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For the first time since walking off Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Neb. as national champions at LSU, Paul Skenes and Dylan Crews shared the same field this week.
Their journeys will forever be intertwined, forged first as teammates then as national champions and as the first players taken in the 2023 MLB Draft.
"It's been a crazy couple of months for sure," Crews said, who was in town Thursday night as a member of the Harrisburg Senators, who lost, 9-3, to the Altoona Curve at PNG Field. "Just from everything from the national championship to getting drafted, and then now being able to play pro ball and you know, share the field with Paul to once again, it's a good feeling. It's something that I've definitely learned how to cherish especially all the moments that I've that I've had, so it's good, I'm having a great time being able to go through that with a teammate."
The duo became the first-ever pair of teammates to. go Nos. 1 and No. 2 in the MLB Draft with Skenes going to the Pirates and Crews to the Nationals.
"That doesn't happen very often so it's a pretty, pretty awesome feeling, being able to share that moment with your teammate," Crews said. "It was something that's very special for us."
Skenes vs. Crews was months in the making with the Harrisburg Senators coming to Altoona to wrap up the home slate of the 2023 season, but a match-up between the two as was scheduled for Thursday never came to fruition after Skenes was shut down for the season earlier in the week.
"I obviously wish I could have faced him. I missed him and the type of teammate he is and the type of person he is," Skenes said. "I miss being around him every day. Hopefully get some time with him in the offseason, but yeah, definitely missed him."
The mutual admiration and respect the two have for each other radiates when they talk about one another, but the person whose face lights up the most when they're brought up might just be their former coach at LSU Jay Johnson.
"To have a pitcher of Paul's caliber and to have a hitter of Dylan's caliber to come here, invest their time here, execute, at the highest possible level is something I'll always be proud of," Johnson said. "They basically both won the Heisman trophy of college baseball with Dylan winning the Golden Spikes Award and Paul winning the Dick Howser. Then they get drafted one and two and I think it says, we're about what we say we are at LSU, which is developing players for professional baseball."
At LSU, Skenes and Crews developed into two of the premier players in the history of college baseball. Now, they're both in Double-A on different journeys to get to the Major Leagues.
For Skenes, if it were up to him, he'd be pitching in Pittsburgh already, but it's that competitive spirit that helps make him who he is as a pitcher. It's also what will motivate him far into the off-season as he prepares for his first full season in professional baseball.
"My goal is tomorrow, but that's not going to happen. I want to get there as as soon as possible," Skenes said. "That's why this offseason is so important to prepare myself physically and mentally to do that challenge. I want to win at the highest level. I've seen a lot of the guys that are in this organization and see the people that are in the big leagues right now. I feel -- and I think a lot of people feel -- that we have an opportunity to win very soon. If I can contribute to that Opening Day, I want to do that. I also realize that the club has their plans for me. It's all going to work out in the end."
Skenes is as competitive as they come and even with that there are very rarely highs and lows with him. His makeup is even-keeled and so far it doesn't seem as though much rattles him. That's also a large part of what makes him such a special pitcher so far.
"You know what you're gonna get out of him every single day he steps on the mound and I think that's what that's what makes him very special," Crews said. "He's just an even-keeled guy. He's going to put in the work every single day and when he steps on the mound you know what you're going to get out of him."
The adjustment to Double-A hasn't gone as Crews has hoped with him hitting .188 through 13 games, but that will work itself out in time. Take it from Skenes who's seen what makes Crews special on a daily basis.
"He's a winner. I mean, every day he's showing up and he's getting ready to win no matter what, if there's a game or not," Skenes said. "There are games here every day, but in college, I got to see it every day and he shows up and just wanting to win whatever it is, you know, can't win in practice, but you know, he's finding ways to win against himself and prepare to win and all that. It was a blessing to be his teammate and get to be with him for a year. It's really cool to see."
The former teammates might not have faced each other on the field during their first professional seasons, but there's plenty more ahead for Skenes and Crews on their respective journeys. There might be a little disappointment with there not being a head-to-head battle, but the best is yet to come for both.
"We both know we're gonna face each other a fair amount in the future," Skenes said.
Sens sullied
Curve starter Sean Sullivan dazzled the crowd with a nine-strikeout performance in the win.
Sullivan went seven innings and allowed one run on four hits. It was his 20th start of the season and moved him to 7-4.
"I think having Sullivan on the mound is just extremely nice, just from the pace standpoint," Curve manager Callix Crabbe said. "He's had such an excellent season. It's actually his second full season and he's over 100 innings and he's holding velocity really long and he's a good little pitcher."
Explosive offense
Jacob Gonzalez and Jackson Glenn paced the Altoona offense in their nine-run performance.
Glenn roped a three-run home run in the sixth as part of a seven-run inning. It was his sixth home run of the season.
Gonzalez had a double and two singles with two RBI on the evening.
"They just stuck with the plan," Crabbe said. "It's funny how offense works. One guy hits the ball hard, then the next guy focuses on what the game is trying to ask him to do."
The Curve offense also got two hits a piece from Tsung-Che Cheng, Joe Perez, Mike Jarvis and Eli Wilson.
Next up
The recently promoted Bubba Chandler makes his Double-A debut in Friday's contest against Harrisburg. He was 9-4 with a 4.75 ERA in Greensboro this year.
"Him being here is mostly to just get the experience. He's probably going to start here next year," Crabbe said. "He's got a very elite arm, young kid though. So this late in the season, we don't want to push him too much so he'll go probably five or six innings tops."