Team Italy landed a significant commitment for the upcoming World Baseball Classic this March. Chicago White Sox catcher Kyle Teel will officially play for Italy, according to an interview Teel did with WFAN radio host Danielle McCarthan on Jan. 23.
Teel, 23, has Italian eligibility through his mother Janine’s heritage.
White Sox catcher KYLE TEEL….. on Italian heritage and playing for Jorge Posada on Squadra Italia in the next World Baseball Classic.
Full interview: https://t.co/sUnE2x3VKz
Hosted by Teel’s Baseball & Softball training center, in conjunction with Park Wood Deli#wbc… pic.twitter.com/SPhEBVpWxm
— Danielle McCartan from WFAN (@CoachMcCartan) January 24, 2026
“We’re going there to compete and win. That’s our team’s goal, and it’s going to be a great opportunity to play against all the other great countries. Any time you can represent your culture and country, that’s pretty cool,” Teel told McCarthan.
Italy, as a whole, is looking to improve on its quarterfinal appearance in the 2023 WBC, which saw it lose 9-3 to Japan in the Tokyo Dome.
Chicago White Sox catcher Kyle Teel will play for Italy in the World Baseball Classic ?? pic.twitter.com/E8vQD9CsHv
— World Baseball Network (@WorldBaseball_) January 25, 2026
McCarthan interviewed at Teel’s Baseball & Softball training center in Wyckoff, New Jersey, this past Friday. It was the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund ‘Family Fun Night’ that was focused on raising money for children tackling cancer. Park Wood Deli helped sponsor the event, which was put together by Kyle’s father, Garrett Teel, who owns the facility.
Garrett Teel was also a baseball player, and he was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1989 in the 12th round of the Major League Baseball Draft out of William Patterson University. He never made it to MLB, but learned valuable lessons during his five years in the minors. After his baseball career was over, he became a catching coach and that inspired him to build Teel’s Baseball & Softball training center in 1999.
Kyle Teel was born in Ridgewood, New Jersey, in 2002. A left-handed hitter and right-handed thrower, Teel was in the facility early and often from a very young age.
Kyle’s cousin Mike Teel was the starting quarterback at Rutgers from 2006 to 2009. He was drafted in the sixth round of the National Football League Draft by the Seattle Seahawks in 2009.
Growing up in New Jersey, Kyle Teel was a huge fan of the New York Yankees. He will now get the opportunity to play under two catchers he grew up watching on the Yankees, with Italy in the WBC. Francisco Cervelli is the manager of Italy, and he was a Yankee from 2008 to 2014. Lifetime Yankee and five-time World Series champion Jorge Posada will also be on the coaching staff.
“I’m going to be a sponge around him and learn as much as I can,” Teel said on the opportunity to work with Jorge Posada.
Teel excelled at every level, and he was the 2019-20 Gatorade Player of the Year in New Jersey at Mahwah High School. Baseball is extremely competitive in New Jersey and especially in Bergen County, where Teel resides.
Teel could’ve easily declared for the MLB Draft in 2020, but he decided to commit to the University of Virginia. Teel played for the Cavaliers from 2021 to 2023 and was also able to play with the 2022 Collegiate National Team. Teel also played some outfield at Virginia, with 25 starts in the corners in his first two seasons.
In 2023, Teel was named ACC Player of the Year, won the Buster Posey Award as the best catcher in the NCAA, and was selected to the College Baseball All-America Team. He also helped lead Virginia to an appearance in the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. Teel had 13 home runs, 69 RBIs, five stolen bases, and a slash line of .407/.475/.655 in 258 at-bats in 2023.
Aidan Teel, Kyle’s little brother, followed in his footsteps and also attended Virginia in 2024 after his older brother went to MLB. Aidan just completed his sophomore season at Virginia and in 2025, played in 50 games for the Cavaliers as a starting outfielder.
Kyle was drafted 14th overall by the Boston Red Sox in the 2023 MLB Draft and he got all the way up to Double-A Portland with them prior to the end of the 2023 minor-league season. Heading into 2024, Kyle Teel was rated as Boston’s fourth overall prospect and was the 25th overall prospect in all of baseball according to MLB Pipeline.
In 2024, Teel continued his positive progression, and he was called up to the Red Sox Triple-A Worcester on Aug. 12, 2024. That offseason, he was the centerpiece of the four prospects the Red Sox sent to the Chicago White Sox in order to acquire starting pitcher Garrett Crochet on Dec. 11, 2024.
Teel took care of his business with his MLB debut on the horizon and played 50 games with Triple-A Charlotte. He had eight home runs, 30 RBIs, and an OPS of .866 in 183 at-bats.
Teel made his MLB debut with the White Sox on June 6, 2025. Team staff took an emotional video of him calling his parents to share the news, in the Charlotte dugout.
Teel put up a very respectable rookie season for the White Sox in 2025 with eight home runs, 35 RBIs, and a slash line of .273/.375/.411 in 253 at-bats. In 78 games, he put up 1.9 fWAR while throwing out 17.9% of his runners stealing behind the dish.
Target Field Superlatives:
Hardest Hit Home Run:
Kyle Teel, 9/4 vs CHW
Pitcher: Travis Adams
113.7 MPH pic.twitter.com/BIHRCXOvYa https://t.co/23dWdZKSLb
— MLB HR Videos (@MLBHRVideos) January 23, 2026
Kyle Teel is working harder than ever this offseason at his father’s facility and he was clocked throwing in the range of 94-95 mph from his catching stance.
“The road to success isn’t linear, and I’m focusing on the process daily…I’m looking to improve this offseason by getting bigger and stronger,” Teel told McCarthan.
Italy will hope that the offseason training pays off for Teel right away when they play in Pool B of the WBC in Houston at Daikin Park. They will have an extremely tough task to get out of the group, consisting of the United States, Mexico, Great Britain and Brazil, with only the top two teams advancing to the quarterfinals.
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Pool B play begins in Houston on March 6, 2026, and it will run through March 11, 2026.
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WBN WBC: https://worldbaseball.com/league/wbc/
Photo: Chicago White Sox’s Kyle Teel, right, hugs Edgar Quero after his home run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)