Clemson Baseball Team to Face Duke On the Road Friday-Sunday

April 5, 2012

Clemson vs. Duke Clemson (15-14, 5-7 ACC) will travel to Durham, NC to take on Duke (13-17, 5-7 ACC) in a three-game series at Jack Coombs Field this weekend. Game times are 6:00 PM (Friday), 2:00 PM (Saturday), and 1:00 PM (Sunday). All three games will be broadcast live on the radio by Clemson Tiger Sports Network. Live stats will also be available at ClemsonTigers.com for all three games.

The Series Clemson and Duke have met 188 times on the diamond, with the Tigers holding a 121-65-2 lead in the series dating back to the 1904 season. Last year at Doug Kingsmore Stadium, the Tigers swept the three-game series by a combined score of 34-16.

The two teams last met in a three-game series in Durham in 2010. The Blue Devils won two of the three games at Durham Bulls Athletic Park despite both teams scoring 22 runs in the series. In the last series at Jack Coombs Field in 2008, the two teams split the three-game series 1-1-1.

The Tigers hold a 47-28-1 lead in games played at Duke and a 95-34-2 advantage in ACC regular-season games. Jack Leggett has a 41-15-1 record against Duke as Clemson’s head coach, including a 17-9-1 mark in Durham in ACC regular-season contests.

The Starting Pitchers In game-one, Duke will start junior righthander Marcus Stroman (3-3, 2.57 ERA) on the mound. The Medford, NY native has made seven starts for a total of 49.0 innings pitched. He has surrendered 39 hits (.223 opponents’ batting average) and 14 walks with 72 strikeouts.

The Tigers will counter with junior righthander Kevin Brady (1-2, 2.94 ERA) on Friday. The Gaithersburg, MD native has made seven starts for a total of 33.2 innings pitched. He has allowed 30 hits (.244 opponents’ batting average) and 15 walks with 37 strikeouts.

In game-two, the Blue Devils will send out freshman lefthander Trent Swart (3-3, 2.25 ERA) on the mound. The Carlsbad, CA native has made seven starts for a total of 40.0 innings pitched. He has given up 31 hits (.220 opponents’ batting average), no homers, and 19 walks with 41 strikeouts.

Clemson will counter with junior righty Dominic Leone (4-2, 5.08 ERA) on Saturday. The Norwich, CT native has made seven starts for a total of 33.2 innings pitched. He has given up 28 hits (.246 opponents’ batting average) and 20 walks with 25 strikeouts.

In game-three, Duke will start sophomore righty Robert Huber (3-3, 4.11 ERA) on the mound. The Plano, TX native has made seven starts for a total of 35.0 innings pitched. He has yielded 41 hits (.297 opponents’ batting average) and 22 walks with 24 strikeouts.

The Tigers will counter with sophomore righty Kevin Pohle (3-1, 1.82 ERA) on Sunday. The Saint Louis, MO native has made five starts and two relief appearances for a total of 34.2 innings pitched. He has given up 35 hits (.267 opponents’ batting average) and 13 walks with 23 strikeouts.

The Blue Devils Duke, led by seventh-year Head Coach Sean McNally, enters the series against Clemson with a 13-17 overall record and 5-7 ACC mark after defeating Campbell 9-7 on the road on Tuesday. The Blue Devils, who are 6-10 at home, are also coming off one win in three games at Georgia Tech last weekend.

Duke is averaging 4.7 runs per game and hitting .270 with a .363 slugging percentage and .361 on-base percentage thanks to 125 walks and 26 hit-by-pitches against 194 strikeouts. The team has also totaled 47 doubles, 12 triples, eight home runs, and 35 stolen bases in 52 attempts.

Grant McCabe leads the team with a .337 batting average along with 17 RBIs and four steals. Andy Perez is batting .318 with eight doubles, while Will Piwnica-Worms is hitting .298 with three homers, seven doubles, three triples, 21 RBIs, and four steals. Mike Rosenfeld has added a team-high five stolen bases as well.

The pitching staff has a 3.95 ERA and .267 opponents’ batting average along with 249 strikeouts against 127 walks in 264.0 innings pitched. Senior righthander David Putman has four of the team’s eight saves along with a 2.57 ERA in 21.0 innings pitched over 16 appearances (one start). Duke, who has allowed 31 steals in 49 attempts, is fielding at a .973 clip as well.

The Tigers Clemson enters the series at Duke with a 15-14 overall record and 5-7 ACC mark after splitting a pair of midweek home games. The Tigers defeated Winthrop 11-0 on Tuesday before falling to Western Carolina 13-8 on Wednesday. The Tigers, who are 1-5 on opponents’ home fields, are also coming off two wins in three games over #7 Miami (FL) at home last weekend.

The Tigers are averaging 5.4 runs per game and hitting .273 with a .388 slugging percentage and .365 on-base percentage thanks to 123 walks and 28 hit-by-pitches against 173 strikeouts. Clemson has also totaled 43 doubles, five triples, 20 homers, and 28 stolen bases in 37 attempts.

Steve Wilkerson leads the team with a .386 batting average and is riding a 17-game hitting streak, the longest by a Tiger in 2012. Richie Shaffer, the lone Tiger from the state of North Carolina, is batting .343 with seven homers, 11 doubles, one triple, 28 RBIs, and a .485 on-base percentage. Phil Pohl is hitting .315 with five homers and a team-high 30 RBIs as well.

The pitching staff has a 3.53 ERA and .267 opponents’ batting average in 260.0 innings pitched. The staff has allowed 105 walks against 232 strikeouts, good for a 2.21 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Sophomore righthander Matt Campbell has a team-high two saves along with a 2.14 ERA in 21.0 innings pitched over 11 relief appearances. The Tigers are fielding at a .965 clip as well.

Campbell Keeping Tigers Close Sophomore righthander Matt Campbell (Alpharetta, GA) has been one of Clemson’s top relievers in 2012. After a solid freshman season in 2011, when he had a 3.09 ERA and .154 opponents’ batting average, he has been equally effective as a sophomore.

Campbell is 1-2 with a 2.14 ERA and .211 opponents’ batting average in 21.0 innings pitched over 11 relief appearances this season. He also has 22 strikeouts against only seven walks. In one of his best career outings against #7 Miami (FL) on March 30, he pitched 4.0 stellar innings. He gave up just one hit (a single), no runs, and no walks with seven strikeouts in Clemson’s 3-1 win over the Hurricanes.