Olivia Dunne isn’t the only one earning a bag in their sports career. Paul Skenes may have only just started his baseball journey, but he’s already made it into the history books. According to CBS, Skenes is out-earning the Detroit Tigers’ Spencer Torkelson, who signed a record-making $8.4 million contract in 2020. The No. 1 Major League pick signed a massive contract for $9.2 million with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2023.
According to MLB, the right-handed pitcher’s first professional game, which took place on August 10, was a success. He struck out three batters with his signature fastball. As reported by the Post-Gazette, his new teammates are impressed. “He’s wired differently,” said Pirates pitcher Max Kranick. “I watched his outing the other day at Pirate City, and it was hands down the most dominant minor league outing I’ve ever seen. It was unbelievable.”
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Kranick also applauded Skene’s inquisitiveness, saying, “Some of the questions he asks, you’re like, ‘Wow, that’s a pretty mature question for a 21-year-old.’ There’s no doubt that he’s gonna be [in Pittsburgh] really soon and be there for a really long time.”
Skenes plans on focusing his energy on the pitcher’s mound. “It was a conversation we had, which is great about the organization,” he told the Post-Gazette in an earlier interview. “They’re leaving it up to me. To do both is tough. I do think, to an extent, one was taking away from the other, especially when I was catching, too.”
