Paul Skenes Reveals Shohei Ohtani HR Was His 'Welcome to Pro Ball' Moment in Video

Every major leaguer has a moment when he realizes that playing in the pros is different than high school, college and the minor leagues.

Pittsburgh Pirates star ace Paul Skenes had a fitting "welcome to the pros" moment.

"I gave up a home run to Shohei Ohtani," he said. "I'm not the first one that it's happened to. That was a little different."

Considering Ohtani hit a career-high 54 home runs a season ago, it's not much of a surprise that he happened to get one against Skenes.

Things have worked out for Skenes since his "welcome to the pros" moment. After making his debut in May 2024, he went on to record a 1.96 ERA and 0.95 WHIP, posting an 11-3 record across 23 starts, enough to earn him his first All-Star nod and NL Rookie of the Year.

This season, Skenes has a 2.01 ERA, the best among qualified starters, and a 0.93 WHIP in 20 starts. Unfortunately for Skenes, his success hasn't been enough for the Pirates to win games, and he has a 4-8 record.

Skenes is well on his way to being one of the top arms in the league for years to come, but he'll never forget giving up a homer to one of the best players in baseball as a rookie.