Chicago native Mitch Glasser has signed with the Chicago Dogs, the team announced Monday.
The infielder comes to Rosemont on the heels of a seven-year professional career which most recently took him to the Sioux Falls Canaries.
In 2019, Glasser simultaneously played and served as a hitting coach in Sioux Falls, instructing the Canaries’ hitters while registering a .264 average from the plate and driving in 38 runs. Glasser’s American Association career has also seen him suit up for the Gary SouthShore RailCats (2018), Cleburne Railroaders (2017) and the now-defunct Joplin Blasters (2015-16).
Glasser was born in Chicago and attended Latin High School. He then enrolled at Macalester College in Minnesota and was an indomitable force on the field. Glasser was named to the all-conference team four times and, in 2011, tallied an astounding .408 batting average with just one strikeout, the fewest in all of NCAA Division III.
The next year, his hometown Chicago White Sox drafted him in the 39th Round of the 2012 MLB Draft.
Glasser spent one season in the White Sox organization. He then ventured to Australia to play for the Melbourne Aces of the Australian Baseball League before jumpstarting his American Association career.
Glasser has also represented Team Israel on the world stage, made possible by his Jewish heritage. In 2017, he played for Israel at the World Baseball Classic qualifier. Israel qualified for the tournament for the first time ever and excelled, taking down South Korea, Taiwan and The Netherlands.
In order to remain with Team Israel as the country vied for Olympic Qualification, Glasser became an Israeli citizen. He started six games in the 2019 European Baseball Championship B-Pool in Bulgaria last summer, batting .421 to propel Israel to the final stage of qualification, which took place in Italy this past September. Israel went on to win the tournament and advance to the Olympics in baseball for the first time in the country’s history. In 2021, Glasser will head to Tokyo as an Olympian.
But before traveling thousands of miles to Tokyo, Glasser will join the Chicago Dogs this season, marking the closest to home he’s played since his high school days.
“I’m really excited to wear ‘Chicago’ across my chest,” Glasser said. “It’s a really special thing for me, towards the end of my career, to be able to play in Chicago while I’m preparing for the Olympics, too.”
Glasser opens up on his baseball journey, and his eagerness to get to Rosemont, in this video interview with Dogs broadcaster Sam Brief.
“Ever since the Dogs became a team, it’s been a goal of mine to play for the Dogs,” Glasser said. “Finally, this has become a reality.”
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