Paul Skenes is in a dead heat with Shota Imanaga for the National League Rookie of the Year.
The Pirates flamethrower is just a hair away from dethroning Imanaga, who has slowed down after a red-hot start for the Cubs, as the award favorite at BetMGM Sportsbook.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Skenes is sitting at +165, barely behind Imanaga, who is +155 after more than a month at the top of the odds board.
Skenes has crashed the party with just six big league starts, although they were about as dominant as they can get.
The 2023 No. 1 draft pick has posted a 2.43 ERA over 33 â…“ innings with a whopping 46 strikeouts, living up to the hype that has followed him since his days with the LSU Tigers.
Skenes’ rise follows a rough stretch from Imanaga, who got off to a historic start in his first MLB season.
National League Rookie of the Year odds
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Shota Imanaga | +155 |
| Paul Skenes | +165 |
| Yoshinobu Yamamoto | +350 |
| Joey Ortiz | 10/1 |
| Jared Jones | 16/1 |
| Masyn Winn | 25/1 |
After recording an earned run average below 1.00 through six starts, Imanaga’s ERA has jumped to 1.96, which is still second-best in the NL among qualified pitchers.
The race is shaping up to be a three-man one, with Dodgers pitcher and preseason favorite Yoshinobu Yamamoto right behind the pair at +350.
No other player is better than 10/1.
Skenes, though, has been the popular pick among the betting public.
Learn all you need to know about MLB Betting
- Read about the Best Baseball Betting Sites
- Learn all about How to Bet on Baseball
- Get the latest World Series Odds
The right-hander had attracted 20.1 percent of bets and 23.1 percent of the handle at BetMGM on Tuesday morning, both easily the best in the field.
Those numbers likely grew even greater after his dominant start against the Cardinals on Tuesday afternoon.
Skenes threw 6 1/3 scoreless innings of five-hit ball, striking out eight Cardinals with no walks in what was the second-best outing of his young career, behind the six no-hit innings threw against the Cubs a month ago.