Things have gone from bad to worse for the Blue Devils this week.
After dropping its fourth consecutive game to Campbell Tuesday, Duke announced Wednesday that right-handed ace Michael Matuella and left-handed reliever Nick Hendrix will miss the rest of the season due to injuries.
Matuella will undergo season-ending surgery on his right elbow after experiencing forearm tightness at the start of the year. Multiple reports published Wednesday that the junior has a completely torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL), which will require Tommy John surgery.
Matuella was dubbed the No. 2 overall MLB Draft prospect by MLB.com in December and was expected to be a top draft pick, but like last year's No. 1 overall pick Brady Aiken—currently recovering from Tommy John surgery—he now faces an uncertain future.
“Over the last three years Michael Matuella showed premium talent we have rarely seen in college baseball,” Duke head coach Chris Pollard said in a press release. “He has also demonstrated tremendous character, leadership and work ethic. While we are all disappointed with the timing of his injury, I have total confidence he will make a full recovery and have a long and successful pitching career."
The Great Falls, Va., native started his junior season strong for the Blue Devils, tossing six shutout innings at California and striking out eight in Duke's season opener, but soon saw much of his campaign derailed by arm stiffness. Matuella was scratched from a Feb. 21 start and worked his way back on a progressive pitch count before tossing a season-high 6.1 innings against Pittsburgh March 20.
But the dominant 6-foot-6 force on the mound gave up his first two runs of the season in the start—one of which was unearned—and struggled in his most recent outing against Boston College last Friday. Matuella gave up six runs—two earned—walking five and striking out six in 4.2 innings of work against the Eagles.
The Baseball America report released Wednesday afternoon said scouts have noticed Matuella's velocity dipping since he started dealing with arm stiffness and that the right-hander was stretching more than usual in between pitches against Boston College.
Matuella's season-ending injury comes after southpaw Trent Swart underwent Tommy John surgery before the season started, putting a heavy dent in Pollard's pitching rotation. Swart went 5-2 with an ACC-leading 1.76 ERA in 11 starts during his junior campaign last season.
Without Swart and Matuella—who notched a 2.78 ERA last season and had been climbing on draft boards across the country—the Blue Devils will look to bounce back from their current losing streak and the loss of their most talented player with a weekend series at No. 12 Miami that begins Friday.
Hendrix sustained a head injury March 18 against Columbia when he was struck by a foul ball in the dugout.
“Nick Hendrix has consistently been one of the top relief specialists in the ACC,” Pollard added. “He is a fearless competitor and a tremendous leader for our program, both on and off the field. We will miss his pitching ability and leadership over the second half of the season, but we are looking forward to his full recovery."
Sophomore Bailey Clark—who missed his start this weekend against Boston College with health concerns of his own— and senior Andrew Istler are now the only other starters on Duke's roster with six or more starts this season. Both have been effective so far—boasting matching 2-1 records with ERAs of 2.50 for Clark and 2.68 for Istler—but will have to carry the load for the Blue Devils on the mound the rest of the way.
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