Aug 18, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes (30) reacts after pitching he fifth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Pirates Star Paul Skenes Visits Morgantown to Check Out WVU Baseball

Originally posted on West Virginia Mountaineers on SI
By Anthony Halkias | Last updated Aug 21, 2025 7:05 PM ET

West Virginia baseball opened up a new Baseball Biomechanics and Performance Center in March of 2025. The center was designed to be a place where student athletes, as well as, students and faculty in the WVU School of Sport Sciences to be able to use its features.

On Thursday, they got a very special guest. Major League Baseball superstar and Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes showed up. Skenes visited the facility located on Gyorko Drive. The WVU baseball team posted up for a photo with Skenes.

Paul Skenes WVU Baseball

Thanks for visiting @WVUbiomechanics and talking with the team! Welcome back anytime! pic.twitter.com/qRcjDUN3mY
— WVU Baseball (@WVUBaseball) August 21, 2025

The Baseball Biomechanics and Performance Center got backing from a WVU alumnus named Ken Kendric, who offered a very thoughtful initial donation that got this facility rolling. While the facility in and of itself has many exciting features, bringing one of the best players in the MLB to town is even more awesome.

For the WVU baseball team, this looked like a truly one-of-a-kind experience. Skenes is one of the best young stars in the game. His presence in Morgantown and with the WVU baseball team is surely a moment those players will never forget.

The Mountaineer baseball program underwent a change ahead of the 2025 season. Steve Sabins was hired to replace Randy Mazey, who had coached from 2013-2024. The Sabins' era kicked off with a solid season, which saw the Mountaineers finish ranked nationally for the first time consecutively in 61 years.

With the Mountaineers starting to gain some momentum in the world of College Baseball, all eyes turn to Sabins as he works to continue the trend of finishing nationally ranked. That's not an easy feat to do.

Skenes' visiting the facility isn't going to help aid the win and loss total of the Mountaineers' upcoming baseball season. However, it surely will help get more eyes on the program for hosting the game's best. Getting the experience of hanging out with maybe the best pitcher in the MLB right now is a rare and awesome moment for those on the WVU roster.

Plus, Skenes had to come check out WVU, right? I mean his song during pregame warmups is "Cue Country Roads" by Charles Wesley Godwin.