Tag: Devin Obee

Duke outfielder Devin Obee set to enter transfer portal

Duke baseball will need to replace a major two-way player after outfielder Devin Obee opted for the transfer portal.

Chris Pollard and his staff will have a new hole to fill on their roster in the coming months.

Senior outfielder Devin Obee opted for the transfer portal and will leave the Duke baseball team after graduating this summer, according to a Tuesday report from D1Baseball’s Kendall Rogers.

His name officially began appearing in the transfer portal database that same day.

The loss is significant for Duke from an on- and off-field perspective, as Obee was a leader amongst the team. As a junior, he was a terrific defender with great instincts and provided some significant power with 16 home runs last year alone. He also batted .309 with 11 doubles and two triples, one of two Blue Devils to reach all four of those numbers in 2024.

Duke has seen many departures from the program this past summer due to graduation, the MLB draft, and other transfers out of the program.

Chase Krewson, a terrific freshman expected to have a significant role in the future, opted to transfer to UCF. At the same time, Ben Miller shocked everyone by announcing his return to the Duke program for one more season. Pitchers Jonathan Santucci, Charlie Beilenson, and others were drafted to the professional ranks this summer.

With Obee on the way out, Duke will need contributions from players who played minor roles or weren’t even on the team last year to supplement guys like Miller, AJ Gracia, Kyle Johnson, and Ben Miller as they attempt to defend their ACC Tournament title and break through to Omaha for the first time in 2025.

Duke baseball staves off elimination with 6-2 win over Oral Roberts

Duke eliminates Oral Roberts 6-2 to keep season going.

The 2024 Duke Blue Devils baseball team will live to play another day after they survived an elimination game in the Norman Regional on Saturday afternoon, beating Oral Roberts 6-2.

Friday was a bit of shell shock for the Blue Devils, who came into the NCAA Tournament red-hot, especially offensively. After a 16-run performance against Florida State in the ACC Tournament title game, Duke only managed one run on Friday against Big East regular-season champion Connecticut.

UCONN used some situational hitting and terrific pitching to put Duke away 4-1 and force Duke into the loser’s bracket. In a double-elimination system, the Blue Devils woke up knowing they’d be heading back to Durham by nightfall if they didn’t win.

Staff ace Jonathan Santucci received the start against Oral Roberts and pitched for the first time since he was injured in the regular season. He didn’t go long for obvious reasons, as he had been out for a little while, and Duke didn’t want to over-extend him.

He only pitched two innings but gave up no runs while striking out four and walking two. He escaped a jam to keep the scoreboard blank while his offense continued to find its footing.

James Tallon came on to handle the third inning and did so smoothly. He gave up no hits and didn’t walk anyone. In the top of the fourth, Duke finally broke through on a Devin Obee RBI single to score Alex Stone. The Blue Devils took a 1-0 lead.

Talented two-way freshman Kyle Johnson relieved Tallon in the bottom of the fourth and started the first of three innings. In the top of the sixth, Duke hit the gas to separate themselves from the Golden Eagles. Alex Stone led off with a double and scored on a one-out double from Chase Krewson. Wallace Clark made sure he made it home after he doubled to the left-center gap to make it 3-0 Duke.

Jimmy Evans connected on a two-run homer for his only hit of the afternoon to make it 5-0 for the Blue Devils in the sixth. ORU would respond with a run in the bottom half of the inning, but Duke quelled any other threats. Devin Obee smoked a solo home run for insurance in the top of the eighth, and Charlie Beilenson nailed down the final inning to end Oral Roberts’ season.

Duke’s bounceback couldn’t have been better, as they needed all hands on deck to make this work. The Blue Devils will play on Sunday afternoon in yet another elimination game. The loser of Oklahoma vs. UCONN will have their backs pushed up against the wall and face elimination. That game will start at 2 p.m. local time and be broadcast on ESPN +.

Duke baseball sets program’s single-season home run record after ACC Tournament performance

Lost in the shuffle of Duke’s 16-4 victory over Florida State during Sunday’s ACC title game, the Blue Devils reached 112 home runs for the year.

Duke baseball didn’t just win its second ACC Tournament on Sunday with a 16-4 victory over Florida State, but the Blue Devils set a program record on the way.

Duke hit three home runs during Sunday’s title game, giving them 112 homers for the season. The figure broke a single-season record of 109 home runs set just one season ago.

The Blue Devils broke the record in spectacular fashion, too, when third baseman Ben Miller smashed a grand slam during Sunday’s fourth inning.

Second baseman Zac Morris, who hit three home runs during Duke’s two games in pool play to begin the tournament, leads the Blue Devils with 18 on the season. Logan Bravo sits second on the team with 17, and Miller and centerfielder Devin Obee both finished the ACC Tournament with 15 for the season.

Obee, the ACC Tournament MVP, hit a home run in each of Duke’s last three games of the conference tournament. His slugging weekend crescendoed with a grand slam against the Seminoles on Sunday, giving the Blue Devils a 10-run lead.

Catcher Alex Stone and freshman AJ Gracia, the final two Duke players in double-digits, have 13 home runs for the season. Stone, who also hit two home runs during the ACC Tournament, joined Obee on the All-Tournament Team.

Three Blue Devils named to ACC Baseball All-Tournament team after title game victory

It should come as no surprise that Tournament MVP Devin Obee earned ACC Baseball All-Tournament Team honors, but which two Blue Devils joined him?

The ACC released the All-Tournament Team for the conference baseball tournament shortly after Duke took home the title, and a trio of Blue Devils appeared on the honored list.

Centerfielder Devin Obee won Tournament MVP honors after he hit three home runs and drove in eight RBIs over the four-game postseason run, so no fans should be surprised to see him among the three outfielders honored.

None of his hits mattered more than Sunday’s grand slam against Florida State in the title game, a blast that gave Duke a 10-run lead.

Duke catcher Alex Stone, who hit home runs against Miami and Virginia Tech, earned the catcher spot after he finished with four hits and three RBIs for the week.

Reliever Charlie Beilenson rounded out the three Blue Devils honorees after he spent 6.1 innings on the mound and allowed just two earned runs. He shut out both the Hurricanes and the Seminoles over the weekend, giving up just one hit in both appearances, and he finished the tournament with nine strikeouts.

Despite both players hitting multiple home runs, second baseman Zac Morris and third baseman Ben Miller both missed out on the roster.

The runner-up Seminoles were the only other team with three nominees, and Wake Forest earned two.

Duke centerfielder Devin Obee named ACC Baseball Tournament MVP after three home runs

Obee hit a grand slam during Sunday’s dominant victory over Florida State, his third home run over the last three games en route to MVP honors.

Duke baseball took home its second ACC Tournament title in program history on Sunday with a 16-4 win over Florida State, and centerfielder Devin Obee earned Tournament MVP honors after he mashed three home runs over the Blue Devils’ final three games.

The junior outfielder finished Duke’s four-game tournament run with three home runs, seven hits, and eight RBIs after batting .500 for the week.

After one hit during an opening victory over Virginia Tech, he mashed a two-run home run in the sixth inning during Thursday’s winner-take-all game against NC State to advance out of pool play. The ball initially got ruled a double because it clanged off of some scaffolding right above the wall and back into the outfield, but in an amusing twist of fate, the UNC baseball team protested the call from the stands and prompted a video review that awarded Obee a home run.

He produced similar heroics against the Hurricanes during Saturday’s semifinal victory, another blowout in Duke’s favor. In the middle of a six-run eighth inning that busted the Blue Devils out of a tie game, Obee lofted his second two-run homer in two games.

His grand slam against the Seminoles on Sunday, his third home run in three games, busted the game apart to give Duke a 10-run lead.

Duke ended up winning its last three games of the tournament by 25 combined runs partially thanks to Obee’s offensive display, and the ACC recognized him as the best player of the week.

Duke baseball hits two grand slams during ACC title game victory over Florida State

Duke baseball outscored Florida State 16-4 in Sunday’s ACC title game thanks to two grand slams from Ben Miller and Devin Obee.

Duke baseball scored 16 runs during Sunday’s dominant victory over Florida State in the ACC title game, a 12-run victory to give the Blue Devils their second conference title in four years.

Half of those runs came in two fell swoops when Ben Miller and Devin Obee both hit grand slams during the middle innings of the game, growing Duke’s lead from three runs to 10 over the course of one hour.

In the top of the fourth inning, Duke led 5-2 but loaded the bases without any outs to give themselves a chance to create some distance. Miller, the All-ACC First Team third baseman, dug his feet into the box. On his second pitch of the at-bat, he pummeled a ball straight up into the air that kept going…and going…and going all the way over the right-field wall for a grand slam.

Miller’s teammates gifted him the team hard hat for the effort, too, a fun look into how loose Chris Pollard’s team seems to be ahead of the postseason.

Obee, who was later named the tournament’s MVP, also strode to the plate with the bases loaded in the top of the sixth. He promptly launched his third home run in three games, Duke’s second grand slam of the afternoon.

The Blue Devils tacked on two more runs after Obee’s slam, but with a 10-run lead entering the final three innings, it didn’t mean much. The two Duke sluggers ended the game themselves with two cracks of the bat.

Duke uses two grand slams to demolish Florida State 16-4 and capture second ACC Tournament Title

Duke uses two grand slams to propel them to second ACC Tournament Title.

A new champion has emerged in the ACC Baseball realm, and they hail from Durham, NC.

On a Sunday afternoon, Chris Pollard and his team showcased their resilience, demolishing a top 10-ranked Florida State squad 16-4 to claim Duke’s second-ever ACC Tournament title.

Duke entered the tournament as the sixth seed, and while there was no doubt about their inclusion in next week’s NCAA Tournament, the Duke players had a chip on their shoulder to perform better against the ACC’s best of the best than they had in the regular season. They lost a few close games, ultimately the difference between Duke finishing as a three-seed or higher in the conference tournament.

After losing two of three in the regular season to them, Duke knew the Seminoles would be challenging. 

And from the outset, things were dicey quickly as James Tallon served up a two-run home run to Cam Smith of FSU to start the game.

Down two runs, Duke didn’t panic, and in the top of the second, the Blue Devils hit the gas and would never look back.

After loading the bases, Oklahoma transfer Wallace Clark came up with a chance to do damage. He would get hit by the at-bat’s first pitch, which cut into Florida State’s lead to 2-1.

FSU brought in Noah Short for Carson Dorsey, and Duke star freshman Kyle Johnson roped a two-run double down the left field line, pushing Duke ahead for a 3-2 lead. Later that inning, AJ Gracia blooped a two-run single to give the Blue Devils a 5-2 lead.

In the fourth, Ben Miller left his handprint on the game when he hammered a grand slam to make it 9-2. The Seminoles got two runs back in the bottom of the inning with a Jaime Ferrer two-run homer, but the Duke offense was still going strong.

 

Outfielder Chase Krewson drew a bases-loaded walk in the top of the sixth to make it 10-4, and then senior Devin Obee smashed the second Blue Devil grand slam of the day moments later.

Duke would allow no more runs and would cruise to the title the rest of the way.

Duke’s offense was remarkable this tournament, and they showcased why on Sunday. They did it in many ways, piecing together rallies and using the long ball to score. Devin Obee was named ACC Tournament MVP after he hit three home runs in the final three games.

The win improved the Blue Devils to 39-18 on the season.  Duke is looking to advance to the College World Series for the first time since 1961 and eventually pursue the first national championship in program history. After being dropped to a No. 2 seed in most postseason projections, the Blue Devils did their best to make a case to host at least a regional round.

Duke baseball advances to ACC title game after huge eighth inning against Miami

The Blue Devils overcame an early deficit with a six-run eighth inning to book their spot in the conference championship game.

The Duke Blue Devils will play for the ACC title on Sunday.

The Duke baseball team used a six-run eighth inning to overwhelm the Miami Hurricanes in Saturday’s semifinal game, winning 8-2 in order to keep their tournament alive.

The Hurricanes actually drew first blood during Saturday’s game. After the two offenses combined for two walks, no hits, and one double-play during the first three innings, Miami third baseman Daniel Cuvet launched a ball into the night sky for a two-run home run in the top of the fourth.

That hit marked the second-to-last at-bat for Duke starter Ryan Higgins, and praise for Saturday’s win must begin and end with the Blue Devils bullpen. Gabriel Nard, Fran Oschell III, and Charlie Beilenson combined for 5.1 scoreless innings with a single hit allowed. Miami only generated three base runners over the closing five innings at the plate, and no member of the Hurricanes reached third base.

The Duke offense slowly crawled its way into the game. Three walks and a single in the bottom of the fifth brought home the first run, one-run ballgame. Two hits and a sacrifice fly brought home the second, tie game.

Then, carnage erupted in the eighth. After 7.1 innings of impressive work between Herick Hernandez and Nick Robert, with a runner on first and one out, Miami brought out Myles Caba on the mound.

Duke catcher Alex Stone promptly did this to his eighth pitch of the game.

Miami swiftly reeled in Caba after he allowed another single, replacing him with Brandon Olivera. Devin Obee, less patient than Stone, did this to Olivera’s third pitch of the night.

The game entirely unraveled from there. Well, it already had unraveled, but the Hurricanes lost contain. Olivera coughed up a walk and two singles in his next four batters, and the fourth at-bat still reached base safely due to a fielding error.

Two more runs came home in the meantime, and within the span of 30 minutes, the door slammed shut on Miami’s ACC tournament run.

Duke advances to play Florida State in Sunday’s championship game.

Duke baseball player Devin Obee’s home run got saved by…the UNC baseball team?

Duke baseball player Devin Obee’s double off the wall against NC State was called a home run after review thanks to the protest of some unlikely fans.

North Carolina helped Duke win a baseball game on Thursday night.

No, the Blue Devils didn’t need much assistance in an 8-1 drumming of NC State that clinched a spot in the conference tournament semifinals, but every little bit counts.

In the top of the sixth inning, centerfielder Devin Obee hit an absolute rocket into left-center that looked like it bounced off the very top of the wall, inches from a two-run homer. The ruling was later reversed when replay showed the ball hit the fencing on top of the wall, making it a home run.

Obee said after the game that some members of the Duke dugout overheard some fans insisting that the ball should have been ruled a homer, which prompted Duke to ask for a review. He couldn’t believe who was arguing in his defense.

“Once I got out there, I found out it was the UNC baseball team,” Obee said.

Duke head coach Chris Pollard shared his amusement at the circumstances.

“The Tobacco Road rivalry for you right there,” Pollard said. “An assist from the Carolina baseball team.”

The Blue Devils play Miami in the semifinals on Saturday.

Duke uses explosive 5th inning to crush NC State 8-1 to clinch ACC Tournament semifinal berth

Duke uses three-homer fifth inning to run away from the NC State Wolfpack and advance to ACC Semifinals.

This Duke offense can turn the heat up on anyone. And if there’s a likely culprit doing damage in the middle of it, his name is probably Zac Morris.

That was the case on Thursday night as the Blue Devils used an explosive fifth inning and ran away from their fellow Triangle rivals, the NC State Wolfpack.

Duke and NC State battled it out in Charlotte for the right to advance to the ACC Tournament Semifinals in a win-or-go-home scenario. Only one team could advance from Pool C, and it was whoever walked out with two wins on Thursday night.

Sophomore starting pitcher Andrew Healy was a tone-setter for the Blue Devils as he came right out and had an uneventful one-two-three inning to kick the game off. He settled into a groove and ended his night throwing five innings of shutout baseball. He struck out four batters and walked none on a very economical 59 pitches.

During the top of the fifth inning, his teammates decided to help him out. Left fielder Chase Krewson took NC State’s Sam Highfill the opposite way for a solo home run to put Duke up 1-0. Devin Obee and Wallace Clark singled, and Highfill walked All-ACC freshman Kyle Johnson to load the bases.

Zac Morris, who already had a team-high 17 homers for the season, then took a 1-2 pitch deep to left-center field for a grand slam.

Ben Miller flew out before AJ Gracia got in on the action with a solo home run himself. Like that, Duke was up 6-0, and they never looked back.

Krewson would walk to start the sixth inning, and Devin Obee hit a laser of a line drive that was initially ruled a double before an umpire’s review deemed it a home run, giving Chris Pollard’s team an 8-0 lead.

James Tallon and Tim Noone combined for four innings of one-run ball to close the game, and Duke would eliminate NC State from the ACC Tournament.

From now on, the ACC tournament will be single elimination, so Duke will remain in do-or-die mode. Duke will have Friday off before taking on the winner of Pool D, Virginia, or  Florida State on Saturday at 5 p.m.