Napolitano comes to Winthrop after three seasons as an assistant coach for the Babson College baseball program in 2023-24. He helped the Beavers to a 48-33 overall record in his first two seasons, coaching eight players who earned All-Conference honors, six who received All-Region accolades and one All-American.
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Prior to his time at Babson, Napolitano served as a graduate assistant baseball coach at Misericordia University in Dallas, Pa for two seasons. He served as the hitting and catchers coach in addition to working as the program's recruiting coordinator.
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Napolitano recruited more than 30 players to Misericordia in his two seasons as an assistant and coached five all-conference selections and a pair of all-region honorees in 2021 as the Cougars won their 10th consecutive MAC Freedom Conference championship. Misericordia finished the year at 31-10 overall after going 2-2 at the NCAA Tournament St. Paul (Minn.) Regional.
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"Mike is a great fit for our program for several reasons," McGuire said. "He is considered one of the top hitting coaches and recruiters in the Northeast. That's a part of the country that our program has got to recruit. His contacts up there will be invaluable for us. Offensively he and I share a lot of similarities and thoughts on swing mechanics and offensive philosophy and approach. Our hitters will benefit greatly from his tutelage."
Napolitano, who graduated from Springfield College with a B.S. in movement and sport science in 2019, worked as a volunteer assistant for the Pride throughout the 2018-19 campaign. He focused on player development and assisted with hitters and infielders instruction as the team finished at 20-17 overall.
In addition to his collegiate experience, Napolitano served as the catching coordinator and head coach for L & M Baseball based in North Smithfield, R.I., from 2017-19. He also has experience as a private instructor and prep scout.
Napolitano earned his Master of Business Administration degree from Misericordia in sport management back in 2021.
