Jewish Baseball News

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Tampa Bay Rays RF Gabe Kapler was placed on the 15-day disabled list Monday (8/16/2010), his second such visit this season.

There is some speculation that Kapler was ‘listed’ not so much because of a twisted ankle but to make room on the roster for 1B Carlos Pena, who was returning from the DL and might provide the Rays with some much-needed power during the pennant race.

Either way, 2010 is turning out to be one of the most injury-prone seasons in recent memory for Jewish ballplayers.

Two players — Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis and Chicago Cubs RP John Grabow — are out with season-ending injuries. Los Angeles Dodgers C Brad Ausmus only recently returned after spending much of the season on the DL, his first such stop in an 18-year MLB career. Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler is on the DL for the second time this season, and Washington Nationals SP Jason Marquis is back now after a lengthy stint away.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis will have season-ending surgery on his right thumb Friday, the team reported yesterday (8/5/2010).

For insight into how badly his injury hurts the Red Sox, listen to this video commentary by Boston Globe columnist Bob Ryan, who argues that Youkilis is among the premier hitters and fielders in baseball and should have been named 2008 American League MVP instead of teammate Dustin Pedroia:

There really is no way to exaggerate the scope of this loss to the team…(He’s) the most versatile batter at Terry Francona’s disposal…Kevin Youkilis has been one of the premier run-producers and winners in baseball…He plays first base at a Gold Glove level…He cannot be replaced. It is a mortal blow to the Red Sox. No way they can overcome this.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis has been placed on the 15-day disabled list and may be out for the season if he needs surgery, the Boston Globe reported.

The 31-year-old slugger tore a muscle in his right thumb Monday night (8/2/2010) while swinging at a pitch tossed by Cleveland Indians pitcher Fausto Carmona (see video). He sat out Tuesday’s game.

Says the Globe:

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — The best major- or minor-league performances of Thurs., July 22:

• Ryan Lavarnway, “AA” Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox). The 22-year-old catcher continued his hot streak, going 3-for-5 on Thursday with three RBIs. Since his promotion from the “A+” Salem Red Sox, Lavarnway is 12-for-27 with a remarkable 14 RBIs and 1.087 OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage).
• Jake Lemmerman, “Rookie Pioneer League” Ogden Raptors (Los Angeles Dodgers). The 21-year-old shortstop continued his hot streak Thursday, going 2-for-4 with a home run, one RBI and four runs scored. The top Jewish pick in the June 2010 amateur draft — 5th round, 172nd overall — Lemmerman is batting .372 with 16 extra-base hits in 113 at-bats.
• Kevin Youkilis, Boston Red Sox. The first baseman went 3-for-6 and scored the go-ahead run in an 8-6, extra-inning victory over the Seattle Mariners. Youkilis is ranked third in the AL in on-base percentage (.407) and fourth both in slugging percentage (.569) and OPS (.976).

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — So who are the 2010 Jewish category leaders in the MLB as of today (July 12)?

Among the eight position players:

• Highest batting average: Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler (.310)
• Most home runs: Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis (18)
• Most triples: Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis (5)
• Most doubles: Milwaukee Brewers LF Ryan Braun (24)
• Most RBIs: Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis (57)
• Most walks: Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis (51)
• Most strikeouts: New York Mets 1B Ike Davis (71)
• Best walk/strikeout ratio: Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis (.93)
• Worst walk/strikeout ratio: New York Mets 1B Ike Davis (.45)
• Highest on-base percentage: Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler (.408)
• Highest slugging percentage: Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis (.575)
• Highest OPS (OBP+slugging): Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis (.983)
• Most stolen bases: Milwaukee Brewers LF Ryan Braun (12)

Among the five pitchers:

• Most victories: Texas Rangers SP Scott Feldman (5)
• Most losses: Texas Rangers SP Scott Feldman (8)
• Best win-loss record: Oakland Athletics RP Craig Breslow (3-2)
• Best ERA: Oakland Athletics RP Craig Breslow (3.32)
• Most strikeouts: Texas Rangers SP Scott Feldman (63)
• Most walks: Texas Rangers SP Scott Feldman (33)
• Best strikeout/walk ratio: Oakland Athletics RP Craig Breslow (2.56)
• Worst strikeout/walk ratio (25+ innings): Chicago Cubs RP John Grabow (1.54)

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Sunday was a good day for Jewish bats.

All five position players who played yesterday (7/11/2010) had at least one hit, and three powered home runs: Milwaukee Brewers LF Ryan Braun hit his 13th (video), New York Mets 1B Ike Davis smacked his 11th (video), and Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler knocked out his fourth (video).

Ike Davis’ dinger was the most impressive, a 430-foot shot to center field.

Better yet, four of the five teams — Milwaukee, New York, Minnesota (Danny Valencia) and Boston (Kevin Youkilis) — won their Sunday games.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — An update from the world of Jewish baseball players:

• Los Angeles Dodgers C Brad Ausmus is doing well in his rehab stint with the Inland Empire 66ers, a Class A-advanced team. The 41-year-old has six hits in 12 at-bats with two walks and two RBIs. Ausmus had just four at-bats with the Dodgers this season before injuring his back. It was his first and only time on the disabled list in a lengthy career. In Ausmus’ absence, Dodger catchers Russell Martin (.247 average, .351 on-base percentage, .337 slugging percentage) and A.J. Ellis (.214 average, .306 OBP, .238 SLG) have performed adequately, if not exceptionally.
• As a group, MLB’s Jewish pitchers have had a dismal season. Boston Red Sox RP Scott Schoeneweis was released back in May, and their collective ERA only recently dipped below 6.00. Oakland A’s RP Craig Breslow remains an exception, with a 3-2 record, 3.15 ERA, strikeout/walk ratio of 40/16, and opponent batting average of just .175. A’s manager Bob Geren has been lobbying to get Breslow into the 2010 All-Star Game. In his most recent start, Scott Feldman (5-8, 5.32 ERA, 63/33) delivered a seven-inning, 2 ER performance against the Baltimore Orioles. (7/9/2010), Texas Rangers SP
• Since returning from the disabled list, Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler hasn’t displayed the power (31 HRs) and speed (31 stolen bases) that he did in 2009, but he is hitting for average (.311) and is on pace for a career-high on-base percentage of .411.
• New York Mets 1B Ike Davis hit his 10th home run of the season on July 4, making him just the third rookie in Met history to hit 10 HRs before the All-Star break. Rumor has it that the Seattle Mariners wouldn’t consider trading star pitcher Cliff Lee to the Mets unless Davis was part of the deal. Davis’ habit of landing in the dugout after catching a pop foul has been immortalized in a video game.
• Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis narrowly lost another chance to join the 2010 All-Star Game. Youkilis was one of five AL players chosen to participate in a “Final Vote” for the last spot on the AL roster, but Youkilis finished second to New York Yankees RF Nick Swisher in the closest contest in the nine-year history of the Final Vote. According to MLB.com, Swisher used his Twitter account — baseball’s biggest at more than 1.2-million followers — to obtain endorsements from Jessica Alba, Ivanka Trump and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
• Philadelphia Phillies prospect Michael Schwimer, a 6’8″ pitcher whom Jewish Baseball News dubbed a “monster of the mound,” was promoted to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs (AAA). The 24-year-old reliever had compiled a 5-3 record with the Reading Phillies (AA), including 58 strikeouts in just 40 innings. If you’re interested in what Schwimer has to say about things, you can catch his blog here.
• Also moving up in the world is St. Louis Cardinals prospect David Kopp. The transition to AAA ball hasn’t been easy for the 24-year-old starting pitcher. Kopp dominated the AA Texas League while with the Springfield Cardinals this season, going 8-1 with a 3.08 ERA. By contrast, he has lost all four of his starts as a Memphis Redbird.
• The Los Angeles Dodgers will celebrate Jewish Community Day on July 25 by giving away Dodgers yarmulkes. Their opponent? Ike Davis and the New York Mets.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — A new film wending its way through the film-festival circuit explores our love affair with baseball.

Jews and Baseball: An American Love Story features interviews and footage of players from Sandy Koufax to Kevin Youkilis. New York Times sports writer Ira Berkow penned the script, while actor Dustin Hoffman provides the narration. Here’s a recent Jerusalem Post story on it.

I haven’t seen the film yet; Seventh Art Releasing says it’s holding out on distributing review copies until shortly before the movie’s theatrical release in November. But people in several states as well as Israel can see it at upcoming film festivals. Here’s the running list from Jews and Baseball’s web site (future dates only):

• Jerusalem Film Festival – Jul. 15 & 16
• Stony Brook Film Festival, Stonybrook, NY – Jul. 25
• San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, San Francisco, Catro Cinema – Jul. 25
• Berkshires Jewish Film Festival – Jul. 26
• San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, Palo Alto, Cinearts – Jul. 31
• San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, Berkeley, Roda Theatre – Aug. 1
• San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, San Rafael,
Christopher B. Smith Rafael Film Center – Aug. 8
• Iowa Jewish Historical Society, Des Moines, Iowa – Aug. 8
• Rhode Island International Film Festival, Providence – Aug. 10-15
• Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center, Montclair, New Jersey – Aug. 19
• Greater Phoenix Jewish Film Festival
• Museum of Jewish Heritage, New York – Sept. 26
• The Suffolk Y Jewish Community Center, Commack, New York – Oct. 4
• The JCC in Manhattan, New York – Oct. 5
• Quad Cinema, Manhattan – Nov. 5
• Winnipeg – Nov. 8
• Wilshire Temple, Los Angeles – Nov. 13
• Tucson Jewish Film Festival – Nov. 21

– Scott Barancik

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Milwaukee Brewers LF Ryan Braun and Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler will participate in the 2010 All-Star Game, Major League Baseball announced this weekend.

Braun,who led all AL outfielders with 2.97-million votes, will be the lone Jewish player in either league’s starting lineup. Kinsler, who finished third among AL second basemen with 1.66-million votes, gained a spot when Boston Red Sox 2B Dustin Pedroia, the #2 vote-getter, suffered an injury.

Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis, who is enjoying yet another MVP-type season, missed two All-Star cuts: the fan vote (he finished with 1.32-million, putting him in fourth place at his position), and the manager vote (New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi, who is managing the AL squad, chose two of his own players to round out his seven picks).

But Youkilis still has a chance to make the squad. As part of its absurdly convoluted procedure for selecting All-Stars, the MLB has named Youkilis and four other players — White Sox 1B Paul Konerko, New York Yankees RF Nick Swisher, Minnesota Twins LF Delmon Young, and Texas Rangers 3B Michael Young –as participants in a so-called Final Vote (not to be confused with the Final Solution). Whichever player gets the most fan votes between today (7/4/2010) and Thursday, July 8 at 4:00pm ET will receive a final spot on the AL squad.

Here is how the five candidates compare in key statistical categories, through today’s games:

PLAYER/HR/RBI/AVG/OBP/SLG

Kevin Youkilis/17/54/.299/.416/.584

Paul Konerko/20/57/.297/.386/.564

Nick Swisher/13/47/.293/.373/505

Delmon Young/9/55/.298/.332/.488

Michael Young/11/51/.310/.356/.493

(Note: Category leaders shown in red.)

Fans may cast an unlimited number of votes. In other words, it’s a perfect opportunity for Kevin Youkilis devotees who happen to be software programmers to set up repetitive-voting scripts.

For an online ballot, click here.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are the latest developments among Jewish professional baseball players:

MLB

• Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis is having a remarkable season. After 68 games, the “Greek god of walks” is hitting home runs and RBIs at the same pace he did last year, walking more, and striking out less. Far less. Consider this: in 136 games last season, Youk struck out 62 percent more often than he walked (125 strikeouts vs. 77 walks). In 2010, he has walked more times (47) than he has struck out (41). “It’s freakish,” Red Sox first-base coach Ron Johnson told the Providence Journal. “It’s really fun to watch. Where he’s come from and where he is now, to lower his strikeout totals and still have the power and drive in the runs and hit over .300, he’s up there with those superstar guys.” Alas, Youkilis probably won’t appear in next month’s All-Star Game. In fan voting through today, he is ranked a distant 4th among American League shortstops.
• Since inserting rookie 1B Ike Davis into the cleanup spot on May 19, the New York Mets have gone 20-9 after a 19-21 start.
• After serving as the ace of the Texas Rangers’ pitching squad in 2009, SP Scott Feldman got off to a disappointing start this season. But he’s begun to right himself lately. In his past four starts, Feldman has won three games, amassed a 3.70 ERA, struck out 19 in 26.67 innings and walked just nine. Feldman pitches tonight (6/21/2010) against the Houston Astros.
• Los Angeles Dodgers C Brad Ausmus, 41, had only four at-bats this season before suffering a back injury that required surgery. But Ausmus — who had never before been on the disabled list — has begun taking batting practice with his teammates and recently caught his first bullpen session.
• Tampa Bay Rays RF Gabe Kapler went on the disabled list June 12 after straining his right hip flexor.
• For the third time this season, the Milwaukee Brewers called OF Adam Stern up from the AAA Nashville Sounds and then sent him back down. The 30-year-old’s initial call-up was a major accomplishment, given that he hadn’t had a major-league at-bat in four years. But Stern went hitless in eight at-bats during his stints with the Brewers this season.

Minors

• The San Diego Padres promoted SP Aaron Poreda to the Portland Beavers, the franchise’s AAA squad. Since arriving, Poreda has pitched 7.33 scoreless innings in four appearances and struck out seven batters. The 23-year-old spent part of last season in the majors, pitching for both the Chicago White Sox and the Padres.
  
• Springfield Cardinals SP David Kopp (AA/St. Louis Cardinals) has been named a Texas League All-Star. Kopp, 24, leads the league with an 8-1 record and has an 3.08 ERA. According to the Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader:

For Kopp, the selection culminates a terrific first half in which he has re-claimed his prospect tag. Kopp underwent a pair of shoulder surgeries in 2008 and 2009, and reached Double-A late last season with little hype. He walked 11 and struck out six in five starts. This year, his line features 45 strikeouts in 69 innings as the right-hander has gone on the attack with a low-90s fastball. The pitch shields his sharp, tight slider from over-use, and managers and scouts are beginning to think of Kopp not in terms of a Double-A pitcher but one with the stuff to reach the majors.

• Reading Phillies RP Michael Schwimer (AA/Philadelphia Phillies) is 5-3 this season and has struck out an impressive 47 batters in 34.67 innings, more than triple the number of batters he has walked (14). “He has good stuff, but he has been a little inconsistent,” Philadelphia Phillies assistant general manager Chuck Lamar told the Philadelphia Inquirer. “He may get a shot by the end of the year to move up to triple-A.”
• The New York Mets recently promoted 2B Joshua Satin to the AA Binghamton Mets. Since arriving, the 25-year-old has hit .320 in six games.
  
• Likewise, the Cleveland Indians moved 2B Jason Kipnis up to its AA squad, the Akron Aeros. Kipnis wasted no time making his mark. After eight games with the Aeros, he is batting .355 with two home runs, three doubles, and an OPS of 1.090.
• Corpus Christi Hooks C Jonathan Fixler (AA/Houston Astros) didn’t take it easy on Frisco RoughRiders SP (and fellow Jew) Richard Bleier this weekend. Fixler, 24, went 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs during a 7-1 thrashing of the RoughRiders on Sunday (6/20/2010). Bleier gave up 7 runs and 13 hits in seven innings, and his record fell to 3-6.
  
• The St. Louis Cardinals demoted C Charlie Cutler to its A-advanced farm team, the Palm Beach Cardinals. Cutler had batted just .205 with six RBIs for the AA Springfield Cardinals. But he’s batting .350 after six games with Palm Beach.
• OF Ben Guez took an even bigger fall recently. The Detroit Tigers franchise sent him down from AAA Toledo, where he hit .273 with five RBIs in 66 at-bats, to the Lakeland Flying Tigers (A-advanced).

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — If the 2010 MLB All-Star Game were held today, Milwaukee Brewers LF Ryan Braun would once again appear in the National League’s starting lineup.

Braun, a 26-year-old in his fourth MLB season, had the third-highest vote tally among all NL players in 2009 and the most among NL outfielders, more than 4.1-million. He went 0-for-2 in a 4-3 loss to the American League.

As of Wednesday (6/2/2010), Braun again was the leading NL outfielder with 604,675 votes. The 2010 MLB game will be held on Sun., July 13 in Anaheim, Calif.

Unlike last year, however, when three Jews were named All-Stars — Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis and SP Jason Marquis, then with the Colorado Rockies, were the other two — Braun may end up being the lone Hebe on the field. That’s because as of Wednesday, Youkilis was ranked fourth among AL first basemen and Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler was ranked 3rd at his position.

No doubt, many rankings will be shuffled in the final weeks of voting. Last year, for example, Kinsler led all AL second baseman in fan votes until the final week, when Boston Red Sox 2B Dustin Pedroia overtook him. Pedroia’s last-minute surge thwarted those who had hoped 2009’s All-Star Game would become the first ever to feature four Jews.

The biggest strike this year against Kinsler — besides missing the first 22 games of the season with an ankle injury and posting mediocre numbers since returning — is that he’s not a New York Yankee. As of Wednesday, Yankee players were ranked first at three positions (1B, 2B, SS) and second at two (3B, C). Moreover, Yankee manager Joe Girardi will have some say in who plays because he will be managing the AL squad.

Want to get out the vote for your favorite Jewish position players? MLB allows each fan to submit as many as 25 times, so click here t0 cast your ballots.

Pitchers are not selected by fans. The Jews you can vote for are:

American League

• 1B Kevin Youkilis
• 2B Ian Kinsler
• OF Gabe Kapler, Tampa Bay Rays (write-in only)

National League

• OF Ryan Braun
• 1B Ike Davis, New York Mets (write-in only)
• C Brad Ausmus, Los Angeles dodgers (write-in only)

Voting 25 times doesn’t take that long. MLB retains your personal info and votes from the previous ballot, so you can do all 25 in about 10 minutes. Fan voting ends on just before midnight on July 1.

— Scott Barancik

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — The 2010 season is barely one-quarter done, but if it ended today, Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis would be in the running for Most Valuable Player.

Thanks in part to a recent tear, Youk is among the American League leaders in multiple hitting categories, including:

• 1st in runs (37)
• 1st/tie in walks (35)
• 2nd in slugging percentage (.612)
• 2nd in on-base plus slugging (1.071)
• 2nd/tie in on-base percentage (.459)
• 3rd/tie in hit by pitch (5)
• 11th in batting average (.322)
• 11th/tie in home runs (9)

The only AL batter with better stats at present is fellow 1B Justin Morneau of the Minnesota Twins, a potential triple-crown winner whose phenomenal numbers include a .383 batting average. Morneau was the AL MVP in 2006 and the runner-up in 2008.

Youkilis came in 3rd in the MVP voting in 2008 and 6th in 2009. To see a clip of an interview with him after Sunday’s (5/23/2010) victory over the Philadelphia Phillies, click here.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — The latest info on Jews with bats:

• New York Mets 1B Ike Davis, brought up from AAA two weeks after the 2010 season began, is now batting cleanup. The move to 4th in the batting order paid off for the Mets on Thursday (5/20/2010) as Davis went 3-for-5 with 2 doubles and three runs scored.
• Davis was one of four Jewish players with multi-hit games Thursday (5/20/2010). Joining him were Tampa Bay Rays RF Gabe Kapler (2-for-2), Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler (2-for-5), and Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis (2-for4 with 1 HR and 4 RBIs).
• According to this article, Youkilis is on pace to have his best month ever at the plate. So far this May, he leads the majors in batting average (.411), on-base percentage (.585), slugging percentage (.786), and OPS (1.371).
• The Boston Red Sox dropped RP Scott Schoeneweis from the team’s roster Wednesday (5/19/2010). Schoeneweis, a last-minute addition to the Opening Day squad, had an unimpressive 7.90 ERA this season, allowing 19 hits in 13 innings. The Red Sox have not said yet whether they will trade Schoeneweis, release him, or place him on waivers.
• Florida International University sophomore Garrett Wittels continued his record-setting streak Thursday by getting a hit in his 46th straight game, part of FIU’s 12-4 victory against Florida Atlantic University. Wittels needs one more game to tie Phil Stephenson for second on the all-time list at 47 games.
• AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees SP Jason Hirsh had his four-game winning streak broken Tuesday (5/18/2010) in a 3-0 loss to the Indianapolis Indians. On the bright side, Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader columnist Dave Konopki praised Hirsh this week, saying “it would be great to see him wearing pinstripes while standing on the mound at Yankee Stadium.”
• AAA Memphis Redbirds CF James Rapoport is on a tear since being called up from AA. After 11 games with the Redbirds — a St. Louis Cardinals affiliate — the 24-year-old is batting .378 with a .440 on-base percentage. Yesterday (5/20/2010) he went 4-for-6 in a 13-3 victory over the Sacramento River Cats.
• Milwaukee Brewers LF Adam Stern hasn’t made the most of his brief return to the bigs. In four games since being called up from AAA, the 30-year-old Canadian is 0-for-6 with two strikeouts.
• Texas Rangers SP Scott Feldman earned his first victory since April 11 with a 13-7 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. It wasn’t his finest hour: Feldman gave up a career-high 12 hits in six innings.
• In other struggling-Jewish-pitcher news, Chicago Cubs RP John Grabow continued his shaky 2010 in a 5-4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. Grabow gave up 1 hit, two walks and the winning run in 2/3 inning. Grabow’s 8.44 ERA is second-worst in the National League, and he’s reportedly “testing the patience of manager Lou Piniella, who continues to give him the ball in crucial late-inning situations.”

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Tuesday (5/18/2010) saw a show of strength by Jewish major leaguers.

Four men– Milwaukee Brewers LF Ryan Braun, New York Mets 1B Ike Davis, Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis, and Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler — hit home runs. The Day of Power boosted the Jewish home run total for 2010 from 16 dingers to 20.

Muscle-bound Tampa Bay Rays RF Gabe Kapler didn’t hit a home run but got on base three times (single, walk, hit by pitch), scored a run and had a couple nice plays in the field.

The show of power is no fluke. So far this season, Jewish position players have a combined slugging average of .502, compared with .411 for all MLB position players.

— Scott Barancik

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis had five walks Saturday (5/15/2010) in an 11-inning loss to the Detroit Tigers.

Though the feat fell short of a major-league record, it marked a personal best for Youkilis, whose previous single-game high, four walks, came in a 19-inning loss to the Chicago White Sox on July 9, 2006.

Youk’s 5 free passes would have come as no surprise to Paul DePodesta, the number-crunching Oakland Athletics assistant who years ago dubbed him “Euclis: The Greek god of walks.” According to Michael Lewis’ bestseller Moneyball, most baseball scouts saw Youkilis during his college years as a “fat third baseman who couldn’t run, throw or field.” But statistics revealed that Youkilis was a getting-on-base machine.

On Saturday, Youkilis had just one plate appearance where he didn’t get a walk. He reached base on an error, naturally.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — An update from the world of Jewish baseball players:

• Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis recently was hit by a pitch for the 63rd time in his career, leading one Beantown reporter to dub him the Prince of Plunk. The bruise leaves him eight behind Red Sox career leader Mo Vaughn (71) and well behind former Houston Astro 2B Craig Biggio, who was hit 285 times during a 20-year career and is the modern-era record holder. Though we may joke about it, getting hit by a pitch is one reason Youkilis ranked 2nd in the AL last year in on-base percentage (.413). He was hit by pitches 16 times in 2009, 4th most in the AL. So far in 2010, Youkilis has been hit five times and has a .433 on-base percentage.
• If New York Mets 1B Ike Davis hadn’t chosen to pursue baseball as a career, he might have made an outstanding pole dancer. In just his first month as a major leaguer, Davis has tumbled into a dugout three times in order to catch a pop foul, all successfully. Here’s a video of his most recent catch, and another last week.
• Here’s the good news about Washington Nationals SP Jason Marquis, who’s on the disabled list with bone chips in his elbow: he pitched 3 and 2/3 innings in a rehab assignment with the Single-A Potomac Nationals last night (5/11/2010) and reportedly left the game feeling healthy. Now the not-so-good news: Marquis performed a lot like he has in the majors this year, giving up six hits and three earned runs to the Winston-Salem Dash and getting credit for the loss. THIS JUST IN: A Washington Post blogger — the same one that earlier called Marquis “healthy” — says Marquis may in fact need surgery:

…after a rehabilitation start on Tuesday, Marquis woke up with pain in his arm and said he and the Nationals were weighing whether he will be forced to undergo an operation…Asked if surgery would be necessary, Marquis said: “It’s definitely a strong possibility…”

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Jews are having another great year at the plate.

Through this morning (5/9/2010), Major League Baseball’s six Jewish position players were batting a combined .320 versus .259 for the entire league. The Jewish slugging percentage stood at .532, versus .414 for everyone.

Let’s be clear, though. Much of the credit goes to two standout players, Milwaukee Brewers LF Ryan Braun and Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis.

Braun is among the top-ranked NL hitters in multiple categories:

• 1st in runs (30)
• 2nd (tie) in RBIs (28)
• 3rd in on-base percentage (.447)
• 4th in batting average (.364)
• 7th in OPS — on-base percentage plus slugging percentage (1.058)
• 13th in slugging percentage (.612)
• 13th (tie) in doubles (10)

Youkilis is highly-ranked in several AL categories:

• 3rd (tie) in runs (24)
• 5th in on-base percentage (.422)
• 9th in OPS (.972)
• 13th in slugging (.550)

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Pardon me if you’ve already seen this classic 2006 video, in which comedians Denis Leary and Lenny Clarke discover during a Boston Red Sox broadcast that 1B Kevin Youkilis and outfielder Gabe Kapler are Jewish.

Actor Mel Gibson, whose anti-Semitic remarks during a 2006 DUI arrest were a national story at the time, takes the brunt of the comedians’ rant.

The video ends, fittingly, with Youkilis’ successful pick-off of a Detroit Tigers baserunner at first base. “Mel Gibson, eat your heart out!” yells Clarke.

Thanks to writer Bruce Lowitt for bringing this video to my attention. To see Lowitt’s 2007 article on growing up a “short, fat and Jewish” baseball fan in Bensonhurst, click here.

— Scott Barancik

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — As we reported earlier this morning, Boston Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis was scratched from Sunday’s game (5/2/2010) due to a condition the local news media alternately described as a “sore left groin,” “strained left groin” or “groin pull,” none of which sounded particularly fun. (Especially “groin pull,” which sounds a little too much like tractor pull for our tastes. We won’t even get into the question of “pulled pork.”)

So what, exactly, is a groin pull? Does it involve a medical event in the body proper or in, shall we say, an extremity? Is it an injury of the muscle, tendon or something else entirely? And how exactly does one pull a groin?

We, the medically uninformed personnel at Jewish Baseball News, beg your reply via our Facebook page. The Most Medically Convincing and Most Creative answers will win our admiration, as we have nothing tangible to award you.

— Scott Barancik

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — What’s new in the world of Jewish baseball players:

• Scott Schoeneweis retained his tenuous hold on a roster spot last week when the Boston Red Sox chose to release fellow lefty reliever Alan Embree in order to make way for starter Daisuke Matsuzaka, who was returning from an injury.

• Red Sox 1B Kevin Youkilis was scratched from the lineup shortly before Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Orioles due to a groin pull. The Red Sox went on to lose the game as well as the series. Manager Terry Francona said he’s hopeful that Youkilis will be on the field for tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Angels.

• Among New York Mets fans, affection for rookie 1B Ike Davis continues to swell. Davis, who was called up from AAA when the cellar-dwelling Mets were 4-and-8, is given at least partial credit for inspiring the team to a 10-and-3 record since. According to a column in the Philadelphia Inquirer:

No place creates legends as easily or as effectively as New York. And Davis’ resume hasn’t hurt the hype. He’s the son of a former Yankee (reliever Ron Davis). He broke Arizona State records set by another of New York’s beloved lefthanded sluggers (Reggie Jackson). His mother, like a large chunk of the club’s fan base, is Jewish. He’s likable, accessible, and as he has displayed on several occasions, has a dramatic flair. Davis singled in his first big-league at-bat. Two nights later, he cartwheeled into the home dugout after a spectacular grab of a foul pop-up. And two nights after that, he belted his first home run, a 450-foot bomb to a previously unreached corner of vast Citi Field.

• In a Washington Post blog filed Saturday, Adam Kilgore mused on the reasons behind the Washington Nationals’ recent turnaround. Among them: that starting pitcher Jason Marquis had been placed on the disabled list. Marquis is 0-and-3 with a 20.52 ERA and twice as many walks as strikeouts.

Nationals starters began the year with a shaky start. That’s changed for a few reasons. Most basic, an apparently injured Jason Marquis is no longer inviting calamity every fifth day. Also, the staff has had more time to build a rapport with catcher Ivan Rodriguez.

• In off-the-field news, Milwaukee Brewers left fielder Ryan Braun has opened a restaurant in that city. A college newspaper says the eatery is only the latest in a series of business ventures by Braun.

Ryan Braun is not your average professional athlete. He doesn’t just play for the Milwaukee Brewers and call it a day. Braun has got his hands in everything from his own T-shirt line to commercials for Remington’s ShortCut clippers, Muscle Milk, and Dick’s Sporting Goods, as well as numerous endorsement deals. Last summer he received (and turned down), an invitation from ABC to appear on The Bachelor. Braun’s latest business venture, though, hits closer to home. Ryan Braun’s Waterfront Grill opened its doors a few weeks ago…

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