February 16 marked the first day of the 2024 NCAA college baseball season. Obviously, it would be nice to get off to a strong start and that’s exactly what Duke did. And, the Blue Devils have Jonathan Santucci to thank for that.
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Duke Beats Indiana in Season Opener
The Duke Blue Devils won in Conway, South Carolina during their season opener on February 16, and to no shock, Jonathan Santucci stole the show.
Santucci struck out seven over five scoreless innings against Indiana, a strong Big 10 team that made it to the NCAA Tournament last year. The righty, who could be a first-round pick come 2024, lived up to the hype in his opener.
It wasn’t a sound start, though, for Santucci. The lefty struggled with hitting his spots early on and visibly showed frustration after his first strikeout. Still, he flashed a mid-90s fastball and sharp slider.
There were also a few spirited bouts with Indiana outfielder Devin Taylor in the game. Santucci pitched him very carefully, giving him breaking ball after breaking ball. Taylor did poke one the other way in his first at-bat.
Aside from Santucci, the Duke Blue Devils offense showed up. Senior catcher Alex Stone homered, as did first baseman Logan Bravo.