MLB rookie sensation Paul Skenes had aspirations of being a military member before becoming a baseball star.
The Pittsburgh Pirates phenom pitcher, who was drafted No. 1 overall in the 2023 MLB Draft, decided to not join the military and chase his dream of playing professional baseball while he was in college.
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The 6-foot-6, 235-pound Skenes is off to a stellar start in the MLB after making his big-league debut earlier this month.
His last outing saw the 21-year-old strike out the first seven batters on his way to six no-hit innings.
But Skenes was on the path of joining the military as he attended the United States Air Force Academy.
Military service runs in the Skenes family as the California native has two uncles who served in the Navy.
Skenes also has an uncle who’s currently serving in the Coast Guard.
During his time with the Air Force, Skenes wanted to be an F-16 pilot.
He was a model cadet for two years.
Skenes also played college baseball for the program – and he was a two-way star.
After his sophomore year, Skenes chose to stick with baseball and transfer to LSU.
He would become a prodigy with his average fastball of 100 mph.
Skenes contributed to LSU’s 2023 College World Series win as he was named Most Outstanding Player of the Final.
Fast forward to this week and the Skenes’ Pirates will be celebrating the United State’s military this weekend.
Skenes will pay respect to his past background and wear a pair of Nike custom military-theme cleats.
The Pirates rookie is currently dating the LSU star gymnast Olivia Dunne.
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Skenes and Dunne met at LSU last year.
Dunne appeared at the MLB rookie’s debut earlier this month in Pittsburgh.
It’s expected that she’ll appear at his third start against the San Francisco Giants on Thursday.
DUNNE AND SKENES’ SUMMER OF LOVE
Olivia Dunne and Paul Skenes managed to keep their relationship a secret before finally going public last summer.
The pair met at LSU, but it’s not clear when they started dating.
Rumors of a romance began when Dunne watched LSU win the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska last summer.
And Dunne then posted selfies from Fort Myers in Florida, where Skenes was playing.
He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates and began his pro career by playing in minor leagues in the Sunshine State.
The final clue came when Dunne posed in a Pirates cap before the pair finally went public.
The social media influencer Dunne posted a selfie on Instagram on Tuesday which revealed she’s in the city of Pittsburgh.
Dunne was seen rocking a Pirates cap and a small white top and wrote the caption, “back in the BURGH!”