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By Matthew Couden
Contributing Writer
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The World Baseball Classic featured a clash between Mexico and Team USA on Monday evening, with Paul Skenes making his official WBC debut, and as expected, he delivered on the mound.
He worked four innings and brought the heat, striking out seven batters during his pitching effort. USA's bats also helped the Pittsburgh Pirates ace in capturing his first WBC win.
New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge got things started with his two-run blast in the third inning off Jesus Cruz. Soon after, Red Sox star Roman Anthony smashed the ball over the outfield wall with Kyle Schwarber and Cal Raleigh on base.
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When all was said and done, the United States team earned a close 5-3 victory over Mexico, and Skenes looked impressive in his debut, drawing a strong reaction from fans and at least one NBA superstar.
Read more: Shohei Ohtani Homers Again in WBC Win After Japan’s Historic Feat
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Houston Rockets superstar Kevin Durant attended Team USA's game on Monday evening, drawing attention for being in the crowd to cheer on the United States athletes. He also had a five-word message for Skenes during that debut to end his X (formerly Twitter) hiatus.
"Paul skenes is a dawg," KD wrote to emphasize just how impressive he was on the mound.
The NBA star's comments led to some roasting and jabs from commenters on X, with some suggesting he should've played baseball and others suggesting he was hyping up Skenes more than his own Rockets teammates.
"You picked the wrong sport. Baseball clears NBA basketball," one X commenter said.
"Who’s better? Skenes or Jabari smith jr?" a commenter asked, referring to previous remarks that speculation suggested came from a Durant burner account.
"bro hyping up people that don't play his sport but can't hype up his teammates," another comment said.
Durant’s comments seemingly show his respect for other athletes at the top of their game, and Skenes is definitely that. After entering the league in 2024 for the Pirates, he’s achieved two All-Star appearances, the NL Rookie of the Year in 2024, and then his first NL Cy Young Award in 2025.
That’s not bad for a 23-year-old who just entered the league a few years ago, and he doesn’t appear to be showing any signs of slowing down.
Read more: Mexico Manager Draws Criticism for Comments on Team USA After WBC Loss
For more about the World Baseball Classic, visit Newsweek Sports.
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