Bradenton Marauders Set Roster For 2013 Season

While Opening Day in the Big Leagues are under way, the Bradenton Marauders High-A team is ready to go for Friday's game after the team announced its roster Tuesday.

The Maruaders, a Class High-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, play in the Florida State League, and open play against the Fort Myers Miracle at 6:30 p.m., Friday, April 5.

Included in the roster is St. Pete native and pitcher Matthew Benedict, 24, who split time between the Marauders and Low-A West Virginia Power in 2012.

His pitching coach is Sarasota resident Justin Meccage, who returns to the Suncoast after spending two years as pitching coach for the State College Spikes in Pennsylvania—a Class A Short Season affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Meccage (pronounced "message") was born in Billings, Montana, and has lived in Sarasota for at least the last two years. Here's a look at his bio from the Spikes:

As a professional, Justin pitched two seasons in the New York Yankees minor league system after being drafted by New York in the 32nd round of the 2002 First-Year Player Draft. He debuted as a professional with the New York-Penn League's Staten Island Yankees in 2002 and '03, and also spent part of the 2003 season pitching with Cook County in the independent Frontier League.

Justin comes from a strong baseball coaching family. His late father, Bob, was an assistant coach at Trinity College in Texas, and his older brother Jeremy is currently an assistant coach at Princeton University. Jeremy pitched collegiately at the University of Iowa, and was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1998.

Meccage is married to Stacee and has two sons, Kyler and Hudson.

Rounding out the pitching are Quinton Miller, Eliecer Navarro and Jhonathan Ramos, Nick Kingham, Adrian Sampson, Robby Rowland, and Zack Von Rosenberg. Left-handers Zac Fuesser and Robbie Kilcrease will bolster a bullpen that also includes righties Joan Montero and Zachary Thornton 

Going back to the field, outfielder Gregory Polanco and shortstop Alen Hanson will play for Manager Frank Kremblas this year, too.

Polanco had was a stud for the West Virginia Power in 2012. He hit .325 with 16 home runs and stole an organization-best 40 bases. He was named the Pirates Minor League Player-of-the-Year, a mid-season and post-season All-Star for the South Atlantic League, and the Most Outstanding Prospect in the league.

Baseball America pumping up Polonco for this season, naming him the “Best Hitter for Average,” “Best Athlete,” “Best Defensive Outfielder,” and the number four prospect in the Pirates organization. 

Catchers Jacob Stallings and Elias Diaz each move up to Bradenton this year. Stallings played at State College after being drafted in the seventh round last June, while Diaz has spent the last two seasons with West Virginia. 

In the infield, Hanson and 2012 Marauder Benji Gonzalez are joined by Eric Avila, Dan Gamache, Chris Lashmet, and Jose Osuna. Dan Grovatt and Carlos Mesa return in the outfield from the 2012 squad, joined by Polanco, Willy Garcia and Taylor Lewis.