The Blue Devils will look to improve to .500 this afternoon as they host Eastern Michigan at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park at 3:15 p.m.
Duke (4-5) split last weekend’s four-game series against Canisius, though both losses—a 5-4 defeat Friday and a 6-4 loss Sunday—came in extra innings.
Despite their losing record, the Blue Devils have outscored their opponents 51-39 so far this season. Freshman right fielder Grant McCabe and senior center fielder Will Piwnica-Worms have sparked an offensive attack that is slugging .438 and getting on base at a .378 clip, both numbers up from last year’s rates of .359 and .352, respectively, despite being without 2011 Louisville Slugger freshman All-American Chris Marconcini.
Marconcini—who leads the Blue Devils in home runs, slugging, RBIs and runs scored last season—will miss the entire 2012 campaign after suffering a torn ACL in his right knee during an intrasquad game Feb. 12.
Piwnica-Worms has done his best to make up for Marconcini’s absence, having gotten on base in more than half his plate appearances, while batting slightly under .400 and slugging .697.
Duke’s pitching staff has a 3.38 ERA, however, that success may not be sustainable with the Blue Devil hurlers issuing nearly six free passes a game. Sophomores Drew Van Orden and Robert Huber have given up just one earned run apiece in a combined 21 innings pitched.
The Eagles (1-4) picked up their first and only win of the season Saturday against Oral Roberts.
Eastern Michigan has been outscored 48-13, due in part to a weak lineup that features just two batters—Lee Longo and Sam Ott—hitting above .263. As a team, the Eagles are slugging just .309 and have recorded more errors—seven—than extra-base hits.
The Eastern Michigan rotation has allowed more than one earned run per inning—43 total in 42 innings—and has walked 25 opposing hitters while inducing just 32 strikeouts.
The only bright spot for the Eagles has been junior right-hander Steve Weber, who has recorded the squad’s only victory and sports a sparkling 1.69 ERA. Weber threw 86 pitches in 6 2/3 innings Saturday, though, so it is unlikely he will come to the mound this afternoon.
—from staff reports
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.