On Monday, Notre Dame baseball got its worst news of the off-season, as star catcher Carson Tinney entered the transfer portal.
Then on early Tuesday morning, the backstop depth took another hit, as fifth-year senior Joey Spence also announced his intentions to leave the Irish program. This should come as no surprise, as he moved away from the program at the end of February, most likely due to his playing time decreasing with Tinney’s rise.
Spence, who also got playing time as the designated hitter, was drafted out of high school, getting selected by the Arizona Diamondback in round No. 18. The hope was that he would return next fall, but will now leave with a year of eligibility remaining.
Spence’s collegiate career hasn’t gone exactly how he planned, ending his Irish career with 59 games played, 105 at-bats with a .276 average, 6 home runs and 15 RBI.
While Notre Dame still has a promising future, the transfer season has not been kind for the Irish as multiple others have opted to leave the program.
This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Notre Dame baseball loses more catcher depth as another, Joey Spence, enters the portal
Reporting by Michael Chen , Fighting Irish Wire / Fighting Irish Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
