You couldn't ask for a much better start to the 2024 season than what the Pirates have put together: A 6-1 record after the season's opening week. One of the big reasons for optimism around the Bucs is the young core currently in the Majors -- and more youngsters who could soon be making a major impact in the big leagues.

Chief among them, of course, is Paul Skenes, MLB Pipeline's No. 3 overall prospect and the top pitching prospect in the game. The 6-foot-6, 235-pound right-hander with a 100 mph fastball to go along with a wipeout slider and solid changeup is knocking on MLB's door, and it's only a matter of time before we see him at PNC Park.

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"He's electric," fellow right-hander Jared Jones, Pittsburgh's No. 3 prospect and the No. 58 prospect overall, said of Skenes on MLB Network Radio on Thursday. "There's nothing more you can say than that. It's just a really electric arm, and when he's on the mound, everybody just stops and watches."

The same could be said of Jones, who has his own power fastball that nears triple-digits on the radar gun. The 22-year-old made his MLB debut for the Pirates on March 30 against the Marlins, and outside of a rocky fourth inning in which he surrendered a pair of runs, he made a strong first impression, yielding only one other run and finishing with two walks and 10 strikeouts.

"I thought it went really well," Jones said of his performance. "The only thing that killed me were the two walks. That's when I gave up runs. So limiting those would be most ideal going forward."

If there's one thing the Pirates seem to have a lot of right now, it's confidence. And confidence played a big role in Jones' debut. He found that he belonged early on, and then his maturity -- one of his key attributes on the mound -- took over.

"As soon as I came out of that first inning, I had two strikeouts," Jones said. "My confidence level went through the roof. And then I just went out there and did me. ... It was surreal. Standing on the mound just felt different.

"My first pitch, I was standing out there just hoping I'd throw a fastball that Henry [Davis] could catch -- somewhere near the plate. And then after that, everything just kind of went away, and it was just time to pitch."

With Jones -- and potentially Skenes soon -- highlighting the Pirates' starting rotation, there will undoubtedly be some must-see moments when everyone just stops and watches. Jones said that both he and Skenes possess a similar approach to their craft. And it goes back to that word: confidence.

"We both have that same mentality," Jones said. "When we're both up on the mound, we just feel like we're just going to come up here and shove."

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