Cariparma strengthen their pitching staff with a former minor leaguer from the Minnesota Twins. They announced the signing of Josmir ROMERO on their website. They ranked fifth in the Italian Baseball League last season with an ERA of 3.38. They advanced to the playoffs after winning the regular season, but were eliminated in the first round.
The right-hander is 27 years old and was born in Guarenas, Venezuela. He signed as an undrafted free agent with the Minnesota Twins organization in 1997. He joined the club for the 1999 season. ROMERO pitched five seasons for their minor league teams from the Rookie to the Double A level. He appeared in 113 games (66 starts) with an overall record of 28-25 and an ERA of 4.15. He struck out 297 in 460 innings pitched.
After the 2003 season his career took a turn into the wrong direction. During the 2004 winter he was involved as a passenger into a car accident in his home country. He suffered only minor injuries. But he was still released by the Twins organization in March 2004. Though he signed a contract with the St. Louis Cardinals in December 2004 he never appeared in another minor league game.
During the Caribbean Series 2005 he started two games for the Tigres de Aragua, allowing just one run in 10.1 innings pitched. He also pitched for the Tigres during the 2007 Venezuelan Winter League. He appeared in five games (two starts), struggling with an ERA of 9.58 in 10.1 innings pitched. He struck out seven, while walking one.
Parma already has signed Michael NATALE and Stefano BAZZARINI to reinforce the pitching corp. Together with Javier ORTIZ and ROMERO they are ready for the upcoming season.