Cincinnati's Billy Hamilton impressed with Team Italy slugger and Reds prospect Leonardo Seminati at 2018 Spring Training

Billy Hamilton, MLB's fastest base stealer, and Leonardo Seminati, Italy's fastest rising star, played on the same Cincinnati Reds Minor League team against a Chicago White Sox Minor League squad during a Spring Training game at the Cincinnati Reds Minor League Training Facility in Goodyear, Arizona on March 17, 2018. After going 2-for-4 with a single and a double, "Grande Leo" Seminati lived up to his name. "He's going to be big," said Billy Hamilton when asked about the promising 19-year-old Reds prospect. Fast forward from the moment Federazione Italiana Baseball Softball (FIBS) Academy graduate Leo Seminati signed a professional contract with the Cincinnati Reds on July 2, 2017, and most would agree that "Grande Leo" has traveled light years ahead of expectations. Just ask MLBPipeline.com reporter Jonathan Mayo, who wrote MLB scouts scratched their heads in disbelief when Team Italy's Leonardo Seminati stole the show by hitting several bombs over the Marlins Park wall in the 2016 Power Showcase Home Run Derby. It was not long after his command performance in Miami that scout Sal Varriale made the call to the Cincinnati Reds front office. Baseball Hall of Famer Barry Larkin, who served as MLB International Ambassador and currently works in player development for the Cincinnati Reds, was well aware of Seminati's power potential and approved of the signing of "Grande Leo".

Azzurri first baseman Seminati was named and honored as a member of the 2017 World Baseball Softball Conferation (WBSC) U-18 All-World Team during the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup closing ceremonies at Port Arthur Stadium in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada last September. The accolades were well-deserved as "Grande Leo" led Team Italy in runs (5), hits (11), home runs (2), RBI (17), batting average (.423), slugging percentage (.654), on-base percentage (.531), on-base plus slugging (1.185), walks (6), and stolen bases (2). While his Azzurri teammates returned home to Italy after the 12-country international competition, Leo Seminati boarded a plane to Arizona to participate in the 2017 Reds Instructional League. The experience has since paid off for the young slugger as he is now more comfortable than ever playing professional baseball in America. On this particular 2018 Spring Training day at the Reds' Arizona Minor League Complex with Barry Larkin in attendance and Billy Hamilton in the lineup, Leo Seminati confirmed what the Cincinnati Reds knew when they signed him. An aspiring MLB star in the making, a blossoming "Grande Leo" is getting better with each and every swing. Forza #Italia! #LetsMakeItHappen

by Roberto Angotti