Jhoander Irigoyen, B.J. Bailey Claim Top Honors as SSC Also Honors Joe Urso

ORLANDO, Fla. - The Sunshine State Conference presents the 2026 baseball postseason awards. Thirty-nine student-athletes from ten member institutions are recognized as All-Conference. Tampa, the 2026 SSC champion, leads the way with 11 honors, including Player of the Year, Pitcher of the Year and Coach of the Year.

Regular season champion Tampa was highlighted by Player of the Year Jhoander Irigoyen, Pitcher of the Year B.J. Bailey, and Coach of the Year Joe Urso. All-SSC selections for the Spartans include Brayden Woodburn (first team), Jhoander Irigoyen (first team), Jordan Evans (first team), B.J. Bailey (first team), Robert Satin (first team), Luke Fikar (first team), Jake Books (second team), John Luke Glanton (second team).

SSC Baseball All-Conference History: All-SSC Teams| Players & Coaches of the Year

The league office recognizes Jhoander Irigoyen from Tampa as the 2026 SSC Player of the Year, presented by Athletic Solutions. The catcher from Winter Garden, Florida, finished the regular season leading the qualified hitters in the conference in slugging percentage (.617). He was top-five in the league in batting average (.383), hits (72), home runs (10), RBIs (56), and total bases (116). He also manned duties behind the plate, he recorded a perfect fielding percentage with 249 putouts and 15 assists.  He is the ninth Spartan named Player of the Year in baseball.

Tampa's B.J. Bailey is honored as the 2026 SSC Pitcher of the Year. The graduate student from Woodruff, South Carolina, made 14 starts on the mound, throwing 88.2 innings for a 12-0 overall record. During the regular season, Bailey led the SSC in ERA (1.93) and wins. He was top-five in the league in opponent batting average (.207), and strikeouts (89). He is the 15th Spartan athlete to earn Pitcher of the Year laurels, fourth consecutive.

Brad Benton becomes the third Florida Tech Panther to collect Freshman of the Year accolades in Baseball. The outfielder from The Villages, Florida, posted a .333 batting average and .633 slugging percentage, and .401 on-base percentage. He recorded 49 hits, 31 runs, 10 doubles, 10 home runs, two triples, and 38 RBIs.

SSC baseball coaches vote Joe Urso as Coach of the Year for the 16th time in his career. Urso guided the Spartans to the program's sixth consecutive SSC championship and 25th overall league trophy, following a 41-8 overall record and 27-3 conference mark. Across 30 league games in 2026, the Tampa offense finished first in home runs (54), slugging percentage (.480), on-base percentage (.428), and triples (17). Spartan pitching led the SSC in various statistical categories, including ERA (2.90) and BAA (.231). Urso's Spartans are ranked No. 10 nationally in multiple polls and received the No. 2 seed in the South Regional as they begin their pursuit of an NCAA Division II title.

All-conference selections and individual award winners are determined by a vote of Sunshine State Conference head coaches with oversight and approval from member institution Athletic Directors. 

Player of the Year: Jhoander Irigoyen, Tampa

Pitcher of the Year: B.J. Bailey, Tampa

Freshman of the Year: Marcello Cortale, Florida Tech

Coach of the Year: Joe Urso, Tampa