Essex County Player of the Year- Jordan Burwell, senior 1B, Seton Hall Prep
The West Virginia University-bound first baseman was one of the state’s top hitters from start to finish while batting .488 with a slugging % of .893, scoring 34 runs, banging out 41 hits and driving in 42 runs. He slugged 7 home runs and also had 13 doubles as the consummate power hitter as well A 4-year starting first baseman for legendary coach Mike Sheppard, Jr., the talented Burwell is also a 2-time SC Essex Player of the Year.
Runner-Up Player of the Year - Colin Fogg, senior catcher, West Essex
The Ursinus College-bound standout was one of the state’s top all-around catchers with his stellar work behind the dish for first-year coach Anthony Genchi and the 21-8 Knights. Fogg was strong offensively as a speedy leadoff hitter finishing with a .429 BA plus 39 runs scored, 42 hits and 25 RBI He also had 13 extra base hits and 24 stolen bases defying any stereotype about slow-running catchers.
Essex County Pitcher of the Year - JJ Drennan, senior, Seton Hall Prep
Essex’s top hurler was the Pirates’ Boston College-bound senior, who like teammate Jordan Burwell was a 4-year varsity player, including also as a standout infielder and productive hitter during his high school career. As a senior he was a consistent force and dominant in Essex County while leading the Pirates to a third straight Greater Newark Tournament title in a 6-0 win vs. Nutley in the final. For the season Drennan was 6-1 with a 1.19 ERA, including 19 BB and 66 K’s in 41 1/3 innings pitched while allowing only 19 hits. He had been runner-up to teammate Marcelo Harsch (Wake Forest) as the 2025 SC Essex Pitcher of the Year.
Runner-Up Pitcher of the Year- Jackson Lodgek, senior West Essex
The Rowan University commit put together back-to-back outstanding seasons while displaying the type of size (6-foot-4, 215) and ability which may be just scratching the surface at this point plus great family genes which includes a father who pitched at Wake Forest, an uncle Scott Lodgek who pitched at the University of North Carolina and with the Seattle Mariners, and a first cousin Jake Lodgek who is pitching at the University of Miami. For the season, Jackson Lodgek was 6-3 with a 2.30 ERA. He worked 54 2/3 innings while allowing 38 hits while walking 32, hitting 8 batters and striking out 73 while leading the Knights to the GNT semifinals.
Essex County Newcomer of the Year - Thomas Drechsel, P-3B, West Essex
Emerging as a full-time starting infielder at third base along with fellow freshman Ethan Fiss (second base), Drechsel was an all-around contributor for the Knights pitching to a 2-1 record with a 1.59 ERA, including some key relief appearances along the way. At the plate he batted a solid .310 with 19 walks and 13 RBI. Another Knight with good baseball genes since his uncles Dave and Chris Drechsel were both standouts at Cranford High School and also excelled in the college ranks.
Runner-Up Newcomer of the Year- Stefano Rizio, P, MKA
Although his overall record (5-6) and ERA (3.93) might not blow you away, what did impress was the freshman southpaw’s overall work, including with a drop-dead curve, and his improvement from start to finish for a Cougars team which finished 7-20. He allowed just 16 hits in 35 2/3 IP with 22 BB and 47 K’s. He also tossed a combined no-hitter, working the first 6 2/3 IP in a 5-1 win over Hawthorne Christian/Eastern Christian in the first round of the Non-Public, North B state tournament, threw a 2-hitter in a 2-1 win vs. Cedar Grove and also won vs. crosstown rival Montclair.
Essex County Coach of the Year- Vin Cordasco, Cedar Grove
Cordasco, who is one of the state’s up-and-coming, young head coaches who will turn 31 in July, did an excellent job along with his superb staff in steering the Panthers to a terrific state tournament run that included capturing the program’s first state sectional title since 2003 with a big win over Hanover Park in the North 2, Group 1 final before the home crowd. Despite a tough 3-2 loss to Pompton Lakes in the Group 1 state semifinals, it was the best state tourney showing by any Essex team and Cordasco simply kept building on his superb 4-year stretch which included a state sectional runner-up finish in 2023 and semifinal berths in both 2024 and 2025 with three straight 19-win seasons which his 2026 squad topped with its 20th victory in the N2G1 final to cap an outstanding finish.
Runner-Up Coach of the Year- Tim Blumkin, West Orange
West Orange which combined with Mountain High School in 1984 posted its first 20-win season since that merger with this past spring’s 20-9 campaign which included an appearance in the North 1, Group 1 state sectional semifinals. Blumkin, in his fifth season at the helm after serving as Stefan Zichella’s assistant, worked wonders with a senior-led team which had terrific chemistry and finished strong with its state tourney run. Blumkin did a superb job in keeping his 2026 team on the upswing while enthusiasm grew in the school for a sport which has continued to improve under his tutelage.
Essex County Team of the Year- Cedar Grove
This honor is for the team which produced the best story in the county and coach Vin Cordasco’s impressive 2026 diamond squad did just that. While they were in the Super Essex Conference’s third division, the Colonial, the Panthers played everyone tough, including giving West Essex all it could handle in a 2-0 GNT first round loss before finishing strong with a terrific state tourney run with four straight victories in capturing the program’s first state sectional title in 23 years. Senior center fielder and pitcher Xavier Andujar was one of the centerpieces of this exciting team, while junior Jack Velonas emerged as the team’s No. 1 starter on the mound and he also hit well while playing the outfield on days he didn’t pitch.
Runner-Up Team of the Year- Seton Hall Prep
The Pirates captured a third straight and record 21st GNT title with a dominant performance throughout that tourney and also had a solid run in the Non-Public, North A state tournament with a win over St. Joe’s of (Montvale) in the quarterfinals and a solid showing despite a 2-0 setback at eventual Non-Public A state champion Delbarton in a very competitive state sectional semifinal. Veteran coach Mike Sheppard, Jr., who is now just 18 wins shy of the state record for victories held by the retired Ken Frank of Toms River South, achieved victory No. 900 in April at Millburn and his Pirates responded throughout with another strong season.
NOTES- Caldwell (23-5, 9-1 in winning the SEC Liberty Division title) had a strong season with standouts such as junior pitcher Dan Vybihal (6-2), who threw an early-season no hitter at Verona…There are a number of first-year head coaches in the SEC this season such as Anthony Genchi, the former Montclair co-head coach, who took over at West Essex; Lou Nucci at Millburn, Sean Cruz at Livingston and Angel Zayas at St. Benedict’s…Nutley had a strong GNT showing knocking off both Caldwell (in the quarters) and West Essex (in the semis) before running into a meat grinder vs. JJ Drennan and SHP in the championship game…Millburn, Montclair and Livingston – all former strongholds in the GNT and in the SEC – all went through sub-500 seasons in 2026….Barringer, under veteran coach Wayne Moore, defeated East Side, to win another Newark Public Schools Tournament title…Essex County bid adieu to popular, longtime Bloomfield coach Mike Policastro who announced his resignation after 20 solid years at the helm of Bengals baseball.
Sideline Chatter’s Final Essex Top 10:
1-Seton Hall Prep (23-6)
2-West Essex (21-8)
3-Caldwell (23-5)
4- Cedar Grove (20-10)
5- Nutley (16-14)
6- Columbia (12-14)
7- West Orange (20-9)
8- Verona (19-8)
9- Millburn (13-15)
10- St. Benedict’s (9-13-1)
Follow Steve Tober on 'X' @Chattermeister
