By Jon Sargalis

The Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League is pleased to announce that Amsterdam Mohawks third baseman Gabriel Rivera from Rutgers University has been named the 2026 PGCBL Player of the Year.

In 36 games with the Mohawks this summer, Rivera hit .378 with 10 home runs and 44 RBI. The 10 home runs were tied for the league lead with his Mohawks teammate, Anthony DeCesare (Delaware). Rivera led the league with a .731 slugging percentage; he also hit 12 doubles and his 22 extra base hits and 87 total bases also led the league. The 44 RBI and 48 runs scored each ranked second in the league. On the base path, Rivera stole 17 bags, which ranked tenth in the PGCBL.

Rivera made his mark on Amsterdam from the very first pitch of the season. He homered in the first two official games of the season and collected 7 RBI in those contests.

On June 18th, Rivera homered twice and tied a Mohawks team record from 2013 when he recorded 8 RBI in an 18-3 win over the Glens Falls Dragons. The following game on June 20th, the Mohawks were trailing the Saugerties Stallions 4-2 in the seventh inning, Rivera came up with the bases loaded and hit a go-ahead 3-run double as the Mohawks won 6-5.

Rivera homered in four of the five games during a stretch from June 24-June 29, recording 8 RBI. On June 28th, Rivera tied a team record with 5 hits as he homered and hit 2 doubles in a 17-13 win over the Glens Falls Dragons.

On the final day of the regular season, Rivera had 3 RBI and was at the center of a 6-run eighth inning with a 2-run single. Amsterdam battled back for a 16-14 win over the Utica Blue Sox and finished the regular season on a 9-game winning streak.

Rivera came to Amsterdam following a freshman season at Rutgers where he hit .310 in 31 games with 2 home runs, 6 doubles and 10 RBI. 

He becomes the seventh Mohawk to be named the PGCBL Player of the Year, joining John Nogowski (2013-Florida State) who played in the Majors for the Cardinals and Pirates, Josh Gardiner (2014-Radford) who played in the minors for the Yankees, Joe Genord (2016-South Florida) who was drafted by the Mets, Maxwell Costes (2019-Maryland) who was drafted by the Orioles, Gage Miller (2022-Bishop State/Alabama) who is currently in Triple-A with the Marlins, and Cade Ladehoff (2024-NJIT/Michigan) who will be beginning his junior year at Michigan.

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