Paul Skenes should have little reason to fear Juan Soto or any other hitter in the Dominican Republic lineup. The Team USA starter has been highly dominant against most of them heading into the semifinal matchup, where he is expected to try to contain the lineup and help push the United States into the 2026 World Baseball Classic championship game.
Skenes has had the upper hand against Soto. In three at-bats, the Dominican slugger is 0-for-3 with two strikeouts against the Team USA pitcher. While they have never faced each other in the World Baseball Classic, the two are familiar with one another from their MLB matchups since 2024.
Another dangerous Dominican hitter, Ketel Marte, has also struggled against Skenes in their MLB meetings. The Arizona Diamondbacks veteran is 0-for-5 against him, with his only positive result being a walk.
Skenes stats vs. Dominican Republic lineup
Nearly every Dominican player who has faced Skenes in the majors has been neutralized. The only exception is Julio Rodríguez, who has three hits in six at-bats against him. Even then, those hits resulted only in a couple of doubles and did not produce any RBIs or runs scored.
- Julio Rodríguez — 3-for-6
- Ketel Marte — 0-for-5
- Juan Soto — 0-for-3 (2 K)
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr. — 0-for-2 (1 K)
- Junior Caminero — 0-for-3
- Austin Wells — 0-for-2
- Geraldo Perdomo — 0-for-7 (2 K)
see also
World Baseball Classic: Venezuela adds Phillies left-hander ahead of Italy matchup
Antonio Puesan compiled this list on X (@antoniopuesan), highlighting Dominican players currently representing the island in the 2026 WBC who have already faced Skenes in the majors. Still, several Dominican analysts and reporters believe that dominance could change in the semifinal matchup.
“Paul Skenes is a superstar, that’s true. He’s taken MLB by storm and earned all his accolades. But it’s not the same facing lineups where you only have to watch out for one or two big hitters, as it is facing a lineup where you pretty much have to watch out for nine stars,” wrote Mike Rodriguez on X (@mikedeportes).
So far in the World Baseball Classic, Skenes has recorded seven strikeouts, all coming against Mexico. He did not allow a single run across four innings pitched, with only one batter managing a hit in the second inning before he shut down the rest of the lineup.
