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Despite a disappointing season for the Pittsburgh Pirates, in which the team extended its playoff drought to nine years and finished with a losing record for the sixth straight season, there is some reason for optimism. The Pirates have found a legitimate ace in pitcher Paul Skenes, who broke the franchise record for strikeouts by a rookie pitcher in 2024.
The young hurler put together a dominant season on the field. And he’s even doing well off the field, as Skenes gave girlfriend Olivia Dunne a topnotch birthday gift. Skenes presented Dunne with a custom-made baseball card that featured the couple’s dog Roux, per Topps official account on X. Dunne is holding Roux on the front of the card and the pup’s “career stats” are on the back
Roux is, unsurprisingly, a member of the Pirates. He’s a year-old English retriever who loves Liv, chewing on sticks and eating steak, per Topps.
It’s been a big year for baseball dogs. The Los Angeles Dodgers featured Shohei Ohtani’s pup Decoy in a bobblehead figurine giveaway in August. And the good boy even threw out the first pitch on his bobblehead night. Now Roux has burst onto the scene with his very own baseball card.
Pirates ace Paul Skenes had a sensational year on and off the field
The thoughtful gift was given for Dunne’s 22nd birthday. Skenes needed a pretty big gesture to compete with Dunne, who hilariously impersonated her famous boyfriend at Fanatics Fest earlier this year. The couple met at LSU where Dunne is a member of the women’s gymnastics team and Skenes dominated on the mound, leading the Tigers to the 2023 College World Series title.
The Pirates selected Skenes first overall in the 2023 draft. After dominating in the minors, Pittsburgh eventually called him up and the 22-year-old righty made his MLB debut on May 11. Skenes produced a phenomenal first year going 11-3 with a minuscule 1.96 ERA, 0.947 WHIP, 11.5 K/9 and an ERA+ of 214 in 133 innings pitched. He had a rookie franchise record 170 strikeouts and 5.9 bWAR in 23 starts for the Pirates this season.
Skenes’ incredible debut included being named the All-Star Game starter for the National League. He was the first rookie to start the Midsummer Classic since Hideo Nomo in 1995. At the season’s halfway point, Skenes seemed to be a lock to take home Rookie of the Year honors. However, San Diego Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill surpassed him as the betting favorite for the NL ROY award. Nonetheless, Skenes was named Baseball America’s Rookie of the Year. MLB will announce its National and American League ROY winners after the World Series.
