Sunshine State Conference

SSC Baseball Programs Boast Six Alums in 2019 MLB Postseason

10.01.19

Special thanks to Wayne Cavadi at NCAA.com

MELBOURNE, Fla. - Six ballplayers from current Sunshine State Conference schools have helped their MLB squads make the 2019 Major League Baseball Playoffs. Nova Southeastern University boasts two alums in the playoffs, while Barry University, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Florida Southern College, and Lynn University are also represented.

Wayne Cavadi from NCAA.com breaks down the list of DII baseball players in the 2019 MLB postseason:

DII baseball in the MLB playoffs: By the numbers

Before we get into the 18 former student-athletes, let's go beyond the box scores and take a peek at some numbers.

0.00 — Former Colorado Mesa pitcher Sergio Romo's career ERA in the three World Series he's appeared in, so far. This is Romo's fifth trip to the MLB postseason and first with the Minnesota Twins after being a key cog in the San Francisco Giants' run.

2 — Schools with multiple players represented. Slippery Rock has a pair of players in Oakland A's pitcher Lou Trivino and Nationals first baseman Matt Adams, while Nova Southeastern has a pair of pitchers in Oakland's Mike Fiers and St. Louis' Miles Mikolas. Fun fact: The two were teammates atop the 2009 Sharks' rotation with the big-hitting J.D. Martinez giving them plenty of run support. 

3 — Most players rostered in the postseason. The Nationals have Matt Adams, Yan Gomes and Tanner Rainey listed on their NL Wild Card roster. One NL and one AL team also have three players on the current active rosters. The St. Louis Cardinals carry Ryan Helsley, Miles Mikolas, and Daniel Ponce de Leon. The Tampa Bay Rays roster Emilio Pagan, Trevor Richards and Joey Wendell in the American League.

4 — Consecutive trips Yan Gomes has made to the playoffs. The former Barry star and 2009 Sunshine State Conference player of the year made three-straight trips with the Cleveland Indians before joining the Nationals this year.  

6 — Sunshine State Conference players represented on MLB playoff team rosters. Nova Southeastern leads the way with two players. Matt Joyce from Florida Southern, Tommy Kahnle from Lynn, Daniel Ponce de Leon from Embry-Riddle and Yan Gomes from Barry are the others with SSC roots.  

12 — Former DII pitchers on MLB rosters this October. There are three outfielders and one first baseman, second baseman and catcher making up the list.

18 —  Total players from current DII programs in the postseason. That's up five from last season.

20 — Saves recorded by former Belmont Abbey pitcher Emilio Pagán in 2019. That led the Tampa Bay bullpen. 

MLB postseason: The complete list of DII baseball players in the playoffs

Here are the former college baseball players by playoff team, listed by the school's current affiliation in the DII. Positions and colleges were taken from MLB.com's official active rosters at the end of regular season play on Oct. 1. We will keep tabs as playoff rosters are cut to 25 and update and note any changes, should they occur.

Wayne Cavadi has covered all things Division II sports for NCAA.com since 2016. His work has appeared on Bleacher Report, MLB.com, AJC.com, SB Nation and FoxSports.com and in publications like The Advocate and Lindy's Sports. Follow him on Twitter at @UofDWayne.