Jewish Baseball News

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Josh Zeid of the Lakewood BlueClaws (Philadelphia Phillies) is one of six nominees for Class A “Best Reliever” in the 2010 MiLBY Awards.

A 6’5″ pitcher out of New Haven, Conn., Zeid was a key part of the BlueClaws’ run to the South Atlantic League championship in 2010, both as a starter and a reliever. He amassed an 8-4 record over the regular season, with 8 saves, a 2.93 ERA, 111 strikeouts — one per inning — and only 27 walks.

In the final game of the South Atlantic championship series, Zeid pitched 4 perfect innings and at one point struck out 5 consecutive batters. The 23-year-old is spending the off-season playing for the Mesa Solar Sox of the prestigious Arizona Fall League, and blogging about it for MLB.com.

To cast votes for Zeid — fans will determine the winner — surf on over to this page, click the bubble next to his name under “Class A-Full Season/Best Reliever,” click “Vote,” and repeat as often as you like. It’s not scientific; the player with the most click-happy family, friends and fans wins. Voting ends on Mon., Oct. 25.

At least one other Jewish player was nominated for a 2010 MiLBY. SS Jake Lemmerman of the Ogden Raptors (Los Angeles Dodgers), who earlier was named 2010 Pioneer League MVP, was one of six candidates for Class A/Short Season “Best Hitter.” He finished last in the voting, despite leading the league in doubles (24) and runs scored (69/tie); finishing 2nd in batting average (.363); ranking third in on-base percentage (.434) and slugging percentage (.610); and swatting 12 HRs and 47 RBIs.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — The prestigious Arizona Fall League has added a 6th Jewish player to its rosters, and his first appearance went well.

Mesa Solar Sox 2B Josh Satin, a New York Mets prospect who batted .311 during the regular minor-league season, reached base all four times Wednesday (10/20/2010) in a 6-3 loss to the Scottsdale Scorpions. The 25-year-old singled twice and walked twice as the Sox outhit the Scorpions 10-8 but made 4 errors and went 1/6 with runners in scoring position. Satin, who played 1B, teamed with fellow Hebe Josh Zeid for a 3-to-1 putout in the 3rd inning. SP Zeid gave up 1 run over 3 innings while striking out two.

Over in the MLB, Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler — the lone Jew remaining in the playoffs — went 2/4 and stole a base, but it wasn’t enough to forestall a 7-2 loss to the New York Yankees. The Rangers lead the 7-game American League Championship Series 3-2.

Game 6 of the series takes place Friday night — yep, the Sabbath — in Arlington.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — The Texas Rangers defeated the New York Yankees 10-3 on Tuesday (10/19/2010), giving the Rangers a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven American League Championship Series and leaving the team just one win away from its first World Series berth.

Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler chipped in, hitting an RBI single with two outs in the 7th inning and stealing second base moments later.

The last Jew to play in the World Series was Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis, in 2007. Youk went 2/9 with 2 doubles, 3 walks, 1 RBI and 3 runs scored as the Sox trounced the Colorado Rockies 4 games to zero.

In Arizona Fall League play yesterday:

• OF Ben Guez of the Surprise Rafters hit an RBI triple and drew a walk in a 5-4 loss to the Scottsdale Scorpions. Guez is a Detroit Tigers prospect.
• 2B Jason Kipnis, a Cleveland Indians prospect, hit an RBI double and reached base on an error in the Peoria Javelinas’ 6-5 loss to the Mesa Solar Sox. Though batting just .167 in 6 games, Kipnis is 2nd among AFL players with 7 RBIs.
• C Ryan Lavarnway, Kipnis’ teammate on the Javelinas, walked twice and tossed out 1 of 2 Solar Sox players who tried to steal second base. Lavarnway is a Boston Red Sox prospect.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — The Peoria Javelinas of the prestigious Arizona Fall League have 3 Jews on their roster, and all 3 shared the field Monday (10/18/2010) in a 4-2, 10-inning victory over the Mesa Solar Sox.

C Ryan Lavarnway, a Boston Red Sox prospect, singled, hit a sacrifice fly, threw out 1 of 2 runners who tried to steal 2nd base on him, and scored the winning run in the 10th inning. 2B Jason Kipnis, a Cleveland Indians prospect, walked and scored in the 10th, as well. And RP Eric Berger pitched a scoreless 8th inning. Solar Sox P Josh Zeid didn’t play; he is scheduled to pitch Wednesday night (10/20/2010) against the Scottsdale Scorpions. (See Zeid’s interesting blog here.)

In other baseball news, 2B Ian Kinsler of the Texas Rangers went 0/4 in game 3 of the American League Championship Series, but his team didn’t suffer for it. The Rangers beat the New York Yankees 8-0 to take a 2-1 series lead.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Saturday (10/16/2010):

• In game 2 of the American League Championship Series, 2B Ian Kinsler of the Texas Rangers went 1/3 with an RBI triple and a sacrifice as the Rangers defeated the New York Yankess 7-2; the series is tied 1-1. Kinsler’s first trip to the MLB playoffs is going exceptionally well. Over 7 games, he is batting .391 (5th among all players) with 3 HRs (2nd/tie), 7 RBIs (1st), 4 walks (2nd/tie), a .481 on-base percentage (2nd), and a .870 slugging percentage (3rd).
• 2B Jason Kipnis went of the Peoria Javelinas went 1/2 with an RBI double in a 6-4 loss to the Scottsdale Scorpions. Though he is batting just .188 after 4 games, the Cleveland Indians prospect has 6 RBIs, tying him for 3rd most among all Arizona Fall League players.
• C Ryan Lavarnway, also with the Javelinas, went 0/2 but walked twice in the 6-4 loss and gave up one stolen base. The Boston Red Sox prospect is batting .333 with 1 HR, 4 RBIs, and a .538 on-base percentage.

No Jewish baseball players were active on Sunday (10/17/2010).

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Cleveland Indians prospect Jason Kipnis hit a 3-run HR and a 2-run triple Friday (10/16/2010) as the Peoria Javelinas routed the Peoria Saguaros 13-5.

The 5 RBIs were a welcome relief for the promising second baseman, who had gone hitless in his first 11 at-bats in the Arizona Fall League before smacking a triple. “I got to the point where I stopped trying to do too much,” Kipnis told MLB.com after the game. “I just worried about hard contact today.”

Fellow 2B (and Hebe) Ian Kinsler of the Texas Rangers had a tougher day. In the opening game of the American League Championship Series, the Rangers were leading the New York Yankees 5-1 when the Yanks scored 5 runs in the 8th inning. Kinsler led off the bottom of the 8th with a walk, but a baserunning error got him caught in a rundown and tagged out.

In non-baseball news, bachelor Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers reportedly attended a bash at Doug Reinhardt’s Hollywood Hills mansion. Reinhardt, a former minor-leaguer, is better known as an ex-boyfriend of socialite Paris Hilton. RadarOnline.com said the party guests included Brody Jenner, Stacy Keibler, Jasmine Waltz, and other young people Jewish Baseball News neither knows nor cares about.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — A little bit of history was made Thursday (10/15/2010) when Peoria Javelinas C Ryan Lavarnway squatted opposite RP Eric Berger, a fellow Jew, during the 4th inning of a game against the Peoria Saguaros.

Both players made the best of their opportunities. Lavarnway, a Boston Red Sox prospect, hit a two-out, three-run HR that put the Javelinas ahead 4-1, smacked a double, and drew a walk. The Saguaros caught up, however, and the game ended in an 11-inning, 4-4 tie.

Berger, who plays in the Arizona Diamondbacks’ farm system, pitched a scoreless (if not effortless) inning for the Javelinas, scattering 2 hits and a walk while striking out 2.

In another Arizona Fall League game, SP Josh Zeid, a Philadelphia Phillies prospect, earned the win for the Mesa Solar Sox in an 11-6 victory over the Surprise Rafters. Zeid gave up one run on 2 hits over 3 innings, striking out 3. Among his strikeout victims was Detroit Tigers prospect and Surprise OF Ben Guez, another of the 5 Jews playing in Jewish player.

Lavarnway, who hit 22 HRs with 102 RBIs in the minors this year, is playing in the AFL primarily to improve his catching skills (see article). Thursday’s game was mostly a good one on that front. Lavarnway threw-out 2 of 4 baserunners trying to steal but also had his first error of the season.

In an e-mail this morning, Martin Abramowitz — the brains behind the Jewish Major Leaguers baseball-card series — cited several examples of Jewish batterymates in Major League Baseball history:

• Harry Danning and Harry Feldman for the New York Giants in the 40’s.
• Sandy Koufax and Norm Sherry.
• Sol Rogovin and Joe Ginsberg for the Tigers in the early 50’s.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — We recently reported that four Jews would be playing in the prestigious Arizona Fall League, three of them on the Peoria Javelinas.

Um, we missed one.

OF Ben Guez, a Detroit Tigers prospect, was selected to play for the aptly-named Surprise Rafters. The 23-year-old Houston native hit a combined .249 during the regular season in “A” and “AAA” ball, with 10 HRs, 43 RBIs, 14 stolen bases, and a .341 on-base percentage.

In the Rafters’ season-opener Tuesday (10/12/2010), Guez went 2/4 with a solo HR in an 8-6 victory over the Javelinas.

In the same game, Boston Red Sox prospect Ryan Lavarnway, who is trying to improve his catching skills, went 1/3 with a walk, an RBI, a run scored and a passed ball. The 23-year-old Yale University recruit hit a combined .288 and 22 HRS this year with two minor-league teams, and he led all Red Sox farm hands with 102 RBIs. Baseball America recently listed him among the top 20 prospects from the Carolina League.

On Wednesday (10/13/2010), 2B Jason Kipnis of the Javelinas went 0/4 and struck out twice in a 7-4 win over the Surprise Rafters. Like Lavarnway, Kipnis has been named a top 20 prospect from the Carolina League. A member of the Cleveland Indians franchise, the 23-year-old Arizona State alum split the 2010 season between “A-advanced” and “AA” teams and had a combined batting average of .307 along with 8 triples, 16 HRs, 74 RBIs, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of .878. When the “AAA” Columbus Clippers called him up for the playoffs , Kipnis went 10/22, hitting for the cycle in one game and falling a single short of a cycle in the next.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — From the way he’s played lately, you wouldn’t guess this was B Ian Kinsler‘s first time in the MLB playoffs, or that he’d sat out more than a third of the Texas Rangers’ regular season with injuries.

The 28-year-old continued his mastery of the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday (10/12/2010), going 3/4 with 3 RBIs and crushing a 2-run HR in the top of the 9th inning to cap off a 5-1 win. The victory earned Texas a trip to New York to face the Yankees in the American League Championship Series.

Overall, Kinsler has been among the top performers in the first round of the MLB playoffs. He leads all players in HRs (3/tie), RBIs (6), runs (5/tie), and on-base percentage (.500/tie); and he ranks second in batting average (.444) and slugging percentage (.944).

Kinsler is the only remaining Jewish player in the MLB playoffs. The first game of the Rangers/Yankees series takes place Friday (10/15/2010).

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Maybe we should change our motto from “People of the Book” to “People of the Blog.”

Eight of the 180 prospects who will play in the Arizona Fall League this year have agreed to blog about their experiences. Two of the 8 are Jewish.

P Josh Zeid, a 23-year-old Philadelphia Phillies prospect who will play for the Mesa Solar Sox, has already started his blog, Phinally Phocused. The New Haven, Conn., native’s debut entry actually addresses being Jewish, and why he initially chose to attend Vanderbilt University:

It was not only one of the best academic universities this side of the Mississippi, excluding the Ivy League’s, but because it was becoming a baseball powerhouse, with guys like David Price and Jeremy Sowers.  It also gave my family a peace of mind.  Growing up in a Jewish household, we focused on having a sound foundation based on private schools and living very close to my extended family.

I only had Sandy Koufax and Hank Greenberg to look up to as legitimate Jewish heroes, so in the back of my family’s mind was a hesitation and a desire for me to focus on getting a good education.  Where I grew up Jewish kids dreamt of playing pro sports, but in reality, becoming doctors, lawyers, accountants, or real estate entrepreneurs was more realistic. I felt I had a platform to be different, and I had the support from my parents and sister to do that.

Zeid, a 6’5″ right-hander, played for the “A” Lakewood BlueClaws during the regular season, going 8-4 with 8 saves and a 2.93 ERA. He worked both as a starter and a reliever. The BlueClaws went on to become the 2010 South Atlantic League champions.

Also blogging about the Arizona Fall League is 2B Jason Kipnis, a 23-year-old Cleveland Indians prospect who will play for the Peoria Javelinas and who spent part of his college career at Arizona State University. He opens his new blog, Kip’s Korner, thusly:

Finally, back in the SunDevil Nation! 1,800 miles, 2 days, 4 Redbulls, and a charged I-pod later, I’ve finally arrived in Arizona. It’s been a long journey to get to this point but it’s been a great one at that.

Kipnis had a phenomenal regular season in 2010. Split between the Indians’ “A-advanced” and “AA” teams , he had a combined batting average of .307, 8 triples, 16 HRs and 74 RBIs. When the “AAA” Columbus Clippers called him up for the playoffs, the Clippers won the championship, and Kipnis played a big role, hitting for the cycle in one game,  falling a single short of a cycle in the next, and going 10/22 overall. Baseball America named him a “Top 20 Prospect” in two leagues this year, the “A-advanced” Carolina League and the “AA” Eastern League.

The Arizona Fall League begins its 32-game season today (10/12/2010). According to MLB.com, Major League Baseball created the AFL so it could keep a closer eye on its “best” ballplayers, who might otherwise leave the country to play winter ball. All games are played in Spring Training stadiums, and each MLB team gets to send six top prospects to play, mostly from “AA” or “AAA” leagues.

Many go on to Major League careers. According to MLB.com, 56 percent of the players on the 8 MLB teams that reached the 2010 playoffs are Arizona Fall League alumni.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — We’ve been out to lunch for a few days. Here’s what’s happened in the MLB playoffs.

Valencia, Twins are out:

• On Saturday (10/9/2010), the New York Yankees defeated the Minnesota Twins 6-1 to win the playoff series 3-0. Danny Valencia, the Twins’ rookie 3B, singled, walked and scored the team’s lone run. For the series, he went 2/9 (.222) with a double and 2 RBIs, walking once and striking out 3 times.

Kinsler, the only Jew still left in the playoffs, continues to play well:

• On Saturday (10/9/2010), 2B Ian Kinsler drew a walk and stroked his second HR of the playoffs in a 6-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. His 7th-inning HR had put the Rangers ahead 2-1. “I was hoping to be the difference,” Kinsler told MLB.com. “I wanted to be the difference. We needed six more outs.”
• On Sunday (10/10/2010), Kinsler singled, walked, and scored a run in a 5-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. He also dropped a pop-up, allowing the Rays to score the first run of the game. It was his second error of the series.
• The fifth and final game of the Rangers/Rays series, which is tied 4-4, takes place Tuesday night (10/12/2010) in St. Petersburg. Through four games, Kinsler is batting a sizzling .357 (5/14) with 2 HRs, 3 RBIs, 2 walks and 2 strikeouts.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here is your MLB playoff update for Thursday (Oct. 7, 2010):

• In just the second playoff game of his career, 2B Ian Kinsler of the Texas Rangers hit a solo HR and an RBI single in a 6-0 win over the (beloved) Tampa Bay Rays. Rays OF Gabe Kapler remains on the disabled list and thus is not part of the team’s playoff roster. Texas leads the 5-game series 2-0 (sob); Game 3 takes place Saturday in Texas.
• Rookie 3B Danny Valencia of the Minnesota Twins went 0/2 with one RBI in a 5-2 loss to the New York Yankees. The 25-year-old’s sacrifice fly put the Twins ahead 1-0 in the 2nd inning, but the lead didn’t hold up. The Yanks lead the 5-game series 2-0; Game 3 takes place Saturday in New York.

With the Philadelphia Phillies attempting to reach their 3rd straight World Series, the Jewish Exponent recently published an interesting article on the team’s general manager, former OF Ruben Amaro Jr. Though Jews are not uncommon in the front offices of Major League baseball, Amaro — whose Mexican-born father also played in the pros — is not widely known as Jewish. But his mother, Judy Herman, was a Jew, and although Amaro was baptized, “We did Passover, Yom Kippur, Chanukah,” he told the Exponent. “We were exposed to both faiths pretty equally.” Amaro and his Catholic wife are raising their children Catholic.

Thanks to Jewish Baseball News reader Jack W. for the tip on the Exponent article.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here is your MLB playoffs update for Wednesday (Oct. 6, 2010):

• Rookie 3B Danny Valencia of the Minnesota Twins hit a single and a game-tying walk in a 6-4 loss to the New York Yankees. Yankees’ SP C.C. Sabathia walked the 25-year-old on 4 pitches with the bases loaded to tie the game 4-4. Valencia’s chances of being named A.L. Rookie of the Year dimmed significantly in September, a month when rookie RP Neftali Feliz of the Texas Rangers gave up zero runs in 11 appearances to finish the season 4-3 with 40 saves and a 2.73 ERA.
• 2B Ian Kinsler of the Texas Rangers singled and scored a run in a 5-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. It was his first playoff appearance in a five-year career.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — When the Peoria Javelinas of the Arizona Fall League open their 2010 season Oct. 12, the team’s roster will feature 3 Jewish minor leaguers:

• C Ryan Lavarnway. The 23-year-old Yale University recruit hit a combined .288 and 22 HRS this year with two minor-league teams, and he led all Boston Red Sox farm hands with 102 RBIs. Baseball America recently placed Lavarnway on its list of Top 20 prospects from the Carolina League.
• 2B Jason Kipnis. Like Lavarnway, Kipnis has been named a Top 20 prospect from the Carolina League. A member of the Cleveland Indians franchise, the 23-year-old Arizona State alum split the 2010 season between “A-advanced” and “AA” teams and had a combined batting average of .307, along with 8 triples, 16 HRs, 74 RBIs, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of .878. When the “AAA” Columbus Clippers called him up for the playoffs , Kipnis went 10/22, including hitting for the cycle in one game and falling a single short of a cycle in the next.
• SP Eric Berger. The 24-year-old Cleveland Indians prospect played briefly in “AAA” ball this year before joining Kipnis on the “AA” Akron Aeros. Berger went a combined 5-6 with a 4.90 ERA.

At least one other Jew is playing in the AFL this season. P Josh Zeid, who went 8-4 with 8 saves and a 2.93 ERA this year for the “A” Lakewood BlueClaws (Philadelphia Phillies), will play for the Mesa Solar Sox. The 23-year-old Tulane University recruit struck out 111 batters in 107-and-1/3 innings while walking just 27.

Getting picked to play in the Arizona Fall League is no small honor.

According to MLB.com, Major League Baseball created the AFL so it could keep a closer eye on its “best” ballplayers, who might otherwise leave the country to play winter ball. All games are played in Spring Training stadiums, and each MLB team gets to send six top prospects to play, mostly from “AA” or “AAA”. The 2006 All-Star Game featured 25 AFL alums, says MLB.com.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Last week, Baseball America named SS Jake Lemmerman one of the Top 20 prospects from the Rookie Pioneer League.

Earlier today (10/4/2010), the venerable publication named 2 more Jews to one of its annual ‘top 20’ lists. Both 2B Jason Kipnis and C Ryan Lavarnway were listed as top prospects from the “A-advanced” Carolina League.

Kipnis, part of the Cleveland Indians’ franchise, began the 2010 season with the “A-advanced” Kinston Indians and later was promoted to the “AA” Akron Aeros, finishing the year with a combined batting average of .307, 8 triples, 16 HRs, 74 RBIs, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of .878. When the “AAA” Columbus Clippers called him up for the post-season, he went 10/22, hitting for the cycle in one game and falling a single short of a cycle in the next.

Says Baseball America:

Kipnis has a balanced approach and drives the ball to all fields. He’s aggressive at the plate but not overly so, and he should hit at least .280 in the majors with average power, if not more.

Lavarnway, part of the Boston Red Sox’ farm system, split the 2010 season between the “A-Advanced” Salem Red Sox and the “AA” Portland Sea Dogs. He hit a combined .288 with 22 HRs, 102 RBIs, .393 on-base percentage, and .489 slugging percentage. His 102 RBIs were tops among Red Sox farm hands, and he led all Jewish minor-leaguers in HRs, RBIs and walks (70).

Here is an excerpt from Baseball America’s commentary:

If he puts everything together, he could be a big league regular, but it may be more realistic to project him as an offensive-minded backup who also could fill in at first base and DH.

As of today, Baseball America has published ‘Top 20’ lists for nine of the 16 minor leagues associated with Major League Baseball. The remaining 7 will be released from Oct. 5 through Oct. 13.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Sunday (10/3/2010):

• In the final game of an 18-year MLB career, Los Angeles Dodgers C Brad Ausmus showed he still has it, going 2/4 in a 3-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. According to MLB.com:

(Ausmus) was saluted before the game with a video tribute from teammates current and past. In his first at-bat, he doubled down the right-field line and the dugout called for the ball. In his final at-bat, he singled, was replaced by a pinch-runner, received a standing ovation as he left the field and got a hero’s welcome in the dugout.

“The fans were extremely nice to me today for a guy who’s only been here two years in very limited duty,” said Ausmus. “And I really enjoyed today, but I’m ready, I’m ready to move on to non-playing things. It was a good feeling to know that even though I’ve never been an offensive player that you could say at least you ended your career on a high note. There’s an old saying in baseball, you’re only as good as your last at-bat. I can stick to that.”

Ausmus shared the limelight with Dodgers manager Joe Torre, who also is leaving the team.

• 2B Ian Kinsler of the Texas Rangers went 1/2 with a double in a 6-2 loss to the Los Angeles Angels. He finished an  injury-shortened regular season batting .286, with 9 HRs, 20 doubles, and 45 RBIs in 391 at-bats. Kinsler had his best walk-to-strikeout ratio ever, walking 56 times while striking out 57. His on-base percentage was .382, #2 in the A.L. behind teammate Josh Hamilton. Texas’ playoff series against the Tampa Bay Rays starts Wednesday (10/6/2010).

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — When catcher Brad Ausmus was selected by the New York Yankees in the 48th round of the 1987 amateur draft, a long MLB career didn’t seem probable.

So much for predictions. Though the Cheshire, Conn., native didn’t reach the big leagues until 1993, he ended up staying 18 seasons, long enough to capture 3 Gold Glove awards (2001, 2002, 2006) and rank 7th among MLB catchers on the all-time games played list.

Ausmus, 41, will start his 1,971st and final game today (10/3/2010) when the Los Angeles Dodgers host the Arizona Diamondbacks (4:10pm ET). He will be honored in a pre-game ceremony, although the game will not be nationally telecast.

Known as a team player and hard worker — he stayed off the disabled list his first 17 seasons  — the Dartmouth alum also is known as a mentor with managerial potential and ambitions.

Ausmus also is simply a good guy. When catcher A.J. Ellis was called up to replace him earlier this season, he hosted the rookie at his home for six weeks until family arrived.

Thanks for the ride, Brad. Hope to see you in the dugout soon.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here is your Player of the Day for Saturday (10/3/2010):

• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers hit a double, drew a walk, and scored a run in a 7-4 loss to the Cincinnati Reds. Braun’s double was his 45th, tying him for 2nd most in the N.L. The 2010 All-Star is batting .305 with 25 HRs, 103 RBIs, and 101 runs scored.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Thursday (10/1/2010).

• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers hit an RBI single, drew a walk, and scored his 100th run of the season in a 9-2 win over the New York Mets. Braun is batting .306 and leads all MLB Jews with 25 HRs and 103 RBIs. According to MLB.com, he is one of only 2 players in Brewers history to reach 100 RBIs and 100 runs in two consecutive seasons. Mets 1B Ike Davis entered the game as a pinch-hitter and went 0/2.
• Rookie 3B Danny Valencia of the Minnesota Twins doubled, walked, and scored a run in a 13-2 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays. Valencia, a Rookie of the Year hopeful who recently began hitting for power, leads all MLB rookies with a .323 batting average.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Wednesday (9/29/2010).

It was Jew vs. Jew in a double-header between the Milwaukee Brewers and the New York Mets. Here’s how the match-up went:

• LF Ryan Braun carried the Milwaukee Brewers to a 3-1 win in Game 2 with a two-run double, his career-high 44th two-bagger. Braun is batting .306 this season and leads MLB Jews with 25 HRs and 102 RBIs. He went 1/5 in Game 1, which the Brewers won 8-7.
• Rookie 1B Ike Davis of the New York Mets went 0/4 in the double-header but drew 4 walks and hit a sacrifice fly. The 23-year-old has shown improving judgment at the plate in recent months; so far in September he has raised his batting average from .248 to .266, and his on-base percentage from .331 to .354.

In other games:

• Rookie 3B Danny Valencia of the Minnesota Twins singled 3 times in a 4-2 win over the Kansas City Royals. It was his 10th game with 3 or more hits since being called up from the minors in June but his first since Sept. 2. Valencia, who recently has been hitting more for power than average, leads all MLB rookies with a .323 batting average.

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