James Madison Dukes baseball
# James Madison Dukes baseball

Founded in 1970, the James Madison baseball program played at Long Field at Mauck Stadium through the end of the 2009 season. In 2010 they opened play at Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Park, the school's new baseball and softball complex. The "Diamond Dukes," as the team is known, have compiled a 1092-670-8 all-time record and have made the NCAA tournament nine times, most recently in 2011. The Dukes compete in the Sun Belt Conference. Billy Sample is JMU's most famous baseball alumnus, who played in 862 career major league games with the Texas Rangers, New York Yankees, and Atlanta Braves. In the 2006 season, JMU had the top-two home run hitters in Division I. One of them, Kellen Kulbacki, placed in the top five in all three of the triple crown categories. Kulbacki received the 2006 National Player of the Year award as a sophomore. In 2008, the Dukes won their first CAA Championship defeating Towson University qualifying the team for the 2008 NCAA Division I baseball tournament hosted by North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC. The Dukes also won the CAA Championship in 2011 defeating Old Dominion University qualifying the team for the 2011 NCAA Division I baseball tournament.

## Notable alumni

* Billy Sample (1974–1976) – former MLB outfielder for the Texas Rangers, New York Yankees, and Atlanta Braves; first MLB player from JMU
* Lorenzo Bundy (1977–1981) – former Minor League Baseball first baseman and MLB coach; current manager of the Double-A Birmingham Barons
* Dana Allison (1986–1989) – former MLB pitcher for the Oakland Athletics
* Larry Mitchell (1990–1992) – former MLB pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies
* Mike Hubbard (1991–1992) – former MLB catcher for the Chicago Cubs, Montreal Expos, Atlanta Braves, and Texas Rangers
* Rich Croushore (1992–1993) – former MLB relief pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, Colorado Rockies, and Boston Red Sox
* Scott Forster (1992–1994) – former MLB pitcher for the Montreal Expos
* Mike Venafro (1992–1995) – former MLB relief pitcher for the Texas Rangers, Oakland Athletics, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Colorado Rockies
* Brian McNichol (1993–1995) – former MLB pitcher for the Chicago Cubs
* Travis Harper (1995–1997) – former MLB pitcher for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays
* Rich Thompson (1998–2000) – former MLB outfielder for the Kansas City Royals and Tampa Bay Rays
* Dan Meyer (2000–2002) – former MLB pitcher for the Atlanta Braves, Oakland Athletics, and Florida Marlins; current pitching coach for the Triple–A Indianapolis Indians
* Ryan Reid (2004–2006) – former MLB pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates
* Kellen Kulbacki (2005–2007) – former Minor League Baseball outfielder in the San Diego Padres organization; College Baseball Player of the Year in 2006
* Kevin Munson (2008–2010) – former Minor League Baseball pitcher in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization; Rule 5 draft pick by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2013
* Jake Lowery (2009–2011) – Johnny Bench Award winner for JMU in 2011 and former Minor League Baseball catcher; current manager for the Low–A Fredericksburg Nationals
* Kevin Kelly (2017–2019) – MLB pitcher for the Tampa Bay Rays.
* Nick Robertson (2018–2019) – MLB pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers
* Chase DeLauter (2020–2022) – outfielder who was a first–round draft pick by the Cleveland Guardians
