Today Major League Lacrosse named the LXM Pro players who will be on MLL rosters in 2014. The new partnership between the only professional field lacrosse leagues in North American allows players to play in both leagues. The two most interesting notes are that no goalies were signed, and Billy Bitter was not picked up by a team.
Boston
The Cannons theme this entire off season has been upgrading their defense that struggled so much in 2013. They traded for Brodie Merrill from Florida and now they add Eric Martin. Martin last played MLL with Denver and played two games between 2013 an 2012. He has 308 ground balls in his MLL career. They also picked up midfielder Brandon Porter, who played for Maverik United and is out of Rutgers.
New York
The Lizards bring in Shamel Bratton out of Virginia who was originally a draft pick to the Boston Cannons. Bratton was fourth on the tour this year with 26 points for Team Maverik, trailing just Erik Krum, Sam Bradman and Peter Baum. They also bring in Holmes who has been in professional lacrosse for a long time. Holmes played for Denver in 2012 where the defenseman scored two points.
Charlotte
Byrnes played lacrosse with Loyola where he won a championship with the Greyhounds in 2012. Meanwhile, the Hounds let go of Tim Desko, waiving the former Syracuse product. Desko never played a game in a Hounds uniform.
Rochester
Bradman has been a star at the LXM Pro Tour, leading the league with 39 goals for Team STX. The midfielder was drafted by the Lizards initially before playing on the tour. His NLL rights are owned by the Minnesota Swarm though he has never played, but he did play in the short-lived Professional Lacrosse League with the Charlotte Copperheads where he scored three goals.
Florida
The Launch bring in Bryce Dabbs, who played lacrosse for Navy and Milton Lyles who comes from the North Carolina Tar Heels. Lyles missed 2011 with a torn ACL that set back his development somewhat, but the long stick midfielder from Miami has some skills he can bring the Launch.
Ohio
Kyle Harrison is one of the biggest names in the tour. He was fourth on Team STX with 17 goals and second on the team with 11 assists. He last played in Major League Lacrosse in 2009 with the Denver Outlaws, where he scored four goals in seven games. Joining Harrison with the Machine is Erik Krum, who was second in the league with 36 goals for Team Maverik. The Machine also waived Cameron Mann.
Chesapeake
Rhamel Bratton was originally selected by the Long Island Lizards in the collegiate draft, but now joins the Bayhawks. Bratton, like his twin Shamel, is out of Virginia. The Bayhawks also released defenseman Kyle Rubisch, a Canadian player, who likely will not play MLL due to the longer NLL season.
