Transfer pitcher Reese Dutton made his Hoglund Ballpark debut with a seven-inning quality start on Friday in Kansas’ home opener, allowing no earned runs and keeping the Jayhawks in front all afternoon as they beat Texas Southern 11-2 Friday evening.
He was backed up well on offense, as eight of the Jayhawks’ nine starters recorded at least one hit and six recorded at least one RBI. Kansas was mainly led by Luke Leto with three RBIs, which included a two-run home run in the eighth for his first long ball of the season, as the bottom of the lineup held its own throughout.
The Jayhawks saw a good turnout for their 2024 Hoglund debut, with an energetic student section that rivaled the majority of last year’s attendance.
“It’s awesome to be home, it was a very productive road trip, but the expression ‘There’s no place like home’ really is true … I know I was fired up to be home, and I think (the guys) were too,” said head coach Dan Fitzgerald.
“It was a great experience just to be around my team and the coaches and just get my feet wet out here at Hoglund,” Dutton said. “(It was) good to see the crowd and the environment, and it’s a fun place to play.”
After a quiet first inning and a half that featured some control problems for Dutton, the Jayhawks struck first in the bottom of the second, as some impressive baserunning by Janson Reeder set him up to score on a single from Leto. With back-to-back singles by John Nett and Mike Koszewski, Leto scored to give the Jayhawks a 2-0 lead. Kansas picked up its second out of the inning before a pitch hit Kodey Shojinaga to load the bases. A double by Lenny Ashby scored two, before Kansas’ second walk of the inning was followed by another two-run double by Reeder in his second at-bat in the bottom of the second. After the two-out rally, the Jayhawks took a 6-0 lead into the third.
The Tigers responded after Kansas’ six-run inning, as a wild pitch followed by a single and groundout put runners on second and third. A throwing error on a groundout to second scored both runners before Dutton got out of the inning with a flyout as the Jayhawks led 6-2.
“(He) was able to flush something that didn’t go their way and start right over,” Fitzgerald said, as Dutton had to come back from the error and late walks throughout the game. “He had his breaking ball but he also had a (nice) slider. I had to check the scoreboard on velocity quite a few times because I couldn’t tell, his fastball had so much sink tonight that it looked like a really hard changeup. That’s how it was moving.”
Kansas regained its six-run lead on a single and sacrifice fly in the inning that scored two runs. At this point, Texas Southern’s starter, Dade Hensley, had faced the lineup three times in three innings, with the Tigers choosing to ride with him in anticipation of three more games to be played this weekend.
Dutton forced three groundouts to work around a single, keeping his pitch count low at 60 through four innings as he continued his impressive home debut.
Hensley’s day ended after 73 pitches thrown over three innings, as Justin Barnes came on to replace him at the halfway point of the fourth. Barnes walked two batters and recorded two strikeouts in a scoreless half-inning of work.
The Jayhawks had a good chance to add on in the fifth with runners on the corners and only one out, but catcher Jake English hit into an ill-timed double play to end the threat and the inning.
After back-to-back flyouts to start the bottom of the sixth, three straight Jayhawks drew a walk to load the bases before Collier Cranford drew a four-pitch walk to force in a run for his second RBI of the day.
Dutton returned for his seventh inning on the mound, having allowed only three hits and no earned runs thus far. He began with back-to-back strikeouts before a four-pitch walk quickly put a runner on base. Thanks to some help from English behind the plate, Dutton was able to limit the trouble, as English gunned down the runner at second on an attempted steal to end the inning.
Dutton’s night ended there, as he accounted for seven innings pitched on 105 pitches, recording seven strikeouts while allowing only three hits and no earned runs — earning him a quality start and his first win of the season.
“If you asked 100 big-league pitchers what the most important stat for them at the end of the year is, it’s innings pitched,” Fitzgerald said. “Because if you’re doing your job as a starter, you’re shortening the game for your back end (of the bullpen). For us to get out of that with two pitchers, (and we) forced them to use four in a weekend where there are four games, that’s a big deal.”
“It was big for the team,” Dutton said. “Personally it was a good accomplishment to go out there and test the waters a little bit and see how far I can go … And it’s good for our bullpen, everyone’s new and fresh (for the weekend).”
Sam Ireland came in to close things out for the Jayhawks, pitching two impressive innings while allowing one hit and no runs to score. Leto made it 11-2 with his home run to solidify Kansas’ first home win of the year and emerge as the Jayhawks’ leader for the day on the offensive end.
“When the back half of your lineup goes and sets the table for the top to come back up … a big chunk of that (success) is what the bottom half is doing,” Fitzgerald said of the offensive showing in the opener.
After a successful home debut, the Jayhawks will continue the series against Texas Southern with a doubleheader Saturday, with the first game scheduled for 11 a.m. and the second for 2 p.m and both can be streamed on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
Carter Gaskins/Special to the Journal-World
