John Smoltz’s bizarre Paul Skenes took didn’t survive its own logic

Paul Skenes confronted his hardest problem but within the World Baseball Classic semifinal on Sunday, and he dealt with it with the poise and brilliance we have all come to count on from him.

The Dominican Republic entered the semifinal with 14 dwelling runs, already tying the match report. Then within the second inning, Junior Caminero launched one other — off Skenes — to interrupt it. And if you scan the remainder of the order, it reads like a murderer’s row: Fernando Tatis Jr., Ketel Marte, Juan Soto, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Manny Machado.

But Skenes did what Skenes does. He went 4 1/3 innings, allowed simply that one run, and navigated one of the crucial harmful lineups on the planet as Team USA escaped with a 2-1 win to advance to the championship sport.

Against that lineup, “damage control” is a victory. Skenes turned it into dominance — which made the FOX Sports broadcast commentary from John Smoltz really feel… unusual.

During the fifth inning, Smoltz mused that he hoped Skenes may “stay healthy and defeat the odds” that pitchers who throw that arduous ultimately get damage. Then — in nearly the identical breath — he pivoted into advocating for pitchers to work deeper into video games.

It was a take that collapsed beneath its own weight. Because the premise Smoltz began with — that fashionable energy pitchers are weak to harm — is not controversial. Even Smoltz himself has repeatedly argued that the fashionable sport’s velocity chase contributes to arm accidents throughout the league.

But in case you imagine that… the logical conclusion is not extra workload. In truth, it is the alternative.

John Smoltz contradicts himself badly in Paul Skenes commentary throughout WBC semifinal broadcast

Modern pitching administration — pitch counts, shorter outings, bullpen depth — exists largely as a result of groups are attempting to guard arms by throwing at traditionally excessive velocities. Whether you suppose these methods are excellent or not, they’re designed to cut back the precise danger Smoltz stated he was fearful about.

Instead, his commentary landed in an odd center floor: pitchers throw too onerous and get damage, however they need to additionally pitch deeper into video games. Those two concepts do not precisely coexist comfortably.

And the irony is that Skenes’ outing itself disproved the premise that one thing was lacking. He didn’t want 110 pitches or eight innings to dominate the sport. He attacked the lineup, restricted injury, and handed the ball to a bullpen that completed the job. That’s fashionable baseball — and it labored.

What made the second particularly odd is that Skenes didn’t simply survive the Dominican lineup. I’ve managed it. When Caminero obtained him for the homer, the inning didn’t spiral. When the order turned over, he made the massive pitch. Against that lineup, execution issues greater than endurance. In different phrases, the sport validated the precise method Smoltz was criticizing.

None of this implies Smoltz’s broader considerations about pitcher well being are unsuitable. Baseball completely has an harm drawback on the mound. But if the argument is that velocity tradition is harmful, the answer most likely is not asking pitchers to hold heavier workloads on high of it.

That’s why the remark felt so bizarre in actual time. Skenes was standing on the mound doing exactly what teams hope their ace will do in a high-stakes worldwide sport: neutralize a celebrity lineup and provides his group an opportunity to win — and someway the takeaway from the sales space was that he needs to be pitching extra.

The fact is straightforward. Skenes handed the largest check of the match towards one of the crucial terrifying lineups ever assembled within the WBC. The technique labored. The consequence labored — and the commentary criticizing it didn’t even survive its own logic.