JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — As far as he knew, Ralph Branca was 100% Catholic. A three-time All-Star with the Brooklyn Dodgers perhaps best known for giving up New York Giants 3B Bobby Thomson’s pennant-winning home run in 1951 (see video and box score), Ralph Theodore Joseph Branca was confirmed and baptized. He often attended Mass…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — A comebacker off the bat of New York Mets CF Angel Pagan on Sunday (8/14/2011) may have ended the regular season of Arizona Diamondbacks P Jason Marquis, by fracturing his right fibula. Marquis, recently acquired by the N.L. West-leading Diamondbacks from the Washington Nationals, continued pitching after the 3rd-inning incident but…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Sam Fuld hasn’t had many chances to be a hero since rookie phenom Desmond Jennings assumed left-field duties for the Tampa Bay Rays. But the diminutive 29-year-old made the most of a rare start Wednesday (8/10/2011), reaching base all 5 times he came to the plate and delivering a two-out, game-winning…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Newly-acquired P Jason Marquis will make his Arizona Diamondbacks debut today at 3:45pm EST, just days after the Washington Nationals traded the veteran right-hander for a minor-league prospect. The first-place D’backs hope Marquis, 32, can strengthen their pitching rotation as the N.L. West pennant race tightens. The Manhasset, N.Y., native is…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Middle East politics got you down? Strike out again at the company softball game? Cheer up! Life is good for Jewish baseball fans these days. Here are 12 reasons to smile: So far this season, MLB Jews are out-hitting their peers .266 to .257, and out-slugging them .460 to .400. At…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — In March 2008, the editors of a bi-monthly publication called Jewish Sports Review contacted Arizona State University sophomore Jason Kipnis with a question: was the star outfielder willing to be listed as a Jewish athlete? Kipnis, who was raised in no religion but whose father was Jewish, gave his okay. Fan…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Team Israel defeated Georgia 11-1 on Tuesday (7/26/2011) in a qualifying tournament for the 2012 European Championship. Israeli hurler Shlomo Lipetz, 32, was dominant, giving up just three hits and one unearned run over 7 innings while chalking up 9 strikeouts and no walks (see box score). Three teammates drove in…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Israel is one of five countries hosting a four-day qualifying tournament for the 2012 European Championship starting today (7/26/2011), and thanks to the miracle that is the Internet, you can listen to the play-by-play in English. Israel’s first game, against Georgia, began at 12:30pm EST today. To listen in, visit the…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Cleveland Indians 2B Jason Kipnis made his first MLB hit count. Coming to bat for just the 7th time since being called up from the “AAA” Columbus Clippers last week, Kipnis hit a walk-off RBI single with two outs in the 9th inning to give the Tribe a come-from-behind, 3-2 win…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Cleveland Indians 2B Jason Kipnis made his MLB debut Friday (7/22/2011), and while he didn’t get a hit in the team’s 3-0 loss to the Chicago White Sox, he did manage to get hit. The 24-year-old Illinois native grounded out and flied out in his first two at-bats against before getting…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Highly-touted Cleveland Indians prospect Jason Kipnis will be the newest Jewish major-leaguer. Shortly after today’s announcement of his impending promotion from the “AAA” Columbus Clippers (7/21/2011), MLB.com reported that Kipnis could make his MLB debut as early as Friday (7/22/2011). “It’s time!” the 24-year-old wrote on his Twitter feed earlier today….
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — For the second time in 3 weeks, Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler has had a multi-homer game. Batting leadoff on Saturday (7/16/2011), Kinsler smacked 2 solo HRs in a 5-1 win over the Seattle Mariners. He accomplished the same feat June 29 in the Rangers’ 3-2 victory over the Houston Astros….
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — So much to tell, so little time to tell it. Here are a few items worth noting: The 2011 AAA All-Star Game, which pits the International League against the Pacific Coast League, will be broadcast tonight at 9:00pm EST on ESPN. Cleveland Indians prospect Jason Kipnis will start at 2B for…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — No Jews will be competing in tonight’s Home Run Derby in Phoenix (7/11/2011), but there will be a Jewish player in the broadcast booth: Tampa Bay Rays LF Sam Fuld. “It’s kind of funny they chose me to do it for the derby,” Fuld told TBO.com. “I don’t know anything about…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — A total of 10 Jewish ballplayers were selected in the 2011 amateur draft, one more than we last reported. So where are they playing, and how well? Here, in draft order, are the 10 players, their minor-league assignments, and their performance at this early date: Lenny Linsky, P (Tampa Bay Rays:…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — In his first full season in “AAA” ball, Cleveland Indians prospect Jason Kipnis has all the markings of a star. Player of the Week winner? Yep, just last week in fact. All-Star selection? You bet. He’s the starting second baseman on the “AAA” International League squad, which will line up against…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Here are your MLB highlights for games played on Saturday (7/3/2011), plus an update on each player mentioned: Minnesota Twins 3B Danny Valencia had the go-ahead hit in a come-from-behind, 9-7 win over the Milwaukee Brewers, going 2/4 with a double and two RBIs. The Brewers had led the Twins by…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Names of Jewish players selected in last month’s MLB draft continue to trickle in, and the latest is a University of Pittsburgh hurler named Corey Baker. The St. Louis Cardinals selected Baker in the 49th round of the amateur draft, or 1,490th overall. A 21-year-old native of New City, N.Y., he…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — If Milwaukee Brewers LF Ryan Braun finishes the 2011 season the way he’s started it, he’ll be joining one of baseball’s most exclusive clubs: those with 30+ HRs and stolen bases in a single year. Only 34 MLB players have joined the 30/30 club since 1901 (see table). Two are Jewish:…
JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Josh Satin of the “AA” Binghamton Mets (New York Mets) hit for the cycle Friday night (6/24/2011) in a 5-3 victory over the Bowie Baysox. The 26-year-old University of California-Berkeley recruit, who splits his time between second base and third base, accomplished the rare feat in just four at-bats, starting with a 1st-inning…
