Paul Skenes

Paul David Skenes (born May 29, 2002) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. He played college baseball for the Air Force Falcons and the LSU Tigers.

Skenes was born and raised in Orange County, California, where he attended El Toro High School and played three seasons of varsity baseball. Skenes, born into a military family, enrolled in the United States Air Force Academy and played college baseball for the school. In his 2022 sophomore season, he won the John Olerud Award, given annually to the best two-way player. Ahead of his junior season, Skenes departed from the Air Force Academy and transferred to LSU.

In his lone season at LSU, Skenes posted a 1.69 earned run average (ERA) and set a single-season school record for strikeouts with 209. He received Southeastern Conference and national pitcher of the year honors as well as the Dick Howser Trophy. Skenes was part of the LSU pitching staff during the team's 2023 Men's College World Series championship win and was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.

Skenes entered the 2023 MLB draft as one of its most anticipated prospects and considered by some as the best pitching prospect since Stephen Strasburg. Skenes was selected first overall by the Pirates and signed to a $9.2 million bonus. Dylan Crews was selected next, making the pair the first college teammates to be drafted first and second overall.

Paul David Skenes was born on May 29, 2002, in Fullerton, California, to Craig, a pharmaceuticals company employee, and Karen, a homemaker. Two of Skenes' uncles served in the United States Navy while another served in the Coast Guard.

Skenes grew up in Lake Forest, California, and attended El Toro High School, the alma mater of major leaguers Nolan Arenado and Matt Chapman, among others. Skenes played three years of varsity baseball as a two-way player – he played catcher, first base, and third base in addition to pitching. In September 2018, during his junior year, Skenes announced his commitment to attend the United States Air Force Academy and play college baseball for the Air Force Falcons. In his junior season, he posted a 0.67 earned run average (ERA). He was voted to the all-star teams for the Coast View Athletic Association, Orange County, the CIF Southern Section, and the state of California. During his senior year, Skenes was named team captain and had a 0.33 ERA and hit three home runs before the remainder of the season was abruptly canceled in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He was named to the all-county first team following the season. Skenes graduated from El Toro in 2020 with a grade point average of 4.76.

Skenes honored his commitment to play college baseball for the Air Force Falcons and accepted an appointment as part of the class of 2024. In his first season at Air Force, Skenes was named the Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year and a first team All-American by the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, Baseball America, and the NCBWA. In 2021, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Wareham Gatemen of the Cape Cod Baseball League. In 2022, Skenes won the John Olerud Award as the nation's best two-way player.

After his sophomore season, Skenes entered the NCAA transfer portal. On July 28, 2022, Skenes announced that he would transfer to Louisiana State University (LSU) to play for the LSU Tigers. On June 22, 2023, Skenes broke Ben McDonald's SEC and LSU record for strikeouts in a single season, recording his 203rd strikeout of the year.

Following the 2023 season, Skenes won the National Pitcher of the Year Award and the Dick Howser Trophy. LSU won the 2023 College World Series and Skenes was named the College World Series Most Outstanding Player.

The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Skenes with the first overall selection of the 2023 Major League Baseball draft. He and Dylan Crews became the first college teammates in MLB draft history to be selected with the first two overall picks. Skenes was the second player in LSU history to be selected first overall in the draft, joining Ben McDonald. He signed with the Pirates on July 18, 2023, for a $9.2 million signing bonus, the highest ever for a drafted player. Skenes debuted on MLB.com's MLB Pipeline list as the third-ranked prospect league-wide and the top-ranked pitcher.

On August 7, Skenes was assigned to the rookie-level Florida Complex League Pirates with the expectation of limited innings due to his high usage at LSU the prior spring. He made his professional debut on August 10 and pitched a one-two-three inning against the FCL Twins; all but one of his pitches were clocked at 99 miles per hour (159 km/h) or higher and he struck out fellow top draft pick Walker Jenkins.

On August 15, Skenes was assigned to Single-A affiliate Bradenton. He was then promoted to Double-A affiliate Altoona on August 21.

In August 2023, Skenes gave an interview with Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette where he discussed his romantic involvement with LSU gymnast and social media influencer Olivia Dunne. According to the interview, the two started dating because his best friend at LSU was dating Dunne’s roommate and best friend, Elena Arenas.