ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Freshman catcher Ty DePerno winning 2025 Patriot League Rookie of the Year headlined the Navy baseball team's five All-Patriot League honorees, as the league office announced its major award winners and all-league selections on Wednesday.
 
Leading the team to a second-place finish in the league's regular season standings, the Midshipmen saw senior closer Landon Kruer selected to the All-Patriot League First Team while DePerno and a trio of sophomores in starting pitcher Brady Bendik, third baseman Evan Brown and outfielder Andrew Manning were all named to the All-Patriot League Second Team.
 
Alongside DePerno becoming the first Navy player to take home the league's top rookie award since Noah Song in 2016, this marked Kruer's second time earning all-league honors after a second-team nod in 2023, while Bendik, Brown, DePerno and Manning each received all-league status for the first time in their careers.
 
The Navy and Patriot League record-holder and the active NCAA leader with 34 career saves, Kruer has been dominant since the calendar hit March, with the Mids' closer notching a league-leading nine saves this season to go with a 2.02 ERA in 18 appearances while racking up 31 strikeouts to just 10 walks in 26.2 innings. The senior has been nearly lights out in Patriot League play this year, holding a 1.17 ERA in 11 league outings while tallying seven saves and 17 strikeouts across 15.1 innings. Pacing the league in saves for the fourth consecutive season, the former walk-on catcher also sits fourth in program history with 72 career appearances while totaling a 3.11 career ERA in 107 innings to go with 103 strikeouts.
 
Joining Song (2016) and Taylor Cato (2011) on the list of Mids to claim Rookie of the Year, DePerno has been a breakout star leading the team with a .306 average while hitting primarily in the clean-up spot. Sharing the team lead with 27 walks for a .431 on-base percentage (10th in the PL) and ranking second with four home runs, 28 RBI and 27 walks, DePerno has also amassed 44 hits, 29 runs scored and four steals to his ledger over 47 games. The freshman was even better in conference play, ranking ninth in the Patriot League with a .329 average while playing all 25 league games and racking up 14 runs scored and 14 RBI to go with a .433 on-base clip.
 
Picking up where he left off after an impressive rookie season, Bendik developed into an ace for Navy while leading the staff with a 3.34 ERA and three complete games, also ranking second on the team with 56 strikeouts and 67.1 innings while compiling a 4-4 record and holding opponents to a .213 batting average. Sitting second in the league with the .213 opposing average, third with the 3.34 ERA and fifth at 67.1 innings, Bendik also pitched both of Navy's shutouts on the season, tallying seven-inning complete games against Army on March 28 and Lafayette on April 5. In league play, Bendik posted a conference-best 2.08 ERA over 43.1 innings while registering 38 strikeouts and a .231 opposing batting average, tossing all three of his complete games against Patriot League foes.
 
Establishing himself at the hot corner and a consistent presence in the heart of Navy's order, Brown is the team's second-leading hitter with a .294 average, 10 doubles and two triples while starting all 48 games this spring. The sophomore has also tallied the third most homers (3) and RBI (27) on the team this season while scoring 26 times, walking 19 times and stealing two bases. Brown also leads the Mids with 16 multi-hit contests and ranks second with seven multi-RBI games and an 11-game hitting streak earlier this season. In league play, the third baseman hit .310 over 25 games while scoring 13 runs and driving in 13 more. For his career, Brown currently holds a .287 average while reaching base at a .369 clip in 77 games, including 67 starts.
 
Becoming a feared power hitter in the league and developing defensively, Manning enters the postseason with a .267 average and paces the team in home runs (6), runs scored (33) and multi-RBI contests (8). Sitting second in the league with those six homers, Manning has also racked up nine doubles and ranks third on the team with 27 RBI, adding on 24 walks and five stolen bases while starting all but one of Navy's 48 games. Hitting five of his six homers in league action, the sophomore hit .291 and slugged .512 in those 25 league games while racking up 12 runs scored and 18 RBI. Carrying a .276 career average, the outfielder has totaled 18 doubles and nine homers in 98 career games while accounting for 74 runs scored and 60 RBI.
 
The Mids have now had multiple all-league selections in each of the last 19 seasons finished. Kruer is also the first two-time all-league selection for Navy since Christian Policelli in 2021 and 2022.
 
Navy returns to the field this weekend to host arch-rival Army in the Patriot League semifinal round, with the first game of the best-of-3 series set for 1 p.m. Saturday.