Atlantic Physical Therapy Baseball 2026 Week 6 Top 10
Shore Sports Insider Week 6 Baseball Top 10
Sponsored by Atlantic Physical Therapy
It was not a good year to be a No. 1 seed in a county tournament, nor was it beneficial to be a defending champion. Christian Brothers Academy and Toms River East – the No. 1 seeds in the Monmouth and Ocean Tournaments, respectively – are a combined 15-15 heading into the first full week of May and neither is playing for a county championship this week. Red Bank Catholic, along with Toms River East, is a defending county champion and will not be defending its title this week either.
At this stage of the season, there are teams well outside the top 10 that have beaten teams close to the top, which is not completely out of the norm, but still noteworthy. At this stage of the season, the division standings still carry plenty of weight, but with the Shore Conference Tournament a little more than a week from starting, tournament play will start to have a greater impact on the Shore Sports Insider Top 10. For now, however, there are two county championship games coming up this week and neither of them features the top-ranked team from their respective counties.
Red Bank Catholic senior Drew Cannon. (Photo: Tom Smith | tspsportsimages.com)
1. Red Bank Catholic (10-4, 8-2) Last Week: 1
After dominating CBA, 13-0, and winning the Class A North championship to start last week, RBC was the No. 1 team in the conference by a wide margin. Then, the Caseys gave up 25 runs in their next two games and their hold on No. 1 is once again shaky. Nevertheless, RBC still has the best overall résumé, with 2-1 records against both Howell and Manalapan and a 1-1 mark vs. CBA. With Class A North secure and another week before the SCT starts, the Caseys have a chance to regroup this week with games vs. Barnegat, Brick Memorial and Bergen Catholic.
2. Ranney (8-7, 5-5) Last Week: 3
Since a 2-6 start to the season, Ranney is 6-1 and the only loss during that stretch was 3-0 at Manalapan. The Panthers allowed 8.8 runs per game in their first seven games and have since allowed 2.25 over their last eight after freshman Jake Abrams shut out Rumson-Fair Haven Saturday in the Monmouth County Tournament semifinals. That stretch also includes three wins in three games vs. CBA, plus a 16-5 win over Manalapan. Ranney goes for its second MCT championship in four years Tuesday against Howell.
3. Christian Brothers Academy (7-8, 5-3) Last Week: 4
The Colts have played a stacked schedule and while they have had no answer for Ranney in three losses to the Panthers, they have been pretty good against the rest of a tough schedule. CBA has beaten both Howell and Manalapan, with one more game against each still to come, went 2-0 vs. Middletown South and bounced back from a 13-0 loss to RBC with a 15-10 win over the Caseys.
4. Point Pleasant Beach (9-4, 7-3) Last Week: 6
Southern bounced Point Beach out of the Ocean County Tournament last week, but it was still a historically great week for the Garnet Gulls. With a win over Jackson on Monday and another over Wall on Friday, Point Beach captured the outright Class A South championship – a major feat for a Group I school that just four years ago had never won an outright division title as a staple in Class B Central. With two wins apiece over Brick Memorial and Wall, Point Beach has proven it can beat good teams twice in a short span of time and will try to carry that success into the SCT next week.
Point Beach senior Dan Lubach. (Photo: Patrick Olivero)
5. Brick Memorial (11-5, 5-5) Last Week: 7
Looking at the Brick Memorial résumé in its totality, it seems like the 0-3 week with 36 runs allowed vs. Point Beach twice and Southern is an aberration. Outside one bad week, Brick Memorial is 11-2 with a win over a loaded DePaul team and isolated losses to Toms River East and Wall. Now, the Mustangs are set for a second straight appearance in the Ocean County Tournament championship game and will have a chance to pair Zach Pirnik and Brody Moore on the mound against Toms River South, which will be juggling the Class B South race and the OCT final this week.
6. Rumson-Fair Haven (14-3, 9-1) Last Week: 2
When it comes to the rankings, Rumson is a victim of not playing in an “A” division within the Shore Conference. The Bulldogs don’t get as many opportunities against the top teams in the Shore, but when they have had those opportunities, they have done well. Rumson beat Howell late last week as both teams prepared for Saturday MCT semifinals and the Bulldogs also own a win at Toms River East, plus a sweep of Colts Neck in Class B North play. A loss to Middletown North is comparable to Point Beach and Brick Memorial losses to Southern, so those teams get the nod with more games vs. teams in the running for the Top 10. Playing in B North has not, however, hurt Rumson in power points, with the Bulldogs currently 0.4 power points behind Governor Livingston for the No. 1 seed in the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group II section.
7. Howell (10-6, 4-5) Last Week: 8
For the first time in program history this week, Howell will play for the Monmouth County Tournament championship when the Rebels clash with Ranney for a third time Tuesday at Brookdale. Howell took down Wall on quarterfinal Saturday and this past Saturday, dominated Red Bank Catholic, 10-1, to earn a spot in the final. Howell split with Ranney during the regular season, so the Rebels own wins over No. 1 and No. 2 in the rankings. If Howell can beat Ranney again on Tuesday, it would be hard to argue any team in the Shore is playing better than the Rebels are right now.
Howell senior Jackson Vetrano. (Photo: Tom Smith | tspsportsimages.com)
8. Manalapan (9-8, 5-4) Last Week: 5
Although Manalapan has lost three of four, there is plenty to like for the Braves. The offense continues to be effective after it scored 10 runs in a loss to Notre Dame on Saturday, which was a welcomed sight after it scored eight runs in the prior three games. The pitching is deep and while none of the pitchers have been an automatic gem, there are four pitchers with at least 16 innings and an ERA under 4.00 on the Braves staff. In a wide-open Shore Conference Tournament and NJSIAA Central Group IV fields, Manalapan is back to playing for trophies in May and June.
9. Toms River East (8-7, 5-4) Last Week: 10
The Raiders dropped below .500 after drawing the No. 1 seed in the Ocean County Tournament and rebounded by winning three straight games vs. sub-.500 teams (Donovan Catholic, Central and Toms River North). They did not get past Brick Memorial in the OCT semifinals and Toms River East’s positioning in the Shore Conference Tournament may come down to whether the Raiders beat Southern and finished tied for second in the division or lose to Southern and finish tied for third. With two wins over Point Beach and a split vs. Brick Memorial, a second-place tie with Wall would give Toms River East a strong case to land in the top eight.
10. Wall (9-6, 6-4) Last Week: 9
With a win each over Brick Memorial and Toms River East and a three pitchers with at least 27 innings and a sub-2.00 ERA, there is no question that Wall can contend for a championship – and already did in falling a win short of the Class A South division title. The offense has some big bats, but scoring runs has been a challenge against other Top 10 teams. In seven games against such teams, Wall has scored 20 total runs with five runs the maximum output for the offense. With the talent on hand, it would not be a shock to see the offense warm up with the weather and if it does, the Crimson Knights will not fall out of the Top 10.
The Next 10
Toms River South (12-3, 8-2) – Three wins over Point Boro and a dismantling of a hot Southern team on Saturday making a compelling case for the Indians to re-join the Top 10. An OCT championship win over Brick Memorial on Thursday would leave no doubt.
Colts Neck (12-5, 10-2) – The Cougars kept the pressure on Rumson in the Class B North race by going 10-0 in the division outside of two losses to Rumson. Next up is a chance to win the Ted Jarmusz Bracket in the Monmouth County Tournament.
Shore (11-5, 9-2) – Outside being swept by Red Bank to open the season, Shore boasts a résumé worthy of the Top 10. Since then, the Blue Devils are 11-3 with losses to Brick Memorial, Wall and Manasquan with ace Chase Kaplan on the mound.
Point Pleasant Boro (10-5, 7-3) – With Toms River South balancing the B South race and the OCT final this week, the Panthers could potentially pounce on an opportunity by sweeping Donovan Catholic and possible grabbing a piece of the B South title if Central can steal a game from Toms River South.
Southern (6-9, 2-7) – The Rams own wins over Brick Memorial, Point Beach, Toms River East and Jackson, so even though Toms River South handled them on Saturday, Southern has gone toe-to-toe with and beaten some of Ocean County’s best.
Manasquan (7-7, 6-3) – The Warriors are still in the running for the Class B South championship, but will likely have to run the table with two games remaining vs. Brick and one against Donovan Catholic.
St. John Vianney (12-5, 9-3) – The Lancers no longer control their destiny as it pertains to the Class C North standings, but they do have a say in the Jarmusz Bracket of the Monmouth County Tournament, which could lead to a third shot at Shore if SJV can knock off Colts Neck on Tuesday.
Jackson (5-12, 4-6) – The record is not Top 10 worthy, but Jackson has wins over Point Beach and Toms River East its losses are a who’s who of some of the best programs in the state, let alone the conference.
Middletown North (6-8, 5-7) – The Lions can put runs on the board and a win over Rumson remains one of the best wins that any team outside the Top 10 owns at the moment.
Marlboro (7-6, 6-5) – There are some teams with better records than what Marlboro boasts, but the Mustangs deserve a mention for beating Colts Neck in a Monmouth County Tournament game and playing Rumson-Fair Haven tough in the MCT semifinals.
