Mario Lisson will serve as the manager of the Fredericksburg Nationals for the team’s inaugural season in 2021.
Lisson, who played in the Wsahington Nationals minor-league system, with stops in Harrisburg and Syracuse, joins the FredNats after managing the Gulf Coast League Nationals in 2018 and 2019.
The remainder of the staff under Lisson, announced this week by the parent club, includes pitching coach Pat Rice, hitting coach Jorge Mejia, trainer Kirby Craft, and strength and conditioning coach Ryan Grose.
Rice is a former MLB pitcher who debuted with the Seattle Mariners in 1991 before transitioning to coaching. He most recently was a pitching coach in the Los Angeles Angels system from 2014-2019, spending 2019 with the Salt Lake Bees, the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate. He has also coached in the Mariners’ and San Francisco Giants’ systems.
The 2021 season will be his first season in the Nationals’ organization.
Mejia was previously the hitting coach for the Nationals’ Dominican Summer League team in 2013 and the Gulf Coast League team from 2014-2019.
Craft and Grose are joining the FredNats after previously working together for the short-season Single-A Auburn Doubledays in the Washington Nationals organization in 2019.
The FredNats’ 2021 season begins on the road on May 4 against the Lynchburg Hillcats (Cleveland Indians) in Lynchburg. Opening Day in the new FredNats stadium in Fredericksburg will be on Tuesday, May 11 against the Delmarva Shorebirds (Baltimore Orioles).
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Chris Graham
