Pirates Finally Calling Up Former LSU Star Paul Skenes for His Major League Debut

The Paul Skenes era is ready to begin in Pittsburgh.

The top pick in last year’s amateur draft will make his major league debut for the Pirates on Saturday when they face the Cubs, a person with direct knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press.

The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Wednesday because the Pirates hadn’t explicitly announced the promotion, although the club did send out a hype video of Skenes with “5.11.24.”

The 21-year-old, taken with the first pick last summer following a couple of standout years at LSU, has dominated opponents at Triple-A Indianapolis. Skenes, whose fastball regularly hits triple digits, is 0-0 with a 0.99 ERA in seven Triple-A starts, with 45 strikeouts in 27 1/3 innings.

He is considered among baseball’s top prospects and comes with unusual star power for a baseball rookie, in part because of his relationship with LSU gymnast and social media influencer Livvy Dunne.

The Pirates have brought Skenes along slowly during the spring, methodically ramping up his pitch count at Triple-A. They have given him a little more latitude recently. He threw 75 pitches on April 30 and 66 on Sunday against Buffalo.