Olivia Dunne couldn’t contain her excitement as her boyfriend, Paul Skenes, was named as the winner of the 2025 National League Cy Young Award. Skenes, who represents the Pittsburgh Pirates in Major League Baseball, enjoyed an impressive individual season, setting a franchise single-season record for strikeouts by a right-handed pitcher with 216 strikeouts in total.
Despite his impressive individual season, Skenes was unable to lead the Pirates to the playoffs, as they finished with a 71-91 record. This marked the 10th consecutive year they have missed the playoffs. The team outcome, however, did not diminish his personal achievement.
How Did Olivia Dunne React As Skenes Earned The National League Cy Young Award?
The National League Cy Young Award is given to the best pitcher in the MLB season, first introduced in 1956 to honor the legendary pitcher, Cy Young. Skenes earned all 30 first-place votes from members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA), with other finalists such as Cristopher Sánchez of the Philadelphia Phillies and Yoshinobu Yamamoto of the Los Angeles Dodgers missing out.
A video posted by MLB on Instagram captured Skenes surrounded by loved ones, including Dunne, as the big news broke. Moments after the announcement, he wrapped Dunne in a joyful embrace, her excitement lighting up the room.
“Paul Skenes left no doubt. He received all 30 first-place votes to win the 2025 NL Cy Young Award!,” read the caption.
Dunne also took to her Instagram story to share the news, expressing her enthusiasm as Skenes won the award: “OH MY GOODNESSSSS!!!”.
Dunne and Skenes’ story began in 2023 when they met as student-athletes at Louisiana State University. Since Dunne retired from gymnastics, she has become a familiar, supportive presence at Skenes’ games, always cheering him on from the sidelines.
Dunne And Skenes Reflect On Their First Date
Having been together for two years now, Dunne and Skenes have developed a strong bond and have publicly shared glimpses of their relationship on many occasions. But how did their first few dates go? The couple revealed that they hit it off instantly during an interview with GQ: “Our first and second date, I was like, ‘Oh, I really like him,’” Dunne said. Skenes added that “She didn’t know who I was,” which Dunne replied to by saying that she “would see him around every now and then,” intrigued by who he was.
Skenes was an active supporter of Dunne’s gymnastics career at LSU, frequently attending her meets. Dunne had a very successful career with the Tigers, earning the program’s first-ever national championship as well as an SEC Championship.