Duke Wins Out In Recruiting Battle For Santucci

Jonathan Santucci OF / LHP / Phillips Academy, MA / 2021

LEOMINSTER, Ma. - The recruiting process gave Jonathan Santucci a good look at schools in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Phillips Academy Andover junior will get more opportunities in the future after committing to Duke.

“There were 40 to 50 schools interested, mostly ACC programs along with five or six SEC schools and Ivys,” noted Santucci about his recruitment. “I’m thankful to get the opportunity, but I wish I could have seen some of those campuses.”
The eighth-ranked 2021 in New England did visit Wake Forest and Boston College and saw Georgia Tech at a summer event. He was also going to check out Virginia and North Carolina before his Duke commitment changed those plans.

“Academics are very important to me,” noted Santucci, who is considering business or finance as a college major. “Even in high school, I’m at a school with very high standards. Knowing that Duke is so big academically as well as athletically is significant.”

Santucci first talked with Duke at a summer camp following his freshman year of school. Interest picked up this year with the Northeast Procase in February and in the summer after he was seen in a tournament at Assumption College in Worcester.

“I got my name out after that,” Santucci said of the Northeast Procase PBR event. “That was the first game my arm was completely healthy and I was able to throw 90 from the outfield. That event helped me alot, showing I was capable of things I wasn’t sure about.”

An arm injury three years ago was a big setback for Santucci.

“The growth plate popped off my elbow and it took 10-12 months to heal,” Santucci reflected. “The injury happened because I was growing too fast. I grew six inches that year. Eventually I had surgery.

“It was a long process, but my arm is completely healthy now. But that was tough because I wanted to play and couldn’t do everything, only hit.”