Paul Skenes, Olivia Dunne’s Boyfriend Is Promoted To Pittsburgh’s Double-A After He Revealed His Relationship With The Gymnast
On and off the field, Paul Skenes is having a remarkable month.
Skenes, the Pirates’ top selection in the July MLB draft and recently verified boyfriend of Olivia Dunne, the LSU student who went viral, was promoted to Pittsburgh’s Double-A club Altoona on Monday, the team said.
In an interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette last Friday, right-handed fireballer Skenes, 21, acknowledged he was dating Dunne, 20.
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The pitcher, a former LSU student who played a key role in the school’s national championship squad in June, claimed to have met Dunne through his best friend, who is dating Elena Marenas, a former gymnastics teammate and roommate of Dunne’s at the university.
“Just a small-world type of thing,” Skenes commented on his recently disclosed relationship with the LSU star, Olivia Dunne.
Dunne, also present, witnessed Paul’s inning and struck out two while peaking out at 100 mph as Skenes dazzled the crowd — and undoubtedly the Pirates brass — with his Single-A debut.
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Skenes has pitched four scoreless innings with five strikeouts in three appearances spanning Single-A and the complex league, allowing just one hit and no walks.
Skenes’ heavy workload with LSU last season—he threw 122 2/3 innings, averaging a mind-boggling 103 pitches over his final 19 appearances—has led the Pirates to restrict it this year.
“I think as we’ve gone through the year, we knew there was going to be a progression to where he was going to go, and we’re just taking another step in the progression,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “Having just watched the starts on video, he’s done a really nice job and been very impressive, so we’ll continue to progress him as our baseball ops group feels is appropriate.”
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The innings restriction, according to Pittsburgh general manager Ben Cherington, is part of a wider strategy with the highly sought right-hander.
“We think it’s helped him be fully engaged in the work between starts and have a more normal pitcher experience even if we’re being conservative with the volume, then help him get into a normal offseason to prepare to be a starting pitcher in 2024, wherever that begins.”
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