Tag: Charlie Beilenson

Duke pitcher Charlie Beilenson named ACC Pitcher of the Week

Duke pitcher Charlie Beilenson named ACC Pitcher of the Week.

Duke pitcher Charlie Beilenson was named the ACC Pitcher of the Week on Monday.

The Blue Devils reliever went 2-0 and added a save in three appearances, and he did not allow any earned runs across 6.2 innings on the mound. Beilenson kept batters guessing, racking up 10 strikeouts in his three outings.

Against Virginia Tech on Friday, he pitched a season-high four innings, allowed just one hit, and struck out five Hokies. He did not allow a hit in his other two outings this past week, including a perfect inning during Sunday’s deciding game.

The Blue Devils won all three games he pitched in, once against Gardner-Webb and twice against Virginia Tech as they won the series.

Duke’s three wins last week moved the Blue Devils to 29-11 for the year and 13-8 in ACC play. D1Baseball had the team sixth in their latest ranking.

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.

Three quick takeaways from Duke’s monumental series win over No. 1 Wake Forest

Three takeaways for Duke’s monumental series win over No. 1 Wake Forest.

While it was a tough weekend in Durham for the men’s basketball team as they lost to the North Carolina Tar Heels for the second time this season, another Duke team was making history elsewhere in North Carolina.

Chris Pollard’s team traveled to Winston-Salem for their first ACC matchup. They took on the nation’s No. 1 team, the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. Not only did Duke compete, they won the series two games to one.

The Duke Blue Devils baseball team clinched a series win over a top-ranked team for the first time in 15 years, last occurring when Duke took down a No. 1-ranked North Carolina team.

Friday, Duke won behind an eight-run offensive explosion that saw the Blue Devils touch up one of college baseball’s best pitchers, Josh Hartle. The Blue Devils took that game 8-5.

On Saturday, Tennessee transfer Chase Burns dominated the Blue Devils, striking out 14 Duke batters in 6 innings. Wake went on to even the series after a 6-3 Saturday victory.

Duke clinched the series in the tie-breaking Sunday game behind a six-run fifth inning, which featured two hits and five walks as the Blue Devils extended their lead to 9-2. Wake would fight back, but a late insurance run in the ninth followed by a save from Charlier Beilenson sealed the 10-8 victory.

With the series over, we have three quick takeaways as Duke has become the talk of the college baseball world with the most significant series win of the young season.

This Duke team is dynamic offensively

One of the most significant developments of the season so far is that Duke’s offense is verifiably legit. The pitching was more proven with the caliber of arms the Blue Devils brought back. Still, with Duke losing as many position players as it did, many felt there would be questions about run production and replacing an entire infield.

They’ve gotten contributions from every direction, including freshman AJ Gracia batting over .340 with an OPS of 1.214. Their new-look infield, with four new players spearheaded by Penn transfer Ben Miller, is batting above .290 while combining for 19 homers and 54 RBI. They lit up Hartle, a top-100 pick in this upcoming MLB draft, and on Sunday, they showcased their plate discipline (14 walks) and worked counts as Wake unraveled on the mound.

We’ve seen the Blue Devils put up 20+ runs multiple times this season. It’s safe to say the new look lineup is just fine, and they can do it against elite competition.

Kyle Johnson is starting to carve out a role

The uber-talented two-way freshman Kyle Johnson is finding himself a lane as a bulk innings guy who may just get stretched out to start in some capacity. In the most significant start of his young career, he tossed four innings of two-run ball on Sunday against a potent Wake Forest lineup on the road. He allowed three hits, but he did more than his job as he was competitive and kept Duke in the ball game, ultimately giving his offense time to break the game open in the fifth inning.

He also tossed 65 pitches. If this becomes a thing, the first-year Blue Devil could be stretched out to 80 pitches by mid-April, giving Pollard another pitching weapon to add to his deep arsenal.

Charlie Beilenson is indispensable

Where would Duke be without Charlie Beilenson this season?

Who knows, but his contributions have been immeasurable. When a fire needs to be put out, or he needs to close a ball game, no one is doing it better than Beilenson. He proved that this weekend against the nation’s best as he had not one but two saves to close both Duke wins. He showcased his versatility, too, as he pitched three scoreless innings for the save on Friday. He followed that up with one inning of work on Sunday to preserve a two-run lead and nail down his seventh save of the season.

Duke returns to the friendly confines of Jack Coombs Field this week as they open a six-game homestand with two midweek contests with Rider. The first pitch on Tuesday is scheduled for 4 p.m.