Jewish Baseball News

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Monday (8/30/2010):

• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers went 2/5 with an RBI single in a 5-4, extra-inning loss to the Cincinnati Reds. Braun singled in the 10th inning but couldn’t spark a rally. The 26-year-old is hitting .421 in August and .301 for the year.
• OF Sam Fuld of the “AAA” Iowa Cubs (Chicago Cubs) went 5/7 with four singles and a double in a 20-9 crushing of the Albuquerque Isotopes. Fuld scored three runs but drove in none — in part because he batted leadoff, hit singles, and was bracketed by seven Cub home runs. According to this article, Fuld’s five hits tied a team high and matched his own career high, the prior occasion coming on 8/18/2008 while he was playing for the “AA” Tennessee Smokies.
• LF Adam Stern of the “AAA” Nashville Sounds (Milwaukee Brewers) went 2/4 with a solo HR in a 3-1 loss to the Oklahoma City RedHawks. Stern’s home run came on the second pitch of the game. The 30-year-old Canadian is batting .406 in August and .326 for the season.
• In a rehab assignment with the “AA” Frisco RoughRiders (Texas Rangers), 2B Ian Kinsler hit a 2-run triple as the RoughRiders lost to the Midland RockHounds 6-4. In six games with Frisco, Kinsler is 5/19 (.263) with 6 RBIs and 2 walks. He has been on the disabled list since July 28.
• RP Jason Markovitz of the Clinton LumberKings (Seattle Mariners) pitched 2 scoreless innings and earned a “hold” in a 7-2 victory over the Peoria Chiefs. The 22-year-old rookie gave up one hit and had one strikeout. Since being promoted from the “A-short season” Everett AquaSox, Markovitz is 0-0 with a 4.05 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 13-and-1/3 innings.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Sunday (8/29/2010):

• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers went 4/4 with a two-run HR, a walk and 3 runs scored in an 8-4 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates, raising his season batting average to .300 for the first time since June 28. The 2007 NL Rookie of the Year is hitting .422 in August, with a 5-hit game, a 4-hit game, three 3-hit performances, and six 2-hit games. Adding in 13 walks, his August on-base percentage is a sweet .495.
• RP Craig Breslow of the Oakland A’s pitched 2 hitless innings in an 8-2 win over the Texas Rangers. The 30-year-old middle reliever is 4-4 with a 3.39 and 2 saves. He has 60 strikeouts in 58 ^1/3 innings and has held opposing hitters to a .202 batting average.
• In a rehab assignment with the “AA” Frisco RoughRiders (Texas Rangers), 2B Ian Kinsler hit an RBI single and scored a run as the RoughRiders beat the Midland RockHounds 6-4. In five games with Frisco, Kinsler is 4/15 (.267) with 4 RBIs and 2 walks. He has been on the disabled list since July 28.
• SP David Kopp of the “AA” Springfield Cardinals (St. Louis Cardinals) pitched 6 scoreless innings in a 3-1 victory over the Arkansas Travelers. A 24-year-old Clemson recruit, Kopp allowed 7 hits and no walks while striking out four. He got out of a bases-loaded, no-outs jam in the 5th inning by getting one batter to pop out and two to fan. Kopp was 0-5 during a stretch in “AAA” this season but is 12-3 with Springfield.
• SS Jake Lemmerman of the rookie-league Ogden Raptors (Los Angeles Dodgers) went 2/5 with a double and a home run in a 9-5 loss to the Great Falls Voyagers. The top Jewish pick in the 2010 draft (5^th round, 172^nd overall), Lemmerman leads the league in doubles (23) and runs scored (62), ranks 2nd in OPS (.991), and has the third-highest batting average (.355).

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Saturday (8/28/2010):

• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers went 2/4 with two doubles and scored the winning run in an 11-inning, 8-7 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. The 2007 NL Rookie of the Year is hitting .395 in August after batting just .200 in July. For the season, Braun is batting .295 with 18 HRs and 77 RBIs.
• Just off the disabled list, SP Jason Hirsh of the “AAA” Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees pitched two scoreless innings in a 2-1 victory over the Buffalo Bisons. The 6’8″ right-hander removed himself from the game after feeling shoulder pain resume.
• C Charlie Cutler of the “AA” Springfield Cardinals (St. Louis Cardinals) went 3/4 with an RBI single and scored a run in a 10-5 victory over the Arkansas Travelers. The 24-year-old San Francisco native hit .292 with the “A-advanced” Palm Beach Cardinals earlier this season but has struggled in “AA” ball, where he is hitting .214.
• 1B Nate Freiman of the “A” Fort Wayne TinCaps (San Diego Padres) hit an RBI double and drew a walk in a 3-2 win over the Bowling Green Hot Rods. The victory clinched the TinCaps’ second consecutive trip to the playoffs. A 6’7″ native of Wellesley, Mass., Freiman leads the TinCaps in doubles (36), HRs (14/tie) and RBIs (74/tie).
• RF David Rubinstein of the “A” West Virginia Power (Pittsburgh Pirates) went 2/4 with an RBI single in a 7-4 loss to the Augusta GreenJackets. An 11th-round pick in the 2008 amateur draft, Rubinstein ranks 2nd among Power players in batting average (.286), doubles (34) and stolen bases (21), and is 4th in on-base percentage (.346) and slugging percentage (.406).
• Playing in the DH slot, 1B Mike Schwartz of the rookie-league Bristol White Sox (Chicago White Sox) went 1/4 with a two-run single in a 9-6 win over the Pulaski Mariners. A 2010 draftee with an uncanny ability to draw walks — he leads the Sox with 26 in just 105 at-bats — Schwartz is batting .248 with an on-base percentage of .423.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Wednesday (8/25/2010):

No Jewish pitchers played in the majors or minors. Here’s how our batters did:

• Rookie 3B Danny Valencia of the Minnesota Twins went 1/3 with a 2-run triple — his first MLB three-bagger — and a walk in a 6-3 defeat of the Seattle Mariners. A mid-season call-up from “AAA” ball, Valencia is batting .325, tops among AL rookies. He is third among rookie is on-base percentage (.371) and slugging percentage (.438).
• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers went 1/4 with a two-run double in a 7-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. The double was his 34th of the season, 4th highest in the NL. Braun is batting .293 with 18 HRs and 77 RBIs.
• LF Adam Stern of the “AAA” Nashville Sounds (Milwaukee Brewers) extended his hitting streak to 10 games, going 3/5 with 2 doubles and a run scored in a 10-3 loss to the New Orleans Zephyrs. According to this article, Stern is hitting a league-best.375 since July 1. He is batting .329 for the season.
• C Ryan Lavarnway of the “AA” Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox) blasted a 3-run HR and walked twice in a 5-1 win over the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. The home run was Lavarnway’s 4^th in the past 5 games. In a season split between Portland and the “A-Advanced” Salem Red Sox, Lavarnway is batting a combined .288 with 21 HRs, 92 RBIs, a .391 on-base percentage and .493  slugging percentage.
• 2B Jason Kipnis of the “AA” Akron Aeros (Cleveland Indians) singled and drew a bases-loaded walk in a 5-2 win over the Erie SeaWolves. A 2^nd-round pick in the 2009 amateur draft, Kipnis is batting .326 with 9 HRs and 38 RBIs since being promoted to the Aeros mid-season. He leads the team in on-base percentage (.405) and ranks 3^rd in slugging percentage (.516) and on-base plus slugging (.921).
• 2B Josh Satin of the “AA” Binghamton Mets (New York Mets) reached base three times (single, walk, hit-by-pitch) and drove in the Mets’ lone run in a 9-1 plundering by the Reading Phillies. In a season split between Binghamton and the “A+” St. Lucie Mets, Satin is batting a combined .322 with 11 HRs, 38 doubles, 73 RBIs and a .410 on-base percentage.
• SS Jake Lemmerman of the rookie-league Ogden Raptors (Los Angeles Dodgers) went 3/5 with two runs scored in a 6-3 win over the Great Falls Voyagers, raising his batting average to .360, second-best in the league. The top Jewish pick in the 2010 draft (5^th round, 172^nd overall), Lemmerman has 7 HRs, 22 doubles, 35 RBIs and an OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) of .993 in 225 at-bats. He has scored a league-best 59 runs.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Wednesday (8/25/2010):

In the Majors:

• SP Jason Marquis of the Washington Nationals had the best outing of his injury-plagued season, pitching 7 ^2/3 innings of one-run ball in a 4-0 loss to the Chicago Cubs. The 32-year-old veteran gave up just 4 hits and 2 walks and received a modest ovation as he left the game. Marquis is 0-7 this season with an 8.79 ERA.
• Rookie 3B Danny Valencia of the Minnesota Twins went 3/4 with an RBI groundout in a 4-3 loss to the Texas Rangers. A mid-season call-up from “AAA” ball, Valencia is batting .330, tops among AL rookies.
• 1B Ike Davis of the New York Mets hit an RBI triple — his first three-bagger in the majors — in a 5-4 loss to the Florida Marlins. Davis is 2^nd among N.L. rookies in RBIs (57) and 3^rd in HRs (15) and runs scored (54).
• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers hit an RBI double and threw Manny Ramirez out at home plate in a 5-4 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 2007 NL Rookie of the Year, Braun has hit .410 in his last 10 games and is batting .296 for the season.

In the minors, Jewish pitchers were unbeatable:

• SP Eric Berger of the “AA” Akron Aeros (Cleveland Indians) gave up just one hit and 2 walks over 6 innings in an 8-1 win over the Bowie Baysox. Since being demoted from “AAA” ball earlier this season, the 24-year-old has a 5-5 record with a 5.68 ERA, 60 strikeouts and 43 walks.
• SP Dylan Axelrod of the “A+” Winston-Salem Dash (Chicago White Sox) pitched 7 shutout innings in a 5-0 triumph over the Lynchburg Hillcats, striking out 8 batters and walking only one. Since being promoted to the Dash, Axelrod is 7-2 with a 2.03 ERA, 76 strikeouts and just 11 walks.
• In his second game since being promoted to the “A” Lake County Captains (Cleveland Indians), SP Jason Knapp gave up one hit over 5 innings in a 3-1 victory over the Bowling Green Hot Rods. The 19-year-old phenom struck out 6 batters and walked none. He pitched 4 no-hit innings in his 8/20/2010 Captains debut.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Sunday (8/22/2010):

• Batting eighth, 3B Danny Valencia of the Minnesota Twins went 1/3 with a solo HR in a 4-0 win over the Los Angeles Angels. It was the 25-year-old rookie’s second home run since being promoted to the majors earlier this season, and MLB.com called it “mammoth.” Valencia is batting .328.
• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers hit an RBI single, a two-run HR and walked twice in a 7-3 loss to the San Diego Padres. It was Braun’s second straight game with a homer after going without one for nearly a month, and it ended Padres starter Jon Garland’s scoreless streak at 21 innings. Braun is batting .296 with 18 HRs and 73 RBIs.
• 1B Casey Haerther of the “A” Cedar Rapids Kernels (Los Angeles Angels) went 3/5 with two doubles and an RBI in a 10-2 rout of the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers. A 5^th-round pick in the 2009 amateur draft (171^st overall), Haerther is ranked 2^nd on the Kernels in home runs (7/tie) and 3^rd in batting average (.311) and RBIs (64).

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Saturday (8/21/2010):

The dominant theme? Home runs…

• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers went 2/4 with a solo HR (see video) and a walk in a 6-5 win over the San Diego Padres.  The homer, his 17^th of the season, was his first since July 24. Braun made a spectacular catch to rob Scott Hairston of an extra-base hit (see video).
• OF Ben Guez of the “AAA” Toledo Mud Hens (Detroit Tigers) went 2/3 with a solo HR, a sacrifice fly, and a walk in an 8-4 triumph over the Columbus Clippers. A 23-year-old from Houston, Guez  is batting .273 with 9  HRs and 29  RBIs since being promoted to “AAA” mid-season.
• 2B Josh Satin of the “AA” Binghamton Mets (New York Mets) went 1/3 with a solo HR and a sacrifice fly in a 10-4 loss to the Altoona Curve. In a season split between Binghamton and the “A+” St. Lucie Mets, Satin is batting a combined .320 with 11 HRs, 36 doubles, 72 RBIs and a .409 on-base percentage.
• SS Jake Lemmerman of the rookie-league Ogden Raptors (Los Angeles Dodgers) went 1/3 with a two-run HR and a walk in an 8-5 win over the Great Falls Voyagers. The top Jewish pick in the 2010 draft (5^th round, 172^nd overall), Lemmerman is batting .349 with 7 HRs, 21 doubles, 32 RBIs and an OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) of .980 in 209 at-bats.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Friday (8/20/2010):

Four MLB players had two hits apiece…

• C Brad Ausmus of the Los Angeles Dodgers had his best day at the plate since returning from the disabled list, going 2/3 with two singles in a 3-1 loss to the Cincinnati Reds. A 41-year-old enjoying his 18^th MLB season, Ausmus is batting .209 in 43 at-bats.
• 1B Ike Davis of the New York Mets went 2/4 with two singles and an RBI in a 7-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Davis, a rookie, is batting .243 and ranks 2^nd on the Mets in home runs (15), RBIs (56) and strikeouts (106), and 4^th in runs scored (51). He has struggled of late, batting just .143 over his past 10 games.
• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers went 2/4 with two walks and two RBIs in a 10-6 victory over the San Diego Padres. A 26-year-old in his fourth major-league season, Braun has hit .353 in his last 10 games and .292 for the season.
• Rookie 3B Danny Valencia of the Minnesota Twins continues to impress, going 2/4 in a 7-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels. A mid-season call-up from “AAA” ball, Valencia is batting .335, tops among AL rookies.

One MLB pitcher shined…

• RP Craig Breslow of the Oakland A’s pitched a scoreless 9^th inning to preserve a 5-4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays, striking out 2 of the three batters he faced. It was just the third career save for Breslow, who typically is used in a middle-relief role. The 30-year-old Yale Alum is 4-3 with a 3.13 ERA. He has 55 strikeouts in 54 ^2/3 innings and has held opposing hitters to a .201 batting average.

And in the minors…

• CF James Rapoport of the “AAA” Memphis Redbirds (St. Louis Cardinals) went 2/5 with 2 walks and 2 RBIs in a 6-3 win over the Salt Lake Bees. Rapoport, 25, is batting .264 with 2 HRs and 29 RBIs since being promoted to “AAA” earlier this season. He has 4 triples and 8 stolen bases for the Redbirds.
• SP Jason Knapp of the “A” Lake County Captains (Cleveland Indians) pitched 4 innings of no-hit ball, struck out 7 batters and walked two in a 5-3 win over the Bowling Green Hot Rods.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Sunday (8/15/2010):

There are six Jewish players named Jason in minor-league baseball today. Three of them shined yesterday:

• 2B Jason Kipnis of the “AA” Akron Aeros (Cleveland Indians) went 2/2 with a HR, a walk, 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored in a 7-0 drubbing of the New Britain Rock Cats. A second-round pick in the 2009 amateur draft, Kipnis is batting .339 with 9 HRs and 34 RBIs since being promoted to the Aeros mid-season.
• RP Jason Markovitz of the “A” Clinton LumberKings (Seattle Mariners) pitched 2 innings of one-hit ball in a 6-3 win over the Beloit Snappers, striking out three and walking none. A 21-year-old who was drafted in the 13th round of the 2010 amateur draft, Markovitz has a 2.35 ERA over four games since being promoted to the LumberKings.
• SP Jason Knapp of the rookie-league AZL Indians (Cleveland Indians) pitched 4 innings of one-hit ball in a 1-0 heartbreaker to the AZL Rangers. A 19-year-old from Westwood, N.J., Knapp gave up one unearned run and got the loss while lowering his ERA to 1.46.

In other minor-league news:

• OF Ben Guez of the “AAA” Toledo Mud Hens (Detroit Tigers) went 1/3 with a home run, a walk and 3 RBIs in a 7-4 win over the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees. Guez, 23, is batting .261 with 8 HRs and 27 RBIs  since being promoted to “AAA” ball mid-season. He is a teammate of RP Scot Drucker, a fellow Hebe.

Finally, over in the MLB:

• B Danny Valencia of the Minnesota Twins went 3/4 with a double and turned a key double play in a 4-2 win over the Oakland A’s. The 25-year-old rookie boosted his batting average to .329.
• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers continued his hot streak at the plate, going 3/5 with a double and run scored in a 6-5 loss to the Colorado Rockies. Braun has hit .382 in his past 10 games but driven in just 2 runs.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Saturday (8/14/2010):

• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers went 3/5 with two doubles and scored the winning run in a 5-4 victory over the Colorado Rockies. A 26-year-old in his fourth major-league season, Braun has hit .394 in his last 10 games, boosting his average to .289.
• RP Scot Drucker of the “AAA” Toledo Mud Hens (Detroit Tigers) pitched two innings of one-hit ball in a 7-3 loss to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, striking out two and walking none. A 28-year-old in his fifth minor-league season, Drucker is 4-5 with a 5.69 ERA, 59 strikeouts and 26 walks.
• 2B Josh Satin of the Binghamton Mets (AA) hit his third home run in four games en route to an 11-9 win over the Reading Phillies. Since being promoted to “AA” mid-season, Satin is batting .325 with  a .417 on-base percentage and .485 slugging percentage. His recent home-run prowess is sudden: in his first 52 games with Binghamton this year, Satin had just one dinger.
• C Ryan Lavarnway of the “AA” Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox) went 3/5 with one RBI in a 6-5 victory over the Richmond Flying Squirrels. Lavarnway opened the 10th and final inning with a single; a teammate sent in to pinch-run for him scored the winning run. Since being promoted to “AA” ball, the 23-year-old Yale recruit is batting .271 with 2 HRs and 22 RBIs in 96 at-bats.
• SS Jake Lemmerman of the rookie-league Ogden Raptors (Los Angeles Dodgers) went 3/5 with a double and 1 RBI in a 7-5 victory over the Idaho Falls Chukars. A 21-year-old recruit from Duke University, Lemmerman is ranked 1st in the Rookie Pioneer League in doubles (19), 5th in on-base percentage (.413), and 6th in batting average (.351) and slugging percentage (.539).
• SP Joshua Zeid of the “A” Lakewood BlueClaws (Philadelphia Phillies) struck out 7 and walked none in a 6-2 win over the Delmarva Shorebirds. A 23-year-old in just his second year of minor-league ball, Zeid has struck out 91 batters in 88-and-2/3 innings but walked only 23. He has a 6-4 record and a 2.74 ERA. (PhuturePhillies.com has an interesting interview with Zeid.)

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Sunday, August 8, 2010:

• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers went 2/4 with a walk, 2 RBIs and three runs scored in an 11-6 win over the Houston Astros. A 26-year-old in his fourth major-league season, Braun is on pace to hit career lows in home runs and RBIs this season. In the past 10 games he’s hit .425 with 5 RBIs and 9 runs scored.
• CF James Rapoport of the “AAA” Memphis Redbirds (St. Louis Cardinals) went 3/4 with a walk and one run scored in an 8-2 loss to the Reno Aces. Rapoport, 25, is batting .263 since being promoted to “AAA” ball earlier this season but .359 in August.
• SP Josh Zeid of the “A” Lakewood BlueClaws (Philadelphia Phillies) gave up just three hits and one run in a 5-4 loss to the West Virginia Power. Zeid, a 23-year-old in just his second year of minor-league ball, struck out 9 and walked two in seven innings, but BlueClaws reliever Luke Wertz gave up four runs in the 9th to lose the game. Zeid has an impressive 84 strikeoutsin 82 and 2/3 innings this season, along with 23 walks.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your Players of the Day for Tuesday, August 3, 2010:

• A day after going 5-for 7 with 2 RBIs, LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers smacked three hits and walked once in a 4-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs. Braun’s two-day barrage has lifted his season batting average 12 points to .286.
• 2B Jason Kipnis of the “AA” Akron Aeros (Cleveland Indians) went 2-for-3 and 2-for-4 in double-header losses to the Altoona Curve. Kipnis, a 23-year-old out of Arizona State, drove in two runs and scored and walked once apiece. Since being promoted to “AA” ball earlier this season, he’s batting a sizzling .333 with 6 HRs and 23 RBIs in 180 at-bats. Kipnis leads the Aeros in on-base percentage (.412) and OPS (.940) and is third in slugging percentage (.528).
• Playing as designated hitter, C Charlie Cutler of the “A+” Palm Beach Cardinals (St. Louis Cardinals) went 3-for-3 with 1 RBI and 3 runs scored in a 7-2 win over the Clearwater Thrashers. Since being demoted from “AA” ball earlier this season, the 24-year-old San Francisco native is batting .295 with 1 HR and 17 RBIs in 146 at-bats.

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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here is your player of the day for Monday, August 2, 2010:

• LF Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers went 5-for-7 (all singles) with 2 RBIs in an 18-1 massacre of the Chicago Cubs, lifting his season batting average seven points to .281. Braun’s only other five-hit game came on 4/21/2009, when he went 5-for-5 with 2 HRs and 4 RBIs in an 11-4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. Braun started the 2010 season on fire but has cooled off considerably since then, batting .355 in April, .286 in May, .264 in June, and .200 in July. He hit .320 in 2009. According to Martin Abramowitz of Jewish Major Leaguers, the record for hits in a single 9-inning game by a Jewish batter is six, shared by Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler and Shawn Green. Kinsler went 6-for-6 and hit for the cycle last year against the Baltimore Orioles (4/15/2009), driving in 4 runs and crossing the plate 5 times. Green, then in right field for the Los Angeles Dodgers, went 6-for-6 with four home runs against the Milwaukee Brewers on 5/23/02, with 7 RBIs and 6 runs scored.
  

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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 — 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 — 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 — A profile of Milwaukee Brewers LF Ryan Braun in Monday’s (5/24/2010) edition of USA Today details the 26-year-old’s growing baseball and entrepreneurial success.

Among the article’s dominant themes is the Braun’s considerable self-confidence:

“He got definite swag,” Los Angeles Dodgers center fielder Matt Kemp, 25, says. “I love watching him play.”

“I’m kind of known for my confidence,” Braun says matter-of-factly. “If you don’t believe in yourself, I don’t see any reason that anyone else would believe in you. If not for confidence, I wouldn’t be here today.”

“He’s cooler than cool,” teammate LaTroy Hawkins, 37, says. So cool that Braun, 26, epitomizes a new breed of young players: brash, full of confidence and unafraid to celebrate conquests. The aim for Braun, an All-Star in each of his first two full seasons: Tear up the league with his bat, and conquer the business world with his brains.

“I didn’t really get to know Braun until this spring,” second-year manager Ken Macha says. “I sat down with all of the veterans to get to know everyone’s personalities. With most, it took about 15 minutes. With Ryan, it lasted an hour, 15 minutes. “I’m not sure I’ve ever been around a player with that kind of talent. And, except for Dave Parker, I’m not sure I’ve ever been around anyone who has more confidence, either.”

In a sidebar to the article, Braun, who is 26 and single, says he is proudly Jewish even though you won’t find him in a synagogue:

Milwaukee Brewers All-Star left fielder Ryan Braun, has never attended temple. Never had a bar mitzvah. But if the Jewish community wants to adapt him as one of their own, calling him “The Hebrew Hammer,” he’s all for it.

“I am Jewish,” says Braun, whose mother is Catholic and dad Jewish…”It’s something I’m really proud of. But I don’t want to make it into something more than what it is. I didn’t have a Bar Mitzvah. I don’t want to pretend that I did. I didn’t celebrate the holidays.”

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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 — The Milwaukee Brewers are putting injured CF Carlos Gomez on the disabled list and calling up CF Adam Stern from AAA to replace him, says the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

Stern, a 30-year-old from Ontario, will be the 12th Jew to play for a Major League Baseball team this year. Through 12 games with the Nashville Sounds this season he is batting .349 with 1 HR, 4 RBIs and a .429 on-base percentage.

Stern may not have much time to impress Milwaukee. Gomez, 24, strained his rotator cuff but is eligible to return to the Brewers’ lineup as early as May 19. He is batting .276 with 2 HRs, 6 RBIs, a .321 on-base percentage and six stolen bases in as many attempts.

Milwaukee already boasts one of baseball’s best Jewish players, power-hitting LF Ryan Braun. Stern’s arrival raises the intriguing possibility that the Brewers’ outfield soon might feature two Jews, if only briefly.

Few would have predicted Stern’s return to the major leagues after nearly a three-year layoff. A third-round pick of the Atlanta Braves in 2001, he made his big-league debut with the Boston Red Sox in 2005. But in two seasons with Boston he batted a mere .143 and struck out 8 times in 35 at-bats. Stern played two games for the Baltimore Orioles in 2007 but without a single plate appearance and has lingered in the minors ever since.

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