Baseball
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
- Email:
- JSM129@pitt.edu
Joe Mercadante enters his second season as assistant coach of Pitt baseball in 2023. Mercadante primarily works with the outfielders and assists fellow assistant coach Ty Megahee in the recruiting and offensive efforts.
Pitt continued the program’s ascension in 2022, posting a winning record with 29 victories, which tied for the program’s most since joining the conference in 2014. The Panthers recorded five ACC series victories, including triumphs over a pair of top-five ranked squads (Louisville and Clemson). The Panthers qualified for the ACC Tournament for the second year in a row and just the third time since joining the league. Pitt advanced to the semifinals for the first time since 2018, logging wins over No. 7-seeded Georgia Tech and No. 2-seeded Louisville. The Panthers ended the regular season with an RPI ranking of 69, the 37th-toughest strength of schedule, 12 wins against quadrant one teams and 10 wins against the NCAA Tournament field.
Mercadante previously spent four years at Stetson as an assistant coach, serving as the primary hitting coach while working directly with the catchers. In addition, he was named recruiting coordinator following the 2018 season.
In his first season, Mercadante helped the Hatters to their most successful season in program history. Stetson hosted and won an NCAA Regional, claimed both the ASUN regular season and tournament championships and tied the school record for victories (48) which included a program-best 18-game winning streak. Offensively, the Hatters finished seventh in the nation in triples with 23, the most in a season since 2000.
Mercadante guided Brooks Wilson from a weekend starting pitcher to winning the John Olerud Award as the nation’s best two-way player. In his role as closer, Wilson led the nation in saves, but in his role as cleanup hitter, he became the ASUN Player of the Year in addition to earning Most Outstanding Player honors for the NCAA DeLand Regional.
Rising from a volunteer coach to an assistant, Mercadante spent seven years (2005-11) at Miami working with the Hurricanes’ hitters and defensively with the catchers in addition to scheduling games and assisting in recruiting efforts. During that time, he helped the squad make seven-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, which included four regional championships (2005, ‘06, ‘08, ‘10) and two College World Series appearances (2006, ‘08).
In 2011, Mercadante helped guide the Hurricanes to a 38-23 overall record, a 40th overall appearance in the NCAA Regional and a No. 22 ranking in the final Baseball America Top-25 poll of the year. Under his guidance, Miami hit .275 as a team with 547 hits, including 114 doubles, 12 triples and 43 home runs, to go along with 333 runs scored and a .376 on-base percentage.
Mercadante helped hone the skills and development of former Miami catcher Yasmani Grandal, who was not only a Johnny Bench Award finalist and named the ACC Player of the Year but was also a first-round selection in the MLB Draft by the Cincinnati Reds in 2010. Grandal currently serves as the starting catcher for the Chicago White Sox.
During that 2010 season, Mercadante’s offense hit .295 and became the first in program history to hit 100+ home runs, 20 triples and steal more than 100 bases, while being one of only two teams in the country to achieve the 100+ mark in both home runs and stolen bases.
Other MLB players coached by Mercadante include former MVP Ryan Braun, Yonder Alonso, John Jay, Danny Valencia, Jemile Weeks, Blake Tekotte and Chris Perez.
The Canes were ranked No. 1 for most of the 2008 season, with Mercadante aiding the squad as the team hit .320 with the second-most home runs (106) in school history. The 711 hits in 2008 were 10th all-time while the squad also ranked ninth in doubles (135), eighth in RBI (517), eighth in total bases (1,202) and fourth in slugging percentage (.541).
Mercadante’s first Johnny Bench Award finalist at Miami was catcher Eddy Rodriguez, who hit .318 with 64 hits offensively, while catching 15 runners stealing and picking off five from behind the plate in 2006.
He spent one year as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at UCF in 2012. During his one season with the Knights, Mercadante helped lead UCF to an NCAA regional championship appearance and a No. 10 national ranking during the regular season. He helped five players receive all-conference honors while three hitters were selected in the 2012 MLB Draft.
Following the 2012 season, Mercadante took over as head coach of the Central Florida Gators, ranked as one of the top travel team programs in the nation by Perfect Game. He produced three Under Armor All-Americans, three Perfect Game All-Americans and two players who went on to play for USA Baseball.
In addition to his coaching, scouting and recruitment duties with the Gators, he has also served as Event Coordinator and Director for The Next Level Baseball Education, which included coordination and scheduling for the Orlando Scorpions.
Mercadante graduated from P.K. Yonge High School in 1999. He was a four-year letterman and named the team MVP as a senior. Out of high school, he attended Jefferson Davis Community College in Brewton, Ala., and helped lead the team to a JUCO Regional title and a berth in the Junior College World Series.
He then transferred to Delgado Junior College in New Orleans for his sophomore season. Mercadante arrived at the University of Florida in 2002 and hit .471 in a reserve role for the Gators.
After serving as an assistant coach at P.K. Yonge in 2004, Mercadante coached summer baseball in the Virginia Valley League with the Covington Lumberjacks.
Mercadante is a 2003 graduate of the University of Florida, where he earned a bachelor’s degree, Cum Laude, in Exercise and Sports Sciences in 2003. He earned his master’s degree in the same field from Florida in June of 2006.
Mercadante and his wife, Katie have two sons, Roman and CT.
