Orlando City Announces 2023 Orlando City B Roster

Orlando City announced the initial 2023 roster for its second team, Orlando City B, which will be playing its second season in the third division MLS NEXT Pro. This year’s team is made up of new arrivals and academy products.

The initial roster consists of 19 players — 13 on MLS NEXT Pro contracts and six on academy contracts. The academy contracts keep those players eligible to play in college. The roster also has nine players from the 2022 OCB squad.

“It’s an exciting time with another MLS NEXT Pro season approaching,” Orlando City Assistant General Manager and Technical Director Ricardo Moreira said in a club press release. “Orlando City B is a critical piece of our club’s development pathway, and we look forward to seeing the growth of our young players throughout the upcoming season.” 

Unlike previous seasons, there aren’t any MLS SuperDraft picks on the roster. Nick Taylor and Brandon Hackenberg, who were drafted in 2022, aren’t on this year’s team and the club signed three of its four draft picks this year to first-team deals. The only unsigned player was defender Luis Grassow, who retired following the draft for personal reasons.

The most notable names on the roster for OCB fans are goalkeeper Javier Otero, midfielder Alejandro Granados, and forward Moises Tablante. Otero is in his third season with OCB after his breakout campaign in 2022, leading MLS NEXT Pro with 100 saves. Another academy product, Granados took part in the 2022 MLS NEXT All-Star Game last year and has since signed a professional contract. Tablante has been with OCB since 2019 and returns as one of the team’s attacking threats.

Like previous seasons, first team players are eligible to play for OCB throughout the season. As a result, we’ll likely see multiple players from the MLS side loaned down to the second team to get minutes. Last year, Jack Lynn played the majority of the season with OCB, scoring a team-high 15 goals in 18 games.

Nearly the whole team is together ahead of the team’s season-opening game Sunday against Philadelphia Union II. Cristian Medina and Eduardo Acuna are the only absences as they await work authorization.

2023 Orlando City B Roster

Player (Position) — Contract Type

Dominic Pereira (GK) — Academy

Javier Otero (GK) — MLS NEXT Pro

Dominic Bell (D) — Academy

Fernando Sanchez (D) — Academy

Franco Perez (D) — MLS NEXT Pro

Ian Garrett (D) — MLS NEXT Pro

Nabi Kibunguchy (D) — MLS NEXT Pro

Tahir Reid-Brown (D) — Academy

Zakaria Taifi (D) — Academy

Alejandro Granados (MF) — MLS NEXT Pro

Cristian Medina (MF) — MLS NEXT Pro

Diego Pareja (MF) — MLS NEXT Pro

Imanol Almaguer (MF) — MLS NEXT Pro

Jhon Solis (MF) — MLS NEXT Pro

Juninho (MF) — MLS NEXT Pro

Chase Vazquez (F) — Academy

Eduardo Acuna (F) — MLS NEXT Pro

Gonzalo Agustoni (F) — MLS NEXT Pro

Moises Tablante (F) — MLS NEXT Pro