred to LSU for the 2023 season after spending two years at the Air Force Academy. His first day on campus, he decided to attack something he'd never mastered: the slider. Standard grips weren't cutting it, so he pivoted to the sweeper, a pitch that had gained serious traction in the league by then.

His first attempt? Catastrophic. He threw the ball straight over the bleachers at Alex Box Stadium and into the parking lot. That same day, he was working on catch-play with Grant Taylor, a current Chicago White Sox opener. Later, Skenes noticed Taylor had added him on Snapchat. When he accepted, he got a photo of a lonely ball sitting in asphalt with a caption: "Nice slider."

Instead of giving up, Skenes stayed stubborn. LSU pitching coach Wes Johnson pushed him to keep grinding. The more reps he took, the better the pitch felt. By year's end, the sweeper had become his signature weapon. "You just gotta stick with it, man," Skenes said during the conversation.

Skubal's Two-Year Battle (Still Ongoing)

Skubal has been chasing the sweeper for two years and admits it's a losing battle so far. Every time he sees a new grip, he almost always picks up a ball and throws it the next day, almost every time. The thing is, he can't seem to get it right. But Skubal's not backing down.

"I'm relentless," he said. "I'll get it one of these days. I'll get it. Or I'll get something else."

When Skenes ribbed him to keep trying, Skubal fired back with a promise: "I promise I will try the rest of my career. But if you see me doing something on the mound and you're like, 'What the hell?' just know it was a sweeper."

Both pitchers are cut from different cloth. Skubal's an emotional left-hander. Skenes is a stoic right-hander who regularly hits 100 mph. But they were both overlooked out of high school, both throw triple digits, and both won Cy Young Awards last year. That's the kind of company you want to keep.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.