RIVERDALE, N.Y. – The wait is finally over; the 2023 Manhattan baseball season is less than 24 hours away.
All home games will be played out in Pomona at Clover Stadium. Fans of the Jaspers will be treated to a new voice of the Jaspers this season, with Marc Ernay calling all home games.
The season kicks off where it has for the last couple of years, the campus of Stetson in DeLand, Fla., with a three-game series against the Hatters from Friday to Sunday. The first pitch on Friday in Florida is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
Some other notable opponents for the Green and White this year include a series at CSU Bakersfield next weekend and then a marque series down in Austin, Texas, against college baseball powerhouse, Texas, from Mar. 10-12.
New faces will be seen in the dugout this year, with head coach
Dave Miller at the helm for his first season. He will be assisted by David Vandercook, and the pitching staff will be led by
Steven Rosen, who joined the Jaspers from Alabama for this season.
Many key pieces from last year's team, including All-MAAC players
Pete Durocher and
Jack Lynch. Durocher, who was selected to the Preseason All-MAAC squad, will look to continue his strong play at the plate after slashing .350/.414/.530 while starting in all 47 games he appeared in. As for Lynch, he burst onto the scene last year in his first season in Riverdale after a solid career at Ithaca College, batting .354 while knocking in 39 runs and mashing 11 bombs. Lynch will move from third last year to the middle infield, taking up the shortstop role this season.
On the bump,
Will Hesslink and
Kyle Lesler will anchor the staff. Hesslink finished with a 5-4 record last year, paired with an ERA of 5.36 with a team-high 71 punchouts. As for Lesler, he finished with a 4-2 mark and an ERA of 4.26 while retiring 69 batters on strikes. Out of the pen,
John Farley will reprise his role as the primary close.
One player who looks to take the next step in their game this season is leadoff man
Frankie Marinelli. Marinelli turned in a solid performance at the plate, slashing .261/.722/.250. Against Niagara, he went 4-5 with two runs while bringing home three of his teammates. In the team's final series against Iona, he knocked in a pair of runs in the first game of the series.
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