JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Sunday’s (5/9/2010) perfect game by Oakland A’s pitcher Dallas Braden naturally made me think about Jews and their historical involvement in one of baseball’s most unusual spectacles. It’s no secret to Jewish baseball fans that Los Angeles Dodger Sandy Koufax tossed one of the 19 perfect games in major-league history, a…
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…
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…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Rookie 1B Ike Davis hit two HRs Friday night to help the New York Mets defeat the San Francisco Giants 6-4. Davis, 23, hit solo home runs in the 2nd (vide0) and 4th (video) innings. His 9th-inning walk turned into a run when Rod Barajas followed with a walk-off HR to…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — New York Mets 1B Ike Davis was the first Jewish player called up from AAA this season. Who will be the second? You’d have to know a lot more about MLB depth charts than I do to make a truly educated guess. Being psychic helps, too; unexpected injuries often are the…
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…
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…
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JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — After missing the first 22 games of the season with a sprained right ankle, Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler returned to the lineup Friday (4/30/10) and made a key contribution in the Rangers’ 2-0 win over the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners had the bases loaded with one out in the bottom…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Jason Hirsh hasn’t pitched in the major leagues since 2008. He lost his first three games of the 2010 season with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, the New York Yankees’ AAA team. His fourth game of the year was a different story. Hirsh, a towering right-hander who stands 6’8″ and weighs 250 pounds,…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — As Jewish baseball fans well know, Chicago Cubs reliever John Grabow has had a tough season so far. An article in yesterday’s Chicago Tribune offered some insight: Before Tuesday night’s game, left-handed hitters were batting .385 against (fellow reliever Sean) Marshall and .143 against Grabow, but right-handed hitters were batting .455…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Jason Marquis, whose debut with the Washington Nationals this season has marked a low point in his 11-year pitching career, has been placed on the disabled list due to bone chips in his right elbow. Marquis, a right-handed starter, was put on the team’s 15-day disabled list but may be out…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — New York Mets first baseman Ike Davis hit his first big-league home run in style Thursday (4/23/10). In just his fifth game since being called up from AAA Buffalo, Davis crushed a Kenshin Kawakami pitch 450 feet to right-center, tying the game at 1-1 against the Atlanta Braves (see video). The…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Jewish position players are batting a collective .318 this season, compared to .256 for their peers. But Jewish pitchers are struggling. How bad are things? Relief pitcher John Grabow (0-2, 9.00 ERA) and the rest of the Chicago Cubs’ bullpen have been so ineffective that manager Lou Piniella decided this week…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — It didn’t take long for the the New York Mets to call up 23-year-old first baseman Ike Davis. Davis, the 18th overall pick in the June 2008 amateur draft, hit a blistering .480 with three home runs, three doubles and 10 RBIs in just 25 at-bats during the Mets’ Spring Training…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — With two out, a man on second and the score tied 7-7 in the bottom of the 5th inning Wednesday, the Washington Nationals weren’t thrilled about rookie reliever Jesse English coming up to bat. True, earlier in the game English had acquitted himself quite well at the plate with a successful…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — A summary of the latest info on Jewish baseball players: Opening-day pitcher Scott Feldman helped guide the Texas Rangers to a 5-4 comeback win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday. It wasn’t easy: Feldman gave up two early home runs, and Toronto no-hit the Rangers through 6-and-1/3 innings. But Feldman calmed…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — A summary of the latest scuttlebutt on Jewish baseball players. LF Sam Fuld, who plays for the Iowa Cubs (AAA), is the best defensive outfielder in the Chicago Cubs’ organization, according to Baseball America. (Bleacherreport.com) 1B Kevin Youkilis, who hit two doubles and a triple in the Boston Red Sox’ 9-7 win…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS –The Boston Red Sox rallied from a 5-1 deficit in Sunday night’s AL season opener to defeat the New York Yankees 9-7. Both of the Red Sox’ Jewish players were instrumental to the victory. New York had already scored three runs in the 5th inning when LHP Scott Schoeneweis was brought in…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Joke about minyans if you must, but when the 2010 Major League Baseball season debuts on Sun., Apr. 4, 10 Jewish players will be featured on league rosters. There were some close calls. Scott Schoeneweis was released by the Milwaukee Brewers on Mar. 23, and the 36-year-old relief pitcher declined an…
