By Rob Isbitts, correspondent Blake Gailen’s go-ahead home run this September helped propel Team Israel into the World Baseball Classic’s main tournament. It also introduced Jewish fans to a 31-year-old journeyman many didn’t know. Gailen is hardly unknown in the baseball world. Like the Johnny Cash song goes, he’s been everywhere, man. Excluding his recent stint with…
By Scott Barancik, Editor A total of 146 seasons have passed since Lip Pike became the first Jewish player to homer. Now, we have a new milestone to celebrate. Joc Pederson‘s game-tying, 2-run blast last night was the 113th Jewish home run of the season, tying the mark set in 2012. Pederson’s home run, his 25th of the year,…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Israel’s first two wins in the World Baseball Classic qualifiers were fairly close affairs, but the team crushed Great Britain 9-1 in the finals Sunday night to sweep the tournament and earn its first-ever trip to the main WBC event, which will take place in March 2017. Israel dominated equally from the mound…
By Scott Barancik, Editor It took Israel’s bats a while to come alive Thursday at Brooklyn’s MCU Park, but a four-run rally in the 7th inning drove the team to a come-from-behind, 5-2 win over Great Britain. C Ryan Lavarnway led the way with three hits and a walk, and five Team Israel players shared RBI duties, including…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Israel’s entry in the World Baseball Classic qualifiers has 15 pitchers on its roster. And for tonight’s opener against Great Britain, manager Jerry Weinstein will hand the ball to the very oldest: 38-year-old Jason Marquis. No doubt, the Staten Island native has the experience edge. A first-round pick in the 1996…
By Scott Barancik, Editor In 1871, Lip Pike was considered a slugger. An outfielder with the Troy Haymakers, the 5’8″ rookie led the National Association that season with four home runs, which also happened to be the first four round-trippers ever hit by a Jewish baseball player. Flash forward 145 years to Sept. 10, 2016 — also…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league highlights from the week of August 29 – September 4, 2016. New additions Jewish Baseball News welcomes three more players to its list of professional ballplayers. All three will play for Team Israel later this month in the World Baseball Classic qualifiers in Brooklyn. P Tyler Herron (Mets/AAA) is a 30-year-old right-hander…
Your browser does not support iframes. By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league highlights from the week of August 22-28, 2016. New additions Jewish Baseball News welcomes two more players to its list of professional ballplayers. The first is P Joey Wagman (Athletics/High-A), a 25-year-old reliever out of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. The second is 3B…
By Scott Barancik, Editor When Team Israel steps onto the field September 22 for the World Baseball Classic qualifying round in Brooklyn, the roster will feature well-known names and a few surprises. Because the qualifying round takes place during the Major League season, current MLB players like Toronto’s Kevin Pillar, Houston’s Alex Bregman, and Detroit’s Ian…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league updates from the week of August 15-21, 2016. Jewish Baseball News Hitter of the Week C Garrett Stubbs (Astros/AA) hit .545 (6-for-11) with 2 HRs, a double, 4 RBIs, 2 walks, 2 stolen bases, and no strikeouts. Since his promotion to Double-A on July 4, the 2015 draftee — part…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league updates from the week of August 8-14, 2016. Jewish Baseball News Hitter of the Week 1B Cody Decker (Red Sox/AA) hit .333 last week with 3 HRs, 5 RBIs, and 2 walks. The highlight came August 10, when Decker went 3-for-6 with 2 HRs and 3 RBIs. Jewish Baseball News Pitcher of…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league updates from the week of August 1-7, 2016. Jewish Baseball News Hitter of the Week C Andy Yerzy (Diamondbacks/rookie), a 2nd-round pick in the 2016 draft, hit .400 last week with a double, 5 RBIs, and a walk. The highlight was a 4-for-5 game on August 5. Jewish Baseball News…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league updates from the week of July 25-31, 2016. Jewish Baseball News Player of the Week LF Zach Borenstein (Diamondbacks/AAA) hit .600 last week with a home run, triple, 3 doubles, 4 RBIS, and a walk. This is his second straight Player of the Week award. In his first full…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Breaking an 0-for-18 spell that dated back to his MLB debut on July 25, Astros 3B Alex Bregman singled to center field in the 3rd inning of today’s game against Detroit. The 22-year-old’s first Major League hit came off a 93.6 mph sinker from Tigers starter Mike Pelfrey and advanced a runner to third base, earning…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league updates from the week of July 18-24, 2016, a period shortened by All-Star games. Jewish Baseball News Player of the Week LF Zach Borenstein (Diamondbacks/AAA) hit .353 last week with a home run, 2 doubles, 5 RBIs, and a stolen base. Debuts P Marc Huberman (Cubs/rookie), an 18th-round pick…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Scarcely a year after being drafted by the Houston Astros, red-hot prospect Alex Bregman is being called-up to the Majors. He is expected to make his MLB debut tonight against the Yankees in New York. A 22-year-old shortstop from Albuquerque, NM, Bregman has made quick work of the minors. After hitting a combined .294 last…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league updates from the week of July 11-17, 2016, a period shortened by All-Star games. Jewish Baseball News Player of the Week For the third time this season — and the second week in a row — our Player of the Week is LF Mike Meyers (Red Sox/High-A). Meyers hit…
By Sam Brief, Correspondent Josh Satin forcefully flipped his blue New York Mets helmet to the ground, extended both of his arms outward, and jumped onto an ecstatic Scott Hairston. The rest was lost in a sea of blue-and-white pinstriped uniforms—jubilant Mets teammates mobbing Satin, who just seconds before hit a pinch-hit, walk-off single against closer…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league updates from the week of July 4-10, 2016. Jewish Baseball News Player of the Week LF Mike Meyers (Red Sox/High-A) had another strong week, hitting .409 with a HR, double, 3 RBIs, 2 stolen bases, and his sixth triple of the season. He ranks second on the Salem…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league updates from the week of June 27-July 3, 2016. Jewish Baseball News Player of the Week What an incredible week for SS Alex Bregman (Astros). Last year’s #2 overall draft pick homered and went 2-for-3 in the Texas League (AA) All-Star game. He was named to the U.S. roster for…
