"You feel for David Bednar, Aroldis Chapman & Kyle Nicolas" - Paul Skenes shows sympathy for Pirates bullpen after 7-run lead blown in Cubs loss

At only 22 years of age, Paul Skenes has already emerged as the Pirates' best starter this season. However, as was on full display on Wednesday night, winning a game takes a team of pitchers to build on the work done by the starting arm.

Skenes' 18th outing on Wednesday went the same way as most of his other starts have this year. Through five innings, the 2023 first overall pick struck out six batters, allowing two runs. However, when he was brought out of the game in the fifth inning, things began to come apart at the seams for the Pirates.

"7 RBI for Christian Bethancourt and the @Cubs have stormed back from 7 runs down to take the lead" - MLB

Although his team was leading the Chicago Cubs 9-3 when he left the game, the Pirates bullpen unraveled. Kyle Nicolas surrendered a home run in the seventh before Aroldis Chapman gave up five earned runs of his own. Finally, the icing on the cake for Chicago came as it pounded David Bednar for five earned runs. By the end of the game, Pittsburgh's bullpen had given up nine runs.

The incompetence demonstrated by the Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen robbed Paul Skenes of his ninth win of the season. However, instead of brooding, the youthful pitching star sympathized with the bullpen. In the post-game media scrum, Skenes told DK Pittsburgh Sports:

"You feel for Beddy (David Bednar), Chappy (Aroldis Chapman) & Kyle Nicolas. They're really good, all three of them, so on an individual level, I feel for them in that way."

Now on a three-game losing streak, the Pirates sit 11 games behind the Atlanta Braves, who occupy the third and final NL wild card spot. Relief pitching has been a consistent sore spot for the Pirates this season, as the club's bullpen ranks 27th out of 30 teams in combined ERA.

Paul Skenes' sympathy for Pirates teammates does not hide their issues

Although Skenes offered his understanding, the fact remains that the bullpen has been responsible for a lot of losses in Pittsburgh this season. The team's manager Derek Shelton told SI after the loss:

"We look at the games we've lost in August, it's because we have not finished games. And how many of these games have we had to lead? How many of these games have we been one strike away, one pitch away? So, yeah, we've got to figure out how to finish games."

Having a starter as dominant as Paul Skenes is a boon. However, if the other arms on the team cannot back up that success, the team has only won half of the battle.