Baseball preseason Top 10 for Greater Middlesex Conference teams

Andy Mendlowitz

MyCentralJersey.com

April 1, 2026, 4:04 a.m. ET

It figures to be another fun Greater Middlesex Conference baseball season this spring with expected tight races in all four divisions.

One thing is sure – there’ll be stars aplenty on the diamond. Take the 2025 Home News Tribune GMC All-Area baseball teams. On the first team, 10 of the 16 spots were underclassmen. On the second team, there are nine players back and six more returning from the third team.

That’s not to mention all the honorable mention players and fledgling stars and the up-and-comers. The first team players back include pitchers: Edison’s Connor Murphy, St. Thomas Aquinas’ Louis Rizzolo, Colonia’s Colin Kroner (OF) and Middlesex’s Chris Kozak and Dominic Long.

Others known for their hitting include South Plainfield’s Dominic Massaro, East Brunswick’s Joe Spinello, South Brunswick’s Collin Perna and Woodbridge’s Xavier Diaz and Gavin Slicner.
GMC Preseason Top 10

(last season’s records in parenthesis)

1. Edison (17-11): The loaded Eagles return all but three starters from a team that reached the GMC Tournament final for the first time since 2001. That includes a deep staff led by three Division 1 pitchers in Connor Murphy (Monmouth) and Wagner commits Robert Roma and Dom Innocenti, as well as junior Ray Tavarez and sophomore Brayden Roma. Innocenti, Robert Roma and Murphy also swing a hot bat with over 20 RBIs apiece and Darren Tirado hit .330.

2. Middlesex (23-5): The Blue Jays finished as our No. 2 team last year and that’s where they’ll start this spring. The defending Group 1 champions and GMCT semifinalists return all but two starters. That includes co-aces Dominic Long and Chris Kozak, who gave up a combined 24 earned runs with 137 strikeouts in 147 innings last year. The duo also combined for 32 RBIs at the plate and Long hit .364.

3. Colonia (23-5): While Colonia graduated GMC Pitcher of the Year Cory Pascarella, the Patriots are once again loaded with talented arms. Last year’s co-ace Colin Kroner (Seton Hall commit, 0.70 ERA, 86 strikeouts in 59 2/3 IP) is joined by veterans Tyler Chiola, Ryan Totin and Dylan Chiera to give Colonia a lock-down staff.

4. Woodbridge (18-8): The Barrons are coming off a rare feat of winning back-to-back titles in different divisions. They won the White in 2024 and then the Red last season. While they graduated seven seniors, Woodbridge returns three First-Team All-GMC players in Gavin Slicner (.400 BA, 35 hits, 20 RBIs, 19 SBs), Xavier Diaz (.436 BA, 35 hits, 20 RBIs) and starter Kevin Arroyo (7-2, 1.10 ERA 63 Ks in 63 IP).

5. St. Joseph (16-7): One can just sense the Falcons will be in the Red Division pennant mix and contend come postseason time. The defending GMCT champions, off a magical run full of scintillating walk-off wins, return hitting firepower but have several unproven varsity arms after graduating their three top pitchers. The hitting prowess includes Luke Palermo (.403, 23 RBIs), Kris Almanzar (.362), Walter Christian (.333) and Logan Ring (.300).

6. South Plainfield (18-11): The defending North 2 Group 3 champions graduated a chunk of their lineup and two top pitchers. However, Dom Massaro is an elite center fielder and a sparkplug on the bases hitting .394 with 28 stolen bases and 27 runs. Aiden McCarthy is back with a team-high 25 RBIs and leads the staff (1.34 ERA in 52 1/3 IP).

7. Old Bridge (18-11): The Knights face some questions after graduating their two aces and two RBIs leaders. Old Bridge does have nice building blocks in Brady Meyer (3.20 ERA) and hitters Chris Crosta (.357) and Erich Schikschneit (15 RBIs). Plus, one can never count out the Knights, which went 76-41 the last four seasons.

8. St. Thomas Aquinas (16-9): The Trojans move from the White Division into the Red featuring one of the best players in the GMC in Louis Rizzolo (59 2/3 IP, 1.17 ERA, 98 Ks). Senior catcher Adrian Sanchez (.378, 17 RBIs) leads an offensive attack with other returning pieces.

9. Monroe (9-13): You have to love Monroe’s pitching. The rotation features Andre Love (Georgia commit), Ben Faigin (Rutgers commit, 0.91 ERA 61 Ks) and Ryan Desmond (2.45 ERA, 41 Ks). Faigin and Justin Mangano also return with double-digit RBIs.

10. (tie) East Brunswick (11-13): The Bears return plenty of hitting fireworks led by Joe Spinello (.395 BA, team-highs of 19 RBIs, 27 runs and 23 SBs) and Tyler Zeichner, Julian Satterthwaite and Joshua Hines, who combined to hit .340. East Brunswick graduated its top two pitchers but have experienced arms back who will now be relied on.

Metuchen (17-10): The Blue Division champs move into the White Division with a loaded squad that graduated just one senior. Lucas Malamug (82 Ks, 1.47 ERA), Matt Jelleme (51 Ks, 2.81 ERA) and James Fenton (72 Ks, 3.10 ERA) give the Bulldogs a top-level pitching trio.

NJ Baseball Preseason Top 10 for Greater Middlesex Conference teams