He's a Robel

The Cubs have signed INF Robel Garcia to a 2019 minor league contract and he has been assigned to AAA Iowa. 

The 25-year old switch-hitting Garcia was a member of the Italian National team that was a guest of the Oakland Athletics at Fitch Park in Mesa over the past month. (Ex-Cubs minor leaguers RHP Alessandro Maestri and C-1B Alberto Mineo were also on the squad). Besides working out with the A's minor leaguers, Team Italy participated in a dozen AZ Instructional League games, and that's where the Cubs saw Garcia play before offering him a contract. NOTE: While the Cubs did not field an AZ Instructs team this year, Cubs professional scouts did attend games.   

Garcia played for UniPolsai Bologna (Fortitudo B. C. 1953) in 2018. He hit 281/343/490 and was 2nd in the league in triples and 10th in doubles during the regular season, before hitting .400 in the semifinali serie and .357 in the finale serie as he helped lead his club to the Federazione Italiana Serie A1 (the Italian major league) championship.  

Signed by the Cleveland Indians out of the Dominican Republic as a 17-year old back in March 2010, Garcia spent four very uneventful seasons in the Indians farm system (hitting a combined 217/326/356 in 274 games) before being released at the end of Minor League Camp in 2014, but he didn't give up, so now he will get another chance with the Cubs.  

Garcia probably projects as a AAA or AA utility infielder at this point, but time will tell.