Newsstand: 2024 Notre Dame baseball season begins at Rice on Friday

IMG_9992by:Tyler Horka02/16/24

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It’s baseball time in Texas. That’s how Texas Rangers public address announcer Chuck Morgan begins every game in Arlington. The same sentence rings true for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish today. They begin the 2024 season with a three-game series against Rice in Houston

It is indeed baseball time in Texas.

It’s head coach Shawn Stiffler‘s second season in South Bend. The Irish went 30-24 and missed the NCAA Tournament in his first year following a run to the College World Series under former coach Link Jarrett in 2022.

If Stiffler is to guide the Irish back to the postseason, he’ll have to do it with 19 newcomers and just five returning starters in the field; DM Jefferson, Brady Gumpf, TJ Williams, Jack Penney and Estevan Moreno. Staples from the CWS appearance such as Carter Putz, Zack Prajzner, Jack Zyska, and Brooks Coetzee moved on at the end of last season.

Stiffler mentioned five names — Jackson Dennies, Caden Spivey, Matt Bedford, Will Jacobson and David Lally Jr. — as potential starting pitchers in a media availability earlier this week. The team announced Friday morning Spivey will start Friday, Dennies will go Saturday and Bedford gets the nod Sunday. Ace Jack Findlay is still recovering from Tommy John surgery.

The series begins at 7:30 p.m. ET Friday. Saturday’s game starts at 2 p.m. ET. Sunday’s first pitch is 1 p.m. ET.

Notre Dame tweets of the day

Want to get fired up for the season? This is all you need.

The Irish got some baseball-eve work in on Thursday night as a final tune-up.

College Football is officially coming back to EA Sports, and the Fighting Irish will play their part.

Quote of the day

“Very disappointed the way we started this game. I did not feel like we were mentally here and ready for the entire game. Hats off to NC State, great team. Just did not think we had any fight in this game for whatever reason.”

Notre Dame women’s basketball coach Niele Ivey on her team’s 59-43 loss to NC State on Thursday

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