NEW YORK - City College of New York has been selected first in the 2026 CUNY Athletic Conference baseball preseason coaches' poll announced Monday morning. Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own teams.
The Beavers, who were named 2025 regular season champions after tying with John Jay and Baruch with identical 8-4 conference records and reached the conference championship series, collected three first place votes and totaled nine points. John Jay and Baruch tied for second with six points apiece, with the Bloodhounds earning the other first place vote.
Lehman was selected fourth.
The 2026 CUNYAC baseball preseason Players to Watch and Pitchers to Watch were also announced.
The 2026 CUNYAC Baseball Championship begins with first round games on Tuesday, May 5. The best-of-three championship series kicks off on Friday, May 8 with a doubleheader, with the if-neccessary game on Saturday, May 9.
2026 CUNYAC Baseball Preseason Poll
(first place votes in parentheses)
1. CCNY (3) - 9
T2. John Jay (1) - 6
T2. Baruch - 6
4. Lehman - 3
CUNYAC Baseball Players to Watch
Roy Longarzo, Baruch - A CUNYAC All-Star for the second time in his career in 2025 and the MVP of the CUNYAC Baseball Championship, Longarzo batted .373 with three home runs and 29 runs batted in last season. He ranked fifth in the conference in batting average and third in slugging percentage (.603).
Demetri Ziorgiannis, CCNY - Named a CUNYAC All-Star as a freshman in 2025, Ziorgiannis batted .351 with four home runs and 35 RBI for the regular season champion Beavers. He ranked seventh in the conference in batting average and fifth in slugging percentage (.584).
Sebastian Sanchez, John Jay - The CUNYAC Rookie of the Year a season ago, Sanchez ranked among the conference leaders in runs batted in, driving in 32 runners in 37 games. He batted .318 with 10 doubles, three triples and a pair of home runs and his .962 OPS was ninth in the conference.
Leniel Rivera, Lehman - Rivera, who earned All-Star honors for the Lightning last season, batted .314 with 13 runs batted in. He slugged .400 and was 3-3 on stolen base attempts.
CUNYAC Baseball Pitchers to Watch
John Kim, Baruch - KIm was a CUNYAC All-Star as a freshman in 2025 after posting five wins and a 4.98 earned run average. He struck out 38 batters in 65 innings of work.
Erik Rank, CCNY - Rank was a CUNYAC All-Star selection after posting a 7-1 record and striking out 41 batters in 47.1 innings on the mound. He also batted .328 on the season.
Sean Jost, John Jay - An All-Star in 2025, Jost led the Bloodhounds in strikeouts with 47 and posted a 5-1 record with a 5.11 earned run average.
Jormy Polo, Lehman - Polo made 11 relief appearances for Lehman in 2025, recording 13 strikeouts over 16 innings.
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