St. John's University Athletics
Three Johnnies Named to Preseason All-BIG EAST Baseball Team
12/18/2025 3:05:00 PM | Baseball
Jon LeGrande, Jayder Raifstanger and Shaun McMillan earn preseason all-conference honors
NEW YORK – A trio of St. John's baseball players- Jon LeGrande, Shaun McMillan and Jayder Raifstangerwere selected to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team, the league office announced on Thursday afternoon.
St. John's was selected to finish fourth in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll, as voted by the league's eight head coaches. The Johnnies accumulated 32 points in the poll. UConn received five first-place votes to sit atop the poll. The defending BIG EAST Tournament Champions Creighton (43) checked in second and Xavier rounded out the top-three with 37 points.
This marks the third time in the last five seasons that three or more Johnnies have appeared on the All-Preseason Team. Last year, the quartet of Evan Chaffee, Louis Marinaro, Luke Orbon, and Jackson Tucker marked the most preseason selections since 2019. Both Chaffee and Marinaro return to the Red Storm this season.
Raifstanger and LeGrande were both unanimously selected to the Preseason Team, marking the first honors of their careers. The duo were two of six players to be unanimously chosen on the 14-player team.
Coming off a career year, LeGrande was selected to the All-BIG EAST First Team. The Bronx, N.Y., native hit a team-best .368 batting average with a .413 slugging percentage and five triples. With 20 multi-hit performances, the junior had his best offensive contest of the season at Georgetown on May 2. In a 16-5 win, LeGrande went 4-for-5 from the plate with two home runs, a double and a single, while driving in two runs and scoring four of his own. In the field, the outfielder recorded 102 putouts to go along with a .972 fielding percentage during the 2025.
Over the summer, LeGrande was named the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) Playoffs MVP. During the Bourne Braves Championship run, the outfielder hit an astounding .444, added 12 hits, nine runs, six walks, and five RBIs.
Raifstanger joined LeGrande as an All-BIG EAST First Team selection last season. The Great Barrington, Mass., product hit .357 in the spring and added 74 hits to his credit. In his best outing, the junior went four-for-four with three hits and a round-tripper on May 21 against Creighton. Defensively, the infielder recorded 133 putouts with a .925 fielding percentage.
McMillan rounds out the honorees for the Johnnies. The sophomore garnered an All-BIG EAST First Team nod during his rookie year. The Freeport, N.Y., native was also named to the NCBWA Freshman All-American Second Team after logging a .328 batting average, 61 hits and a team-high nine home runs. During a 16-5 rout of Georgetown, McMillan went 4-for-6 from the dish and drove in a season-high five runs.
Head Coach Mike Hampton and his squad are set to open the 2025 campaign on Friday, Feb. 13, against Ball State as part of the Stetson Tournament in DeLand, Fla. First pitch is scheduled for 12 p.m. at Melching Field at Conrad Park.
2026 Preseason Baseball All-BIG EAST Team and Awards
Preseason Player of the Year
Connor Misch, 1B, Sr., Xavier
Preseason Pitcher of the Year
Steven Svenson, RHP, So., Seton Hall
Preseason All-BIG EAST Team *
Sean Finn, RP, Jr., UConn
Tyler Minick, OF, Jr., UConn
Rob Rispoli, SS, R-So., UConn
Connor Capece, C, Jr., Creighton ^
Wilson Magers, SP, So., Creighton ^
JT Raab, SP, Gr., Georgetown ^
Jon LeGrande, OF, Jr., St. John's ^
Shaun McMillan, 2B/DH, So., St. John's
Jayder Raifstanger, 3B, Jr., St. John's ^
John Downing, RP, Sr., Seton Hall
Steven Svenson, SP, So., Seton Hall
Clay Burdette, OF, Jr., Xavier
Connor Misch, 1B, Sr., Xavier ^
Ryan Piech, SP, Jr., Xavier
^ - Unanimous Selection
* - due to a tie in voting, there are extra members on the preseason all-conference team.
BIG EAST Baseball Preseason Poll
First place votes in ( )
1. UConn (5) - 46
2. Creighton (3) - 43
3. Xavier - 37
4. St. John's - 32
5. Seton Hall - 26
6. Villanova - 19
7. Georgetown - 13
8. Butler - 8
St. John's was selected to finish fourth in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll, as voted by the league's eight head coaches. The Johnnies accumulated 32 points in the poll. UConn received five first-place votes to sit atop the poll. The defending BIG EAST Tournament Champions Creighton (43) checked in second and Xavier rounded out the top-three with 37 points.
This marks the third time in the last five seasons that three or more Johnnies have appeared on the All-Preseason Team. Last year, the quartet of Evan Chaffee, Louis Marinaro, Luke Orbon, and Jackson Tucker marked the most preseason selections since 2019. Both Chaffee and Marinaro return to the Red Storm this season.
Raifstanger and LeGrande were both unanimously selected to the Preseason Team, marking the first honors of their careers. The duo were two of six players to be unanimously chosen on the 14-player team.
Coming off a career year, LeGrande was selected to the All-BIG EAST First Team. The Bronx, N.Y., native hit a team-best .368 batting average with a .413 slugging percentage and five triples. With 20 multi-hit performances, the junior had his best offensive contest of the season at Georgetown on May 2. In a 16-5 win, LeGrande went 4-for-5 from the plate with two home runs, a double and a single, while driving in two runs and scoring four of his own. In the field, the outfielder recorded 102 putouts to go along with a .972 fielding percentage during the 2025.
Over the summer, LeGrande was named the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) Playoffs MVP. During the Bourne Braves Championship run, the outfielder hit an astounding .444, added 12 hits, nine runs, six walks, and five RBIs.
Raifstanger joined LeGrande as an All-BIG EAST First Team selection last season. The Great Barrington, Mass., product hit .357 in the spring and added 74 hits to his credit. In his best outing, the junior went four-for-four with three hits and a round-tripper on May 21 against Creighton. Defensively, the infielder recorded 133 putouts with a .925 fielding percentage.
McMillan rounds out the honorees for the Johnnies. The sophomore garnered an All-BIG EAST First Team nod during his rookie year. The Freeport, N.Y., native was also named to the NCBWA Freshman All-American Second Team after logging a .328 batting average, 61 hits and a team-high nine home runs. During a 16-5 rout of Georgetown, McMillan went 4-for-6 from the dish and drove in a season-high five runs.
Head Coach Mike Hampton and his squad are set to open the 2025 campaign on Friday, Feb. 13, against Ball State as part of the Stetson Tournament in DeLand, Fla. First pitch is scheduled for 12 p.m. at Melching Field at Conrad Park.
2026 Preseason Baseball All-BIG EAST Team and Awards
Preseason Player of the Year
Connor Misch, 1B, Sr., Xavier
Preseason Pitcher of the Year
Steven Svenson, RHP, So., Seton Hall
Preseason All-BIG EAST Team *
Sean Finn, RP, Jr., UConn
Tyler Minick, OF, Jr., UConn
Rob Rispoli, SS, R-So., UConn
Connor Capece, C, Jr., Creighton ^
Wilson Magers, SP, So., Creighton ^
JT Raab, SP, Gr., Georgetown ^
Jon LeGrande, OF, Jr., St. John's ^
Shaun McMillan, 2B/DH, So., St. John's
Jayder Raifstanger, 3B, Jr., St. John's ^
John Downing, RP, Sr., Seton Hall
Steven Svenson, SP, So., Seton Hall
Clay Burdette, OF, Jr., Xavier
Connor Misch, 1B, Sr., Xavier ^
Ryan Piech, SP, Jr., Xavier
^ - Unanimous Selection
* - due to a tie in voting, there are extra members on the preseason all-conference team.
BIG EAST Baseball Preseason Poll
First place votes in ( )
1. UConn (5) - 46
2. Creighton (3) - 43
3. Xavier - 37
4. St. John's - 32
5. Seton Hall - 26
6. Villanova - 19
7. Georgetown - 13
8. Butler - 8
Players Mentioned
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