Tag: Alex Stone

The Duke baseball team considers what they would shoot at Augusta for Masters week

With The Masters in full swing and golf on everyone’s minds, do any Duke baseball players think they could break 100 at Augusta National? The team posted a short social media clip with the answer.

Duke’s baseball team has three games this weekend, but the entire sports world has golf on its mind during Masters week.

The first men’s golf major is finally here at the iconic course in Augusta, Georgia, and the Blue Devils leaned into the fun by asking some players on the baseball team what they would shoot in a round at Augusta National.

Most of the Duke players interviewed weren’t very optimistic. Six of the eight Blue Devils in the video said they’d shoot something in the triple digits, with freshman AJ Gracia having maybe the most relatable answer.

“At least 100,” Gracia said instead of trying to zero in on an actual score. “At least.”

Two Duke players seemed a little more optimistic about their chances, however. Catcher Alex Stone thinks he can shoot in the mid-90s (though he did emphasize that no one on the roster would be any lower than that). Chase Krewson agreed that he could break 100.

While the tournament goes from Thursday through Sunday this week, the Blue Devils have a three-game road trip to Pittsburgh beginning on Friday.

Duke baseball sweeps Miami after six-run comeback, second walk-off on Sunday

Duke made up six runs in the eight inning and overcame a three-run deficit in the 11th for their third straight one-run victory over Miami on Sunday.

The Blue Devils baseball team had a flair for the dramatic over the weekend in Durham.

Duke swept Miami with three straight one-run victories, including a walk-off from Ben Miller on Friday and a six-run comeback in the eighth inning on Sunday, to extend the program’s win streak to five games.

Miller’s heroics defined the day in the weekend opener. With two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth, he smoked a ground ball past Miami third baseman Daniel Cuvet for the mic-drop victory.

The Saturday game didn’t lower any heart rates at Jack Coombs Field. Duke jumped out to a four-run lead through the first four innings after four different Blue Devils drove in a teammate.

Miami squared the game with two runs in the sixth and seventh innings apiece, but Duke catcher Alex Stone got his turn with the cape in the bottom of the seventh for Duke. With two runners in scoring position, Stone bounced a wild ground ball off the pitcher’s mound and into the outfield to drive home the go-ahead run. Neither team got on the board in the final two innings, meaning Stone’s RBI turned out to be the deciding play of the game.

With the sweep on the line on Sunday afternoon, Miami led 7-1 in the middle of the eighth inning. Miami designated hitter Lorenzo Carrier, who finished with a game-leading three RBIs, added the last runs to the early blowout with a two-run homer.

The game seemed lost for the Blue Devils, but Duke’s batters went to work in the bottom of the frame. Left fielder Chase Krewson singled home one run before Stone doubled home another. A walk loaded the bases, and the Hurricanes’ pitching staff melted down from there.

Nick Robert got called to the mound and beaned Duke centerfielder Devin Obee to plate another run. Pinch hitter Harrison Rodgers drew a walk, and all of a sudden, the Blue Devils only trailed by two.

Two batters later, with the lead just one after a sacrifice fly, Miller stepped up as the team superhero again and belted a fly ball over the right fielder’s head for the game-tying double.

After a scoreless ninth inning forced some extra frames, the Hurricanes looked like they struck the winning blow after Miami added three runs in the top of the 11th.

With their backs to the wall, however, the Duke offense delivered again. Two singles and a walk loaded the bases before the Blue Devils got handed two easy runs from a throwing error and a balk.

The Hurricanes opted to walk Stone to face Wallace Clark instead. Clark made them regret the decision.

The Duke shortstop rifled a line drive into the left-center gap to bring home both runners in scoring position, ending the game and the weekend.

The Blue Devils, on the heels of the five straight wins they’ve pieced together, are now 24-8 on the season and 9-6 against ACC opponents. They continue their home stand with a Tuesday night game against William & Mary.

Santucci sizzles with 11 K’s as No. 6 Duke downs No. 10 Clemson in ACC home opener

No. 6 Duke uses home runs and excellent pitching from Jonathan Santucci to down No. 10 Clemson.

For the second Friday in a row, Duke’s baseball team handed a loss to a top-10 team.

This time, it took place in Durham as Duke opened up its ACC home slate with a decisive 5-2 win over the 10th-ranked Clemson Tigers.

Duke ace Jonathan Santucci was razor-sharp as he bounced back from a short-lived showing against Wake Forest last Friday evening. He didn’t make it through three innings in his previous start, but he tossed five innings of two-run ball against Clemson.

The game started rocky after a fielding error allowed Clemson’s best player and future first-round draft pick, outfielder Cam Cannarella, to reach first. A wild pitch and some productive hitting got him to third before a single by third baseman Blake Wright scored him to give the Tigers an early 1-0 lead.

In the bottom frame, Duke responded loudly. With one out, a Ben Miller walk and a single by Alex Stone set the stage for Harvard transfer Logan Bravo to hammer a 2-0 pitch from Clemson starter Austin Gordon to right center for a three-run homer, giving the Blue Devils a lead they would never relinquish the rest of the game.

Santucci, from there, would settle down. He pitched two scoreless innings, racking up more strikeouts using his fastball, changeup, and slider in perfect unison.

In the bottom of the third, Bravo added more insurance, ripping a line drive to left field for his second homer of the game, giving Duke a 4-1 lead.

Clemson’s Blake Wright responded with a home run at the top of the fourth to cut Duke’s lead to two runs, but Santucci avoided further damage after maneuvering through a bit of trouble with two runners on.

The Blue Devils’ star pitcher would end his day in the fifth after getting Wright to fly out to right field. He finished with 11 strikeouts, three walks, and two runs allowed (one earned) on 96 pitches through his five innings pitched.

A Macon Winslow home run gave Duke its fifth and final run of the evening, pushing it ahead 5-2. Winslow finished his day three-for-three with a walk.

From there, Duke’s bullpen held down the fort as Owen Proksch pitched 1.1 innings and paved the way for Duke’s do-it-all reliever Charlie Beilenson to close the game with 2.2 innings of work for his eighth save of the season.

Duke held the Tigers to the second-fewest runs they’ve scored in a game all season.

The Blue Devils will lace their cleats back up and get ready to try and secure a series win tomorrow as the two teams get set for game two.

First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.

Duke baseball completes Northwestern sweep behind late offensive surge

The Blue Devils scored 14 runs in the fifth and sixth innings en route to a 20-run win over the Wildcats on Sunday.

The Duke Blue Devils remained undefeated for the 2024 season with a Sunday win over Northwestern, a dominant 20-9 offensive display powered by 14 runs between the fifth and sixth innings.

Freshman Kyle Johnson continued a remarkable freshman season with three scoreless innings on the mound. The Wildcats took an early lead with a two-run shot in the bottom of the first, and Duke clung to a 4-3 lead when Johnson took over on the mound.

The first-year prospect struck out the first two batters he faced and surrendered just one hit in his three innings on the hill. He ended the afternoon with five strikeouts despite facing just 10 batters, and the Virginia native has yet to give up an earned run in eight innings pitched.

The sterling outing on the mound came just one day after he notched his first RBI of the season, a triple into the right-field corner against Northwestern yesterday. He’s batting .286 with two extra-base hits through Duke’s first seven games of the year.

Johnson halting the Northwestern charge gave Duke’s offense enough time to wake up, and wake up it did. The Blue Devils scored four runs in the bottom of the second, three of them on a bases-loaded single from Ben Miller compounded by a fielding error.  In the following inning, freshman designated hitter Macon Winslow launched his first collegiate home run to left-center to increase the lead to three runs.

Duke really broke the game open in the fifth. A single and two walks in the first three at-bats gave the Blue Devils loaded bases with no outs, a situation nearly impossible to escape from given Duke’s offensive form of late.

A walk on Wallace Clark provided the inning’s first run before Zac Morris singled two more home. Catcher Alex Stone then whacked one out of the ballpark for three more runs, and the offensive track meet was on.

Centerfielder Devin Obee did his share of damage in the fifth and sixth innings, too. He stepped to the plate with two outs and reeled in Duke’s last two runs of the fifth with a two-run double. One inning later (because Duke had already batted around the order by then), he laced a single with the bases loaded for his third RBI of the game.

After one last single and a wild pitch, Duke ended the sixth inning with a 20-3 lead, and Northwestern’s hopes of stealing a game in the series had pretty much evaporated. The Wildcats put up an admirable fight, scoring six more runs in the top of the ninth, but the Blue Devils got their third out well before the game got within reach.

Now 7-0 on the young season, Duke takes the home diamond again on Tuesday against Davidson.

No. 12 Duke kicks off 2024 campaign with 6-3 win over Indiana behind Santucci, transfer Logan Bravo

No.12 Duke baseball kicked off 2024 campaign with a 6-3 win over Indiana.

Friday started what head baseball coach Chris Pollard hopes to be a historic season for the Duke Blue Devils baseball team.

No. 12 Duke got their 2024 campaign started as they hope that this year is the year they break down the door and punch their ticket to Omaha, Nebraska, and the College World Series.

Duke started its campaign with a win over the Indiana Hoosiers of the Big 10. Preseason second-team All-American Jonathan Santucci has been tabbed as the ace of Duke’s staff, so it was only fitting the junior was given the ball in the season’s first game. His first inning was rocky as he allowed a walk and a hit but fought back to strike out three Hoosiers to get out of the gym.

Braden Risedorph started for Indiana and held the Blue Devils in check for four innings before the top of the fifth rolled around, and the Blue Devils scratched across their first run of the season. True freshman Kyle Johnson doubled with two outs and was knocked in on an RBI double from Oklahoma transfer Wallace Clark. Indiana would bring in Ryan Kraft, and he’d close the door on the Blue Devils in the fifth.

Santucci would give Duke one more scoreless inning before his day was over. He threw 86 pitches in his 2024 debut and struck out seven batters while walking two and allowing zero runs on four singles.

Back-to-back home runs by catcher and captain Alex Stone and Harvard transfer Logan Bravo stretched Duke’s lead to 3-0 in the top half of the sixth before Indiana answered with two runs courtesy of shortstop Tyler Cerny, who took Duke reliever Owen Proksch deep.

Duke responded with two more runs at the top of the seventh, thanks again to the combination of Stone and Bravo. Stone hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Wallace Clark. Bravo would come behind him and rip a single down the left-field line to score Zac Morris and make it 5-2 Duke.

Indiana pushed back on Duke again with a home run by center fielder Carter Mathison in the bottom of the seventh against Proksch before Pollard went to his bullpen to call on 2024 stopper-of-the-year nominee Charlie Beilinson to get Duke out of a two-on-and-one-out jam with the game at 5-3. Beilinson would do just that: strike out the two batters to end the Hoosiers’ threat and send the game to the 8th inning.

North Carolina native and sophomore outfielder Tyler Albright hit a hanging breaking ball deep to left field to give Duke a 6-3 lead in the top half of the eighth, and Beilinson would shut the door in the eight and ninth to end his day and secure the win for the Blue Devils.

Logan Bravo led the way with a 3/5 one-home run and two RBIs. Alex Stone had two RBIs as well. In total, Duke amassed ten hits and had zero errors defensively.

The Blue Devils will rest up and prepare for a Saturday matinee affair with the George Mason Patriots tomorrow with lefty Andrew Healy on the bump.