Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes has established himself as one of the best pitchers in the league since his MLB debut in 2024. However, the reigning NL Cy Young winner often gets his leg pulled by his teammates.

During a recent interview, Skenes’ teammate, Bubba Chandler roasted the two-time All-Star pitcher. Chandler also revealed the Pirates teammates pulling Skenes’ leg.

“We always bust his chops on, you know, he’s spoon-fed,” Chandler said. “One, first overall pick, spent 14 minutes in the minor leagues. Like, ‘You just spoon-fed dude, like you didn’t have to grind. You didn’t play in the FCL as I did.’

When Skenes was told about Chandler’s comment, the reigning NL Cy Young winner had a hilarious reaction.

I don’t know what Bubba is talking about,” Skenes said. “I’m the one who needs to check my ego? Tell him to look in the mirror. Yeah I’m a grinder, contrary to what people think, I’m a grinder.”

Following his NL Cy Young-winning season with the Pirates, Skenes made his World Baseball Classic debut for Team USA against Team Mexico.

Paul Skenes’ Pirates teammate shines in Spring Training game against Braves

While Paul Skenes is with the Team USA roster for the WBC, his Pirates teammate Bubba Chandler is preparing for the 2026 season during Spring Training games.

During Thursday’s game against the Atlanta Braves, Chandler threw 18 consecutive fastballs. The fastballs were called by Pirates catcher Henry Davis, who wanted to test his ace’s accuracy.

“Plans aren’t a thing,” Chandler said. “Throw the first pitch, and every plan goes out the window. Whatever Henry called, I threw. It felt good coming out.”

Chandler, who struggled in his previous Grapefruit League outings, threw 66 pitches, 47 for strikes and generated 15 whiffs. Of those 66 pitches, 49 were four-seam fastballs.