Paul Skenes makes history, breaks McDonald strikeout record

BY TYLER HARDEN @ttjharden8

Last Thursday, Paul Skenes made LSU history. He broke the school record for most strikeouts in a season with 203 strikeouts.

The record was formerly held by Ben McDonald, who had 202 strikeouts in the 1989 season. The record is also an SEC record.

Skenes has already had a historical season for the Tigers, but breaking a school record was the icing on the cake. The accolades he holds in this season alone speak for themselves.

Most recently, Skenes won the 2023 Dick Howser Trophy, which is given annually to the most outstanding player in all of Division 1 baseball. He received the award on Friday while in Omaha.

Along with that, he is a First-

Team All-American, according to both Collegiate Baseball and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. He was also awarded the SEC Pitcher of the Year, and was a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award, along with Dylan Crews. The Golden Spikes award is given to the top amateur baseball player in the country.

Skenes winning awards is nothing new, as he received many accolades last season while at the Air Force Academy. At Air Force, he received the John Olerud Award, which is given to the top two-way college baseball player in the country.

In addition, he was also a First-Team All-American in both the 2022 and 2021 seasons. He was the Mountain West Conference Co-Pitcher of the Year in the 2022 season, and the 2021 Collegiate Baseball National Co- al Team.

Freshman of the Year in 2021. In 2021, he was selected to the USA Baseball Collegiate Nation-