Jewish Baseball News

By Scott Barancik/Jewish Baseball News

Mondays bite. So feed yourself something pleasing:

1. Add this name to our ever-growing list of players: Los Angeles Dodgers prospect Joc Pederson. Drafted out of high school in 2010, the 20-year-old outfielder wowed the rookie Pioneer League last year by batting .353 with 11 HRs, 64 RBIs, 24 stolen bases, and a .997 OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging) in only 266 at-bats. Now with the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (High-A), Pederson is hitting .253 with 1 RBI in 31 at-bats this season. A tip of the cap to Ephraim Moxson for verifying Pederson’s lineage.
2. Aric Weinberg, whose mother hails from Tel Aviv and whose father is a former ESPN and New York Times sports reporter, signed a contract with the Kansas City T-Bones of the American Association, an independent league. The 26-year-old outfielder is assistant coach of the Tarbut V’Torah baseball team in Irvine, Calif., which went 11-2 last season.
3. Washington Nationals prospect Danny Rosenbaum continued his extraordinary season with a 2-1, complete-game victory on Saturday (5/5/2012), facing just two batters over the minimum 27. A 24-year-old starter with the Harrisonburg Senators (AA), Rosenbaum saw his 28-inning scoreless streak end during the 6th inning, but you’d hardly know it by looking at his 0.81 ERA, 4-0 record, and strikeout/walk ratio of 27/3. Local news media variously described Rosenbaum’s Saturday performance as “sparkling,” “outstanding,” and “dominant.”
4. Leadoff hitter extraordinaire Ian Kinsler has scored 28 runs in the Texas Rangers’ first 28 games this season, putting him on pace for 162 if he remains injury-free. The only player since 1939 to reach that plateau is Manny Ramirez, who scored 165 with the Cleveland Indians in 1999.
5. San Diego Padres prospect Nate Freiman continues to dominate Double-A pitching in his first season at that level. The San Antonio Missions first baseman is hitting .313 (5th-highest in the Texas League) with 11 HRs (1st), 26 RBIs (2nd), and a 1.032 OPS (3rd/tie) in 115 at-bats.
6. Baseball America’s most recent Prospect Hot Sheet listed two Jewish players among last week’s hottest 13: Washington Nationals prospect Danny Rosenbaum (see above), and Los Angeles Dodgers prospect Jake Lemmerman, a 23-year-old shortstop who is hitting .316 with the Chattanooga Lookouts (AA). The same Hot Sheet described 6’7″ Padres prospect Nate Freiman (see above) as “monstrous” and a “man among boys.” Both Lemmerman and Freiman are Duke University alums.

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