Tag: Duke Baseball

Duke baseball officially announces the renovation plan for Jack Coombs Field

The Blue Devils announced the start of a major renovation project at Jack Coombs Field on Friday.

Jack Coombs Field will look pretty different when Duke baseball fans return to the stadium in 2025.

The Blue Devils announced the start of a major renovation project for the longtime stadium on Friday. According to a release from the program, the changes include larger dugouts, updated bullpens, and different dimensions for the field.

The release also detailed some upgrades for the fans and players as well. The Blue Devils will add lawn seating alongside first base and down the right-field line, and the Duke baseball team will have a new player development lab at their disposal.

“As the energy surrounding our baseball program continues its upward trajectory, it is incredibly exciting to see this venture reach the construction stage,” Duke athletic director Nina King said in the release. “Having the opportunity to enhance both our student-athlete experience from a developmental perspective as well as the gameday environment for our fans with this multi-phase initiative is especially rewarding.”

https://twitter.com/DukeBASE/status/1847273884006940751

Duke finished the 2024 season with 40 wins, defeating the Florida State Seminoles by 12 runs in the ACC Tournament championship game. D1Baseball graded the Blue Devils as one of the top 30 programs in the country earlier this month.

D1Baseball ranks the Blue Devils as a top-30 program in the country

D1Baseball moved the Duke Blue Devils within their top 30 programs this week, the latest step in a meteoric rise.

With each passing year, the Duke baseball team moves closer and closer to the national forefront.

D1Baseball ranked the Blue Devils as the No. 28 program in the country this week, a far cry from being left off the rankings just nine years ago.

“It wasn’t too long ago that Duke was a proverbial punching bag in the ACC,” D1Baseball co-owner Kendall Rogers wrote. “Now, it is routinely one of the league’s best programs.”

Duke hired head coach Chris Pollard for the 2013 season, and the progress has been steady over the 11 years since. After just two 30-win seasons in the 14 years before Pollard’s arrival, the Blue Devils have reached that threshold in nine of their last 10 full seasons.

The growth culminated with a 40-win 2024 season that included Duke’s second ACC Tournament title in four years. Six different members of the team averaged at least .300 at the plate with more than 10 home runs, and closer Charlie Beilenson finished with a 2.01 ERA in 34 appearances.

The Blue Devils climbed up to 82nd in the 2017 D1Baseball rankings, broke into the top 50 as the No. 39 team in 2019, and finished 33rd in the 2022 edition of the rankings.

Former Duke baseball star Griffin Conine called up to the MLB by Miami Marlins

Griffin Conine, who played for Duke baseball from 2016-18, got the call from the Miami Marlins on Sunday, sending him to the big leagues.

Former Duke baseball star Griffin Conine got the call over the weekend.

The former Blue Devil and second-round pick in the 2018 MLB draft got called up to the majors by the Miami Marlins. The team announced the decision on Sunday.

Conine, whose father won two World Series titles with the Marlins, played for the Blue Devils for three seasons from 2016-18. He earned consecutive All-ACC Second Team nominations as a sophomore and junior, and his 31 home runs are the seventh-most in program history.

He compiled 26 doubles and 108 RBIs between his last two collegiate seasons, ending both campaigns with exactly 65 hits. He also drew 43 walks in 2018, finishing with an on-base percentage of .410.

Since being drafted by the Blue Jays, Conine has worked his way up through the minor leagues. The elevation marks his first time on an MLB roster, making him the third Blue Devil to make their big league debut in 2024.

Former Blue Devil Joey Loperfido, now a member of the Toronto Blue Jays himself after a mid-season trade, recently won a game with a solo home run for his new team.

Duke baseball coach Chris Pollard shares first look at renovations to Jack Coombs Field

Duke baseball coach Chris Pollard shared a photo of Jack Coombs Field undergoing renovations over the weekend, teasing some upgrades.

Jack Coombs Field might be getting some upgrades over the coming months.

Duke baseball coach Chris Pollard shared a photo of the Blue Devils’ stadium over the weekend with renovations clearly being done down the first-base line.

“It’s started,” Pollard wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. “Big things coming to ‘The Jack’!!!”

Jack Coombs Field has been open since 1931, and with the last round of renovations done in 2011, any changes to The Jack seemed a little overdue. However, this past postseason might have been the last straw for the athletic program.

The Blue Devils remained in the mix for one of the 16 regional hosting seeds all year, and while a lackluster end to the regular season seemed to knock them out of contention, a run to the ACC Tournament title seemed to throw Pollard’s team back to the forefront.

Instead, when the 16 host locations were announced later that day, the Blue Devils were left on the outside looking in. Fans and national analysts felt the decision came partly because of Duke’s resources.

Duke fans will need to wait until 2025 to see the new-look ballpark in person, but it seems like some tweaks are coming this fall.

Former Duke baseball star Joey Loperfido wins MLB game with solo home run

Former Duke Blue Devil Joey Loperfido hit his first home run in a Toronto Blue Jays uniform on Sunday, a solo shot that turned out to be the winner.

Former Duke baseball star Joey Loperfido got to play the hero for the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday.

Loperfido, who played for the Blue Devils from 2018-21, hit a solo home run against the Chicago Cubs at the iconic Wrigley Field during the top of the second inning.

While the blast came pretty early in the game, it turned out to be the game-winning shot. Chicago never scored a run, and the Blue Jays left town with a 1-0 victory.

Loperfido’s 409-foot bomb was his first for the new franchise and his third of the season. He made his MLB debut earlier this summer for the Houston Astros, and he played 38 games for that franchise before getting traded on July 30.

So far in his rookie year, Loperfido is hitting .216 with three home runs, five doubles, two triples, and 18 RBIs across 51 games. The 25-year-old sports an on-base percentage of .271 and a slugging percentage of .333.

Duke director of baseball operations Daniel Jung says goodbye to the Blue Devils

Daniel Jung, who spent three seasons as Duke’s director of baseball operations, shared a statement on Monday to confirm he left the school.

Daniel Jung, Duke’s former director of baseball operations, shared a statement through social media on Monday to confirm he no longer worked with the program.

“This past weekend marked my final days at Duke,” Jung wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. “It’s been an incredible ride here in Durham and a privilege to be a part of the Duke Baseball family.”

Jung played for Notre Dame from 2017-21 before spending one season as a volunteer assistant at Northern Illinois. After Duke finished with a 22-32 record in Jung’s first season with the program in 2022, the Blue Devils won 79 games over the last two years and took home the ACC Tournament title this spring.

While he’s spent most of the last decade in college baseball in some capacity, Jung did not reveal what was next for him.

“Stepping away from Duke and college baseball has been one of the most difficult decisions I’ve ever had to make,” Jung wrote. “However, I leave knowing without question that Duke, this community, and college baseball has given me more than I have given them.”

Jung also took the time to thank Duke head coach Chris Pollard, the rest of the coaching staff, and the players he’d worked with for the last three years.

Duke baseball announces Derek Simmons as new assistant coach

Duke baseball coach Chris Pollard announced a new member of his staff on Wednesday, a former Indiana coach set to help the infield.

The Duke baseball coaching staff added another member on Wednesday when the team announced Derek Simmons as an assistant coach.

Simmons, who will coach baserunning and the infield, previously spent five years with the Indiana Hoosiers. He’ll also work as the team recruiting coordinator.

“Derek arrives with an outstanding reputation as a national recruiter,” head coach Chris Pollard said in a release from the team. “He also has deep ties with USA Baseball and has been a catalyst in the recent success of the 15u national team. I have zero doubt that he will have a major impact on the continued success of the Duke Baseball program.”

Simmons, for his part, sounded just as excited to work with Pollard.

“The sustained excellence and success Chris Pollard and his staff have created at Duke is what undoubtedly brought my family and I to Durham,” Simmons said. “Coach Pollard is a man of the highest integrity with great core values and beliefs who has built this program on personal relationships, recruiting, and player development.”

Simmons has also worked at Alabama, Kent State, Kennesaw State, and Central Michigan. He played for the University of Montevallo.

The Blue Devils ended the 2024 season with a 40-20 record. They lost eight of their last 15 regular-season games to slide out of contention for a top-16 seed, but a torrid run through the ACC Tournament gave them some momentum. They swept their way through the bracket in four games, outscoring their opponents 43-15 en route to the title.

Duke pitcher, second-round MLB draft pick Jonathan Santucci signs with New York Mets

Jonathan Santucci reportedly signed with the New York Mets, who took him in the second round of the 2024 MLB draft, for full slot value on Saturday.

Former Duke baseball pitcher [autotag]Jonathan Santucci[/autotag] is, finally and officially, an MLB player.

According to MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis, Santucci signed with the New York Mets for a little more than $2 million on Saturday night. The contract rewarded the former Blue Devil with full slot value for his status as the 46th overall pick in this month’s MLB draft.

Callis even offered his own small scouting thoughts on the Duke lefty during his report.

“(Intriguing) three-pitch mix (92-96 mph fastball w/carry, low-80s slider w/two-plane break, mid-80s changeup w/fade),” Callis wrote. “(Needs) to throw more strikes & has the athleticism to do so.”

Santucci, the first of five Duke pitchers drafted this month, validated his status as a preseason All-American candidate with an All-ACC season on the mound. He finished with a 3.41 ERA and a 6-1 record in 13 starts, striking out 90 batters in 58.0 innings. He only gave up an opposing batting average of .188, and he didn’t allow a run in five of his appearances.

Santucci missed time with a rib injury late in the season, but he returned to the hill during regional action and shouldn’t be affected at the next level.

Duke baseball player Alex Stone signs with Toronto Blue Jays as undrafted free agent

Alex Stone, Duke’s All-ACC catcher in 2024, signed with the Blue Jays on Friday after a senior season with 13 home runs and 59 RBIs.

A Duke position player finally found his way onto an MLB team during the 2024 draft cycle.

After five Blue Devils pitchers got drafted earlier this week, catcher Alex Stone signed with the Toronto Blue Jays as an undrafted free agent on Friday to begin his professional career.

Stone, the All-ACC Second Team catcher and a member of the All-ACC Tournament team after Duke’s title run, finished his senior season with 13 home runs and 59 runs batted in. He batted .312, the second-best average of his career, and cranked out a personal-best 19 doubles.

During the Blue Devils’ blitz to the conference tournament title, Stone hit two home runs and drove in three runs. His 59 RBIs finished as the most on the team (tied with two other teammates), and he was one of five Duke bats with 10 doubles, 10 home runs, and 50 RBIs last season.

Across his four-year, 172-game Duke career, Stone tallied 40 home runs and 138 RBIs. He finished his career with a .295 batting average and a .552 slugging percentage, and his on-base percentage ended at .357.

Jonathan Santucci, Duke’s ace southpaw, led the way among Duke’s draft picks when the New York Mets took him in the second round. Closer Charlie Beilenson, another All-ACC selection, also notably went in the fifth round to the Seattle Mariners.

Jimmy Romano becomes fifth Duke baseball player taken in 2024 MLB draft

The Blue Devils bullpen continued its hot streak in the 2024 MLB draft on Tuesday with Jimmy Romano, the fifth Duke pitcher off the board.

The MLB infatuation with the Duke bullpen continued on Tuesday when the Cincinnati Reds selected Jimmy Romano in the 16th round of the 2024 MLB draft.

Romano, a New Jersey native, made 45 relief appearances for the Blue Devils over the last two seasons. He finished with a career ERA of 4.58, including a personal-best 3.91 this past season, with a combined 2-2 record with one save.

Across his 37.1 innings in a Duke uniform, Romano struck out 47 batters with 36 hits and 18 walks. He took a major step forward in 2024, increasing his strikeouts per nine innings from 9.75 to 12.09 and lowering his WHIP (wins and hits per innings pitched) from 1.83 to 1.26. He even trimmed his opposing batting average from .286 to .242.

Romano became the fifth Duke pitcher taken in the 2024 draft. Jonathan Santucci, Duke’s left-handed ace, went to the New York Mets in the second round and All-ACC closer Charlie Beilenson went to the Seattle Mariners in the fifth round.

Nick Conte and Fran Oschell III also got picked, going to the Kansas City Royals and the Los Angeles Angels in the eighth and 12th rounds, respectively.