Olivia Dunne has never hidden where her loyalty lies. When she’s off the field, she ensures that they are “super present with one another,” but when it comes to baseball? Yeah, that’s another game altogether. Just last week, she turned heads at Yankee Stadium in custom denim boots featuring Paul Skenes’ name and jersey number while watching her boyfriend take the mound. Safe to say, Skenes tops her list of favorite MLB players, but he’s not the only one she enjoys watching…

A 10-second clip from Jomboy Media surfaced on X after the Chicago Cubs’ 11-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. In the video, Dunne was asked, “Who’s your favorite player in MLB that’s not Paul?”

“I really enjoy watching Konnor Griffin and Pete Crow-Armstrong,” the former LSU Tigers gymnast revealed after taking a moment to think.

The Pirates shortstop Griffin has played 59 games so far this season and is averaging .256 with 5 home runs and 25 RBIs. However, presently on the 60-day IL due to a tendon injury, he is focusing on recovery. Now, given that he is the teammate of Dunne’s beau, why she would pick him as a favorite player is understandable. But Pete Crow-Armstrong? Really?

Well, if anything, the timing of this clip appears rather ironic.

On Saturday at PNC Park, when the two NL Central rivals faced each other, Skenes looked absolutely untouchable through the first four innings. He piled up nine strikeouts without allowing a run, but then came the fifth inning, and that momentum derailed.

With Dansby Swanson on base, Crow-Armstrong ripped a 2-2 changeup into the gap for an RBI double. That ultimately brought home the game’s first run and ignited a three-run inning. However, the damage didn’t stop there. 

In the sixth, after Nico Hoerner singled and Pedro Ramírez walked, Paul Skenes’ outing came to an end after 5.1 innings. Crow-Armstrong immediately added to the Cubs’ surge, lining another double off reliever Isaac Mattson. That ultimately helped Chicago pour on five runs in the inning to stretch the lead to 8-0.

By the final out, Crow-Armstrong had authored one of his best games of the season. He finished 4-for-5 with three RBIs, three runs, and a strikeout. 

That now brings us to the question: Where was the 24-year-old? Well, let’s just say his numbers told a different story in the tough loss.

The Pirates’ ace allowed five earned runs on six hits with two walks over 5.1 innings. The silver lining, you may ask? He still struck out 11 batters, which happens to be a season high for him. Reflecting on the same after the game, the starting pitcher said:

“Really weird line. I think it was all working. Thought there were some good pitches that I made that they did a really good job getting to … Just a weird game, but they did a good job. Grinded out some at-bats and saw pitches, found some grass and it’s baseball.”

While that’s that, one rough outing isn’t changing Olivia Dunne’s allegiance, and there’s little doubt about where her heart is. 

Olivia Dunne drops a comeback after opponent’s pun

So, if anyone needed another reminder of where Olivia Dunne’s loyalties lie, they got it just a week earlier. The July 19 matchup between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Cleveland Guardians, which marked Skenes’ first start after the MLB All-Star break, had its tense moments.

In the bottom of the third inning at Progressive Field, Cleveland had runners on the bases when leadoff hitter Steven Kwan dropped down a bunt. The play tied the game at 1-1, but a defensive miscue by Pittsburgh allowed another to advance all the way to third. The Guardians’ social media team couldn’t resist having some fun. 

Shortly after the play, the club posted a video on X with the caption:

“Job well Dunne.”

Livvy didn’t rush to respond. She let the scoreboard do the talking.

After Pittsburgh pulled away for a 7-1 victory, she quote-posted the Guardians’ message with a perfectly timed comeback:

“Game was Dunne at 7-1 Pirates.”

Therefore, one thing is clear: Olivia Dunne has struck the perfect balance as an MLB fan. She has no problem applauding talent on rival teams, as her praise for Pete Crow-Armstrong showed. But when it’s time to stand up for the Pirates, she’s just as quick with a fitting response.