New Jersey High School Roots Will Run Deep in Upcoming 2026 World Baseball Classic

From dominant high school pitchers to all-around infield stars, the individuals profiled below each possess strong Garden State ties, tracing their baseball backgrounds back to New Jersey diamonds which helped launch them to the international stage.

May 20, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Cincinnati Reds pitcher Jason Marquis (31) delivers a pitch against the Kansas City Royals during the first inning at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-Imagn Images / Peter G. Aiken-Imagn Images

New Jersey high school baseball’s influence on the 2026 World Baseball Classic, which begins next month, stretches well beyond state lines, as six individuals with deep ties to the state prepare to take the international stage, two of whom are with Team Israel and four who will compete on Team Italy.

TEAM ISRAEL

Rob Kaminsky - St. Joseph (Montvale)

Few pitchers in New Jersey high school history have ever been as overpowering as Rob Kaminsky. A left-hander at St. Joseph Regional, Kaminsky delivered one of the most dominant senior seasons the state has ever seen in 2013 when he went 9–0 in 64 innings, striking out 128 batters, and allowing just one earned run all season. Kaminsky’s prep dominance made him a first-round pick (28th overall) by the St. Louis Cardinals and now places him on Team Israel’s WBC roster. In 2025, Kaminsky appeared in a total of nine minor league games – one game with the Memphis Redbirds, the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals, two for the Florida Complex League Cardinals and six for the Staten Island FerryHawks of the Atlantic League.

Jason Marquis - New Jersey Coaching Impact

While Jason Marquis grew up in Staten Island, his high school impact in New Jersey comes through coaching rather than playing. Now an assistant coach at Middletown South, Marquis has brought major league experience and pitching knowledge to the Shore Conference. During the 2024–25 school year, he helped guide the Eagles to a 15–11 season, mentoring pitchers with the same fundamentals that fueled his own long MLB career.  From 2000-2025, Marquis pitched for nine different MLB clubs, amassing a career record of 124-118 with a 4.61 earned run average. In 2017, he was the ace of the staff for Team Israel in the World Baseball Classic. Marquis will serve as the pitching coach for Team Israel in the WBC.

TEAM ITALY

Andrew Fischer - Wall Township High School

Andrew Fischer earned All-State honors as a senior at Wall in 2022 after batting .382, scoring 22 runs and driving in 27 RBIs over 76 at-bats. Overall, Fischer was a four-year varsity letterman and stood out both at the plate and on the field with his strong all-around play. In his junior and senior years especially, he racked up some serious accolades, earning All-Division, All-Shore, and All-State honors both seasons, and he was also selected to play in the prestigious New Jersey All-Star Game. Fischer began his collegiate baseball career at Duke in 2023, where he set the school’s single-season freshman home run record with 11. He transferred to Ole Miss for his sophomore season before transferring again, to Tennessee, where he delivered a breakout campaign, batting .341 with 25 home runs in earning First Team All-American and First Team All-SEC recognition. The Milwaukee Brewers selected the versatile infielder, capable of playing first base, second base, and third base, in the first round of the 2025 MLB Draft, 20th overall. He finished his 2025 season with the Class A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers of the Midwest League.

Kyle Teel -Mahwah

Kyle Teel emerged as one of the state’s most complete high school players at Mahwah. Originally a shortstop, Teel was named to various All-State teams as a junior in 2019 before elevating his game further as a senior when, in 2020 he was named the New Jersey Gatorade Player of the Year. Teel’s ability to impact the game on both sides of the ball made him one of New Jersey’s premier prospects and laid the foundation for his rise to the majors and his spot on Team Italy. Following his high school career, Teel went on to star for the University of Virginia and was a first-round selection by the Red Sox in the 2023 MLB Draft. He was traded to the White Sox in 2024 and made his MLB debut in 2025, when he batted .273 with eight home runs and 35 RBI in 78 games as a catcher.

Gordon Graceffo - Cranford

During his career at Cranford, where he graduated from in 2018, Gordon Graceffo threw just under 175 innings, striking out 128 batters while anchoring the Cougars’ rotation in developing into one of New Jersey’s top prospects. He was a three-time first-team all-conference and all-county selection, and as a junior also earned first-team all-group honors. Graceffo’s combination of size, strike-throwing ability, and competitiveness made him a go-to starter and a college-ready arm by the time he graduated from high school. That steady path carried him through a productive career at Villanova where the hard-throwing righty earned All-Big East honors. posting a 2.73 ERA with 112 strikeouts over 91 innings in his collegiate career. After playing five seasons of minor league ball, Graceffo was called up by the Cardinals in both 2024 and 2025. He has a career mark of 3-2 on the mound for St. Louis with a 6.04 ERA in 28 appearances.

Ron Marinaccio - Toms River North

Ron Marinaccio’s high school career at Toms River North set the tone for the relentless, late-inning pitcher he would later become. A Shore Conference standout, Marinaccio was known for his sharp breaking ball, developing into a reliable arm capable of handling pressure situations. His prep years built the foundation for his rise through college baseball and eventually the majors, where his ability to miss bats translated immediately. Following his 2013 high school graduation, Marinaccio played at the University of Delaware from 2014-17. He was drafted by the Yankees in the 19th round of the 2017 MLB Draft and toiled in the minor leagues for five seasons before being called up to the majors in 2022. From 2022-24, he was a member of the Yankees before being designated for assignment and ultimately ending up with the Padres in 2025. In 24 career relief appearances, the righthander has an MLB mark of 6-5 with a 3.02 ERA.

A Shared New Jersey Foundation

Though these six players took wildly different paths, they all got their start on the same battle-tested diamonds of New Jersey high school baseball. That local prep scene was their first true proving ground, where they learned to handle big moments, sharpened their skills, and laid the groundwork for everything that followed. On the eve of the 2026 World Baseball Classic, New Jersey’s fingerprints are all over the global stage.