Wagner College baseball coach Craig Noto has announced the hiring of five new members of his staff for the 2024 season.

"The most important aspect of any program is the quality of the coaching staff," Noto said. "I'm excited to announce the newest members of the Wagner College baseball program as we head into the 2024 season. Our staff in '23 did a great job of bringing home a successful 2023 season and I thank them all for their contributions the past few years and helping us shape the future of Wagner baseball. I believe we have secured some very talented as well as experienced men to lead the Seahawks into 2024 and beyond."

Eric Reardon - Pitching Coach

"Coach Reardon is someone I have known and followed since his playing days in high school as well as with his time at Rutgers University," Noto said. "Eric will come in and lead our pitching staff to new heights with the experience he possesses not only as a player, but as a student of the game and from his time with Connor Kortmann at Rutgers-Newark. Eric has the unique ability to transform old school knowledge with cutting edge technology. The blend of both is an incredibly powerful tool in today's game. Coupled with his ability to connect with people I believe he will have a tremendous impact on our talented pitching staff."

The North Brunswick, NJ, native played collegiate baseball for Rutgers from 2017-2021, playing his first three years under former Wagner head coach Joe Litterio. Reardon is sixth all-time in Scarlet Knights history in pitching appearances (77). He has a 8-4 career record with 78 career strikeouts across 99 innings.

Upon graduation Reardon coached on the high school travel baseball circuit with Baseball Warehouse before joining Rutgers-Newark as a pitching coach and graduate assistant. In the two seasons he coached for the Division III school (2022 and 2023), the pitching staff saw drastic statistical changes.

The team ERA dropped from 9.39 to 5.31, batting average against decreased by 92 points, the K/BB ratio of the staff rose from 0.83 to 1.68 and the team WHIP went from 2.26 to 1.59.

Reardon's father John is the "Voice of Jersey Mike's Arena," serving as the PA announcer for Rutgers men's basketball and wrestling. His mother Meg played college basketball at Ithaca College before transferring and graduating from Rutgers. His brother Danny pitched at Rutgers-Newark from 2019-2023.

John Kroeger - Director of Player and Program Development

"To be able to add someone with the experience that John Kroeger has is such a huge win for our program," Noto said. "As a player/coach in the NEC, to his playing career in professional baseball, to his time as an MLB Player & Scout, John has proven over and over again to understand what a quality player looks like. I do not know of a better resource for players in the state of New Jersey than John. We are extremely lucky to have him as a Seahawk."

Kroeger was drafted twice into the MLB after two standout years at Fairleigh Dickinson  — first by the Chicago White Sox in the 29th round of the 1987 MLB June Amateur Draft and second by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 32nd round of the 1988 MLB June Amateur Draft. 

He played for the Savannah Cardinals (Single-A) and Johnson City Cardinals (Rookie) in 1988, two Cardinals minor league affiliates. He was invited to Cardinals spring training in 1989 and White Sox spring training in 1990. He finished his playing career logging nine games during the 1990 season with the South Bend White Sox, the Single-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. 

A member of the the 1980's All-Decade Team would turn to coaching as he spent one year as the head coach and seven years as an assistant coach at Raritan Valley Community College. 

Kroeger returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach from 1999-2003 before heading to Montclair State for the assistant coaching job there. While with the Red Hawks he oversaw a regional bid in 2006 and top-three finish nationally in 2007.

Most recently in baseball circles Kroeger was an associate scout for the Cincinnati Reds from 2014 to 2022. 

Mark Hernandez - Assistant Coach / Recruiting Coordinator

"Coach Hernandez, a former player of mine and an all-conference player in the NEC at LIU, brings a vast knowledge in all facets of the game," Noto said. "His ability to break players down and prescribe the proper correctives is paramount in fostering player development. His infectious energy and passion is virtually unmatched and a huge asset for our team heading into the fall. Mark will help us on both the offensive and pitching side of the equation. His knowledge and ability to see a vision for players is outstanding."

Hernandez arrives on Grymes Hill after coaching at multiple stops for eight years. Following a four-year playing career at LIU in which he earned Second Team All-NEC honors twice, the 2016 graduate began working as the varsity strength coach and assistant pitching coach for his alma mater Doral Academy High School in Miami, FL, in July of that year.

Hernandez made an instant impact at Doral Academy, helping the Firebirds secure their first FHSAA State Final Four appearance in program history in 2018. The team returned to the Final Four in 2019, reaching the championship game before ultimately losing to Venice.

While still working for his former high school, Hernandez returned to his alma mater college as a volunteer assistant in 2018. Although his time with LIU was a short stint, he played a role in recruiting, scheduling, and practice planning.

In the summer of 2019, Hernandez began work as a pitching coach for the Green Bay Booyah, a Northwoods League team. During August of that year, Hernandez also began his four-year stint with the Middle Georgia State University Knights as an assistant baseball coach. 

The assistant job included work as a pitching coach, recruiting coordinator, and strength and development coach. Hernandez coordinated overall pitching development, budget management and recruitment of prospective students, and scouting reports on opposing hitters and pitchers.

During his five years with the Knights, Hernandez compiled a 114-69-1 record and earned two at-large bids in the NAIA Opening Round Regional Tournament in 2021 and 2022.

Kyle Bestle - Assistant Coach

"Coach Bestle is the son of a coach. Best way to describe it," Noto said. "His dad is a New York State Hall of Fame coach and Kyle has begun to forge an impressive path for himself. He understands what it takes to be a successful coach. The past four years at a quality JUCO program like San Mateo has given him some great hands-on experience. Kyle is also one who connects with young players well and will help make our ball club better offensively and defensively."

Bestle returns to the East Coast after spending three years coaching in California. He got his start with Catholic Central High School in Troy, NY, as an assistant coach. While there, Bestle created practice plans and schedules, organized pregame warmups and batting and fielding drills, and served as the first base coach during games.

After a brief hiatus, Bestle returned to coaching during the summer of 2018 in the Thruway Collegiate Baseball League in Amsterdam, NY. He finished the first part of his New York coaching career as a baseball instructor at the Baseball Center NYC, where he orchestrated group and private lessons on fielding, pitching and hitting. 

In California, Bestle got his start at GamePrep Baseball Academy where he helped prepare high school athletes for the transition to Division I baseball. During his time as an instructor, he took up the assistant coach job at the College of San Mateo. While with the Bulldogs, Bestle scouted local high school players, and ran preseason, in-season and postseason practices for one of the top-ranked JUCO programs in California.

Bestle has also served as the director of Legends Baseball Camps, which focuses on the development of the foundation of baseball.

Matthew Johnson - Director of Baseball Operations

"Coach Johnson has been brought up in and around a great baseball culture," Noto said. "He is a serious young coach who has done a great job at St. Thomas Aquinas under the guidance of John Garvey. Offensively, Matt understands what hitters need to do to be successful in the box. On the recruiting trail, he has already proven to be very astute in his evaluations of players. I'm excited for Matt. He has a bright future in this game."

Johnson spent two years at Nyack College before transferring to St. Thomas Aquinas to finish out his final three years of eligibility. He totaled 174 hits and 108 RBIs during his collegiate career and was honored as an ECC All-Conference member in 2021 and 2022.

Following his playing career, Johnson joined the staff of St. Thomas Aquinas as a hitting coach. Across 50 games in 2023 the team averaged 6.64 runs per game under his guidance. The Spartans as a whole maintained a .283/.391/.416 slash line in Johnson's lone year as hitting coach. 

As a result of the successful offense, six players received ECC All-Conference honors in 2023.