Team Italy catcher Alberto Mineo returns to the franchise that first signed him nearly ten years ago as a sixteen-year-old prospect. The Chicago Cubs have signed the promising Italian-born and developed player from Gorizia in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region to a minor-league contract. Alberto Mineo spent the last two seasons in the Toronto Blue Jays organization after being claimed from the Chicago Cubs in the minor-league portion of the Rule 5 draft on December 14, 2017. Alberto Mineo played primarily for Toronto Blue Jays Double-A affiliate Hampshire Fisher Cats with a brief stint at Triple-A Buffalo. He elected free agency on November 4, 2019.
Prior to becoming a free agent, Alberto Mineo played for Team Italy in the 2019 European Baseball Championship and the Europe-Africa Olympic Qualifier. In the Euro Championship, he went 8-for-27 with four home runs to lead Team Italy to a silver-medal finish. Alberto Mineo will be welcome back to the Chicago Cubs organization by several of his Azzurri teammates who are a part of the franchise. Chicago Cubs slugger Robel Garcia is already in full swing at big league camp in Arizona, while pitchers Luis Lugo and Matteo Bocchi compete for minor league assignments.
Team Italy players currently affiliated with Major League Baseball include Leonardo Seminati (Cincinnati Reds), Cesare Astorri (Oakland Athletics) Daniele Di Monte (Detroit Tigers), Samuel Aldegheri (Philadelphia Phillies), and Ettore Giulianelli (St. Louis Cardinals). Forza #Italia!
by Roberto Angotti
