Pirates' Paul Skenes Meets Olympic Gold Medalist
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PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Pirates star Paul Skenes commands respects as one of the top players of baseball, putting him in the top echelon of athletes in the United States.
Skenes had the pleasure of meeting former Olympic gold medalist gymnast Aly Raisman, following his Opening Day Start against the Miami Marlins at LoanDepot Park in Miami on March 27.
Raisman came to the game with LSU fifth-year gymnast, Olivia "Livvy" Dunne, who is dating Skenes and travels to watch him pitch on occasion.
Skenes had a solid outing with seven strikeouts while allowing just three hits and two walks for two earned runs over 94 pitches in 5 1/3 innings of work.
He would've had the win, as he departed with a 4-1 lead in the sixth inning, but the Pirates' bullpen and defense both struggled, as they would lose 5-4 on a walk-off in the ninth inning.
Raisman excelled for the United States women's gymnastics team, winning two gold medals at the 2012 Oympics in London for Team and the Floor exercise events and her third at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in the Team event.
She would also win two silver medals in 2016 in the All-around and Flooor exercise events, along with a bronze medal in 2012 in the balance beam.
Skenes and Dunne both started dating each other back at LSU and the two have been inseparable ever since.
Dunne is also the most followed NCAA athlete on social media, including 5.3 million followers on Instagram and eight million followers on Tik Tok.
She is in her fifth season with LSU gymnastics, where she helped LSU win their first National Title in the 2023-24 season, as well as setting a career-high of 9.900 on floor twice. She also spent time o the U.S. National Team back in 2017.
Dunne has also played a role in LSU having another great year in 2025, as they are 18-2 overall and won their third SEC Regular Season Title, sharing it with Oklahoma, as well as their sixth/back-to-back SEC Tournament Title.
She will head to the NCAA Regionals at University Park, Pa., with Penn State hosting, just a two-and-half-hour drive away from Skenes in Pittsburgh.
LSU will compete amongst No. 16 Arkansas, Michigan, Maryland and West Virginia in the Second Round on April 3 and then the top two teams will face off in the Regional Final on April 5.
Skenes starred at LSU in 2023, after transferring from Air Force. He had a 13-2 record in 19 starts, 1.69 ERA in 122.2 innings pitched, gave up just 23 earned runs, while notching 209 strikeouts to just 20 walks, leading the program to a national title that season.
He would enter the 2023 MLB Draft, where the Pirates took him with the No. 1 overall pick. He also signed with the franchise on a $9.2 million signing bonus, the highest ever given to a player at the time.
Skenes dominated in the minor leagues and soon made it up to the majors on May 11 of the 2024 season.
He started 23 games, had a 1.96 ERA in 133 innings, allowed just 29 earned runs, 94 hits, six home runs and 32 walks, while recording 170 strikeouts and holding opposing hitting to a .198 batting average. He also had a 11.50 K/9 and a WHIP of 0.95.
He was the first member of the Pirates to start for the National League in the All-Star Game since Jerry Reuss did it in 1975, 49 years ago. He was also just the fifth rookie to start an All-Star game, with Hideo Nomo of the Los Angeles Dodgers last doing so before him in 1995, en route to winning NL Rookie of the Year.
Skenes also made the All-MLB First Team for his performance in 2024, won NL Rookie of the Year and was a finalist for the NL Cy Young Award.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.