NEW YORK | The Skyline Conference's 11 head baseball coaches have selected defending champion St. Joseph’s-Long Island as No. 1 in the 2023 edition of the preseason poll.
The Golden Eagles, under new skipper Tom Caputo, are tabbed to finish atop the conference ledger after receiving six first-place votes, totaling 96 voting points. Caputo replaced Richard Garrett, who announced his retirement following nine years at the helm after leading the team to the title. Caputo worked under Garrett as an assistant coach since 2019 and helped the Golden Eagles to their fifth Skyline Conference Championship in 2022 (pictured above). St. Joseph's-LI won back-to-back games to close out United States Merchant Marine Academy, clinching an automatic bid into the Division III NCAA Baseball Tournament.
The runner-up Mariners received four first-place votes of their own in 2023 and are projected second in the tally with 89 points, while Farmingdale State totaled 80 points to slot into third place. Maritime College – who received the other first-place vote – and Mount Saint Vincent round out the top five.
The six-team 2023 Skyline Conference Baseball Championship gets underway with single-elimination, opening-round play on campus sites on Wednesday, May 10. The four-team, double-elimination portion of the tourney will take place May 12-14, with the victor earning the Skyline's automatic bid to the 2023 NCAA Division III Baseball Championship.
2023 Skyline Conference Preseason Baseball Coaches Poll
Pl., Team (2022 Record, 2022 Conference Record), Pts. (first-place votes)
1. St. Joseph's-Long Island (23-12, 15-5 Skyline), 96 (6 first-place votes)
2. USMMA (25-19, 13-7), 89 (4)
3. Farmingdale State (21-14, 13-7), 80
4. Maritime (22-13, 12-8), 67 (1)
5. Mount Saint Vincent (25-16, 13-7), 65
6. Manhattanville (20-17, 11-9), 61
7. Mount Saint Mary (16-17, 11-9), 52
8. Old Westbury (12-22, 8-12), 38
9. Purchase (11-23, 7-13), 26
10. St. Joseph's-Brooklyn (9-28, 7-13), 21
11. Yeshiva (0-20, 2-25), 10