After surpassing 200 strikeouts for the first time in his career, Pirates ace Paul Skenes admitted it was good to get a breather.

The NL Cy Young front-runner reached 203, fanning eight Orioles batters in Pittsburgh's 2-1, 10-inning loss to Baltimore on Wednesday night.

It might’ve been more had manager Don Kelly not removed the overpowering right-hander after a season-low 64 pitches with an eye toward managing his workload at the back end of his first full season in the majors.

“The main goal that I’ve had coming into the past two years is making every start,” said the 23-year-old Skenes, who worked five scoreless, two-hit frames in his 30th outing. “There are opportunities to give and take throughout the season, and tonight was kind of one of those. I probably needed it, to be honest.

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