Paul Skenes Autographed Official MLB Baseball Pittsburgh Pirates JSA Authenticated Blue Ink

Paul Skenes Autographed Official MLB Baseball – Pittsburgh Pirates – JSA Authenticated (Blue Ink)

Only five players in Major League Baseball history have won Rookie of the Year and the Cy Young Award in back-to-back seasons. The last to do it before Paul Skenes was Dwight Gooden — 1984 and 1985. Wikipedia Gooden was a generational talent whose career became one of baseball's most painful stories. Skenes is 23 years old, two seasons in, and already carrying a career ERA that belongs in a conversation with the greatest pitching starts in the history of the sport. This Official MLB Baseball bears his hand-signed autograph in blue ink — the clean, high-contrast signature of the best young pitcher in baseball on the white leather of the object he grips, spins, and throws at 98 miles per hour from sixty feet six inches — authenticated by JSA.

The Signed Baseball as the Pitcher's Format A pitcher's relationship to the baseball is unlike any other player's. Position players hit it, catch it, throw it. A pitcher holds it for the most consequential moment of every play — the grip, the windup, the release, the flight — and the specific way a pitcher grips a baseball is the difference between a 98-mph fastball that breaks late and a ball that gets hit 400 feet. The signed Official MLB Baseball is the format that captures that relationship most directly: the pitcher and the object his entire craft is built around, connected by a signature. For Paul Skenes — a pitcher whose arsenal includes a fastball that averages 98 mph, a sweeper, a splitter, and a changeup that has produced a career ERA of 1.96 across 320+ major league innings CBSSports.com — the baseball is not merely a display piece. It is the instrument of the most dominant early career in modern baseball.

Rookie of the Year to Cy Young — Back to Back Skenes debuted on May 11, 2024, threw 17 pitches at 100 mph or faster in his first start, and finished his rookie season with a 1.96 ERA, 170 strikeouts, and a 0.95 WHIP across 23 starts. Wikipedia He was named the NL All-Star Game starter — the fifth rookie in MLB history to receive that selection. Wikipedia He won the NL Rookie of the Year Award. Then, in 2025, he did something no pitcher had done in forty years: he won the NL Cy Young Award the following season, becoming the first player since Dwight Gooden in 1984–85 to win Rookie of the Year and Cy Young in consecutive seasons. Wikipedia He received all 30 first-place votes — unanimous — finishing with a 1.97 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and 216 strikeouts across 187.2 innings. CBSSports.com Two seasons. Two awards. A career ERA under 2.00. At 23.

The Air Force to LSU to Pittsburgh Arc Before Skenes was a first overall pick, he was a cadet at the United States Air Force Academy — a pitcher and catcher who won the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award in 2022 as the best two-way player in college baseball. MLB He transferred to LSU, went 13-2 with a 1.69 ERA, set an SEC record with 209 strikeouts, won the College World Series Most Outstanding Player award as LSU claimed the national championship MLB, and was taken first overall in 2023. He was in the major leagues less than a year later. The path from Air Force cadet to unanimous Cy Young winner in under four years is not a story that baseball produces often. The autograph on this baseball belongs to a player whose biography is as compelling as his fastball.

The Blue Ink — Contrast on White Leather This baseball is signed in blue ink — the collector-preferred choice on an Official MLB Baseball's white leather panels, providing sharp visual contrast against the natural cream of the cowhide and the red lacing. Blue ink signatures on white leather age exceptionally well, maintaining legibility and visual impact on display over time. The Official MLB Baseball is the Rawlings league-issue format used in every major league game — the standard and most historically significant signing surface in baseball memorabilia.

Authentication & Certification This baseball has been certified authentic by James Spence Authentication (JSA), one of the most respected names in the sports memorabilia authentication industry. JSA is trusted by collectors, dealers, and auction houses worldwide as a definitive authority on autograph verification. The piece comes with a JSA tamper-proof hologram sticker affixed directly to the baseball, verifiable at JSA's official website.

Why This Piece Stands Out

• Hand-signed in blue ink by Paul Skenes — the best young pitcher in baseball, age 23
• 2025 NL Cy Young Award — unanimous, all 30 first-place votes; 2024 NL Rookie of the Year Wikipedia
• First player since Dwight Gooden (1984–85) to win Rookie of the Year and Cy Young in consecutive seasons Wikipedia
• 1.96 career ERA across 320+ major league innings — "early Hall of Fame trajectory" by age 23 CBSSports.com
• Only pitcher since 1913 with a sub-2.00 ERA and 175+ strikeouts through his first 25 MLB starts MLB
• Signed on an Official MLB Rawlings Baseball — the league-issue format, the pitcher's object
• Blue ink on white leather — sharp visual contrast, exceptional long-term display quality
• JSA authenticated with tamper-proof hologram — fully verifiable
• Backed by our Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee

Paul Skenes has pitched 320 major league innings. His career ERA is 1.96. He is 23 years old. The last comparable start to a major league pitching career was Dwight Gooden — and the baseball world is watching to see if Skenes delivers the sustained dominance that Gooden's story ultimately could not. The Official MLB Baseball signed in blue ink by Paul Skenes, authenticated by JSA, is a ground-floor piece for a player whose ceiling has not yet been defined — and whose first two seasons have produced numbers that the sport has not seen from a pitcher this age in four decades.

Condition: Official MLB Rawlings Baseball in excellent condition. Signed in blue ink. Authenticated by James Spence Authentication with tamper-proof hologram sticker.