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In the Pennsylvania town that’s home to the Pirates’ Class AA team, Paul Skenes met a fellow pitcher who was, like Skenes in 2023, the first overall pick in the MLB draft — former Cardinals standout Andy Benes.

“Yeah, he was one of the first guys I met, and I was just able to pick his brain there,” said Skenes, Pittsburgh’s pitching supernova and the presumptive Cy Young winner, who’s in St. Louis this week for a series with the Cardinals. “It’s kind of just a connection that’s gone on since. It’s definitely unique.”

The first meeting of the “1-1s” — baseball jargon for the first pick in the first round — happened on Aug. 25, 2023, which was three years ago Monday. Benes’ son, Drew, is a minor league pitching coach in the Pittsburgh organization. Andy would annually attend spring training and knew most of the staff. So when the club drafted the Louisiana State star that summer, the Pirates’ pitching coordinator asked Andy to meet Drew in Altoona to work with Skenes.

“We talked probably an hour in a bullpen in Altoona,” said Benes, who has lived in St. Louis since joining the Cards in 1996 — and retired in 2002, the year Skenes was born. “We talked about expectations — and what to expect.”

Benes was the first pick in 1988 by San Diego out of the University of Evansville. Since 1988, only 14 times has the first overall pick been a pitcher. In 1989, the 21-year-old made 21 starts in the minors and was called up the bigs. He finished his career at 155-139 with exactly 2,000 strikeouts and an All-Star Game appearance (Skenes started the All-Star Game as a rookie in 2024).

“We sat out in the bullpen during batting practice,” Benes, 58, recalled, “and I literally said: ‘This is what I know about you: I know you were at the Air Force and LSU, you were the first pick and you signed for a lot more than I did in 1988. And that’s it.’ And so, the first question, I said, ‘So are you married? You’re dating somebody?’ And he goes, ‘Yeah, I’m dating somebody.’ ...

“Later, Drew asked, ‘What did you guys talk about?’ I said, ‘Well, family at first. I asked if he had a girlfriend or was married.’ He goes, ‘No you didn’t dad — really?’ I go, ‘What are you talking about?’ He goes, ‘His girlfriend made more than he did last year — and he signed for $9 million.’”

For those that don’t know, Skenes is dating Livvy Dunne, the social media sensation who was also a gymnast at LSU. She has 8 million followers on TikTok and 5.4 million followers on Instagram.

“In our chat,” Benes said, “I told him you’re picked first because the team was bad the year before. So when you get to the big leagues, it’s not like you’re on a really good team. And so we just talked about having the right perspective. I said, ‘I went through a lot of the same things.’ ... I was the worst in run support in Major League Baseball for my first six seasons. It’s super-hard.

“I told Paul, ‘They’re not going to be great offensively. But that’s not your job. Your job’s defense. You really have to keep that perspective.’ And he’s like — ‘I’m going to do what I’m going to do, and the rest is what it is.’”

Indeed, Skenes has a league-best 2.07 ERA in 27 starts — yet a record of 8-9.

Now, during that time in Altoona, Benes closely watched Skenes carry himself around the minor league club. He was a phenom — so all the pitchers watched his bullpen session. But Skenes went out of his way to be humble and kind, introducing himself to every player on the club. Yet when Skenes did his workouts, Benes said he was “an absolute animal.”

“And I think the thing that impresses me most about him,” Benes said, “is he’s from a military family. And one of my questions was, ‘What do you see yourself doing after baseball?’ He goes, ‘I’d really like to be involved in the military at some point.’ He’s super-grounded. ... There’s no entitlement.”

Early in the 2024 season, Benes visited Drew, who is known as “Benny” around the Pirates’ the Class AAA clubhouse. There, Andy Benes reunited with Skenes (who, in seven starts, had a 0.99 ERA before his 2024 call-up).

Skenes instantly burst onto the scene. He tallied a 1.96 ERA in his 23 starts for Pittsburgh — and won the 2024 rookie of the year.

Later that season, Benes visited the Pirates when they were at Busch Stadium.

“Paul’s the down the hall,” Benes recalled, “and he came running over and said: ‘Papa Benny! What’s up? What are you doing in here?’ It’s kind of neat because you have a chance to really pour into these guys.”