Power ball

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…

Sunday update

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…

New film explores our love affair with baseball

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…

Cool video on college phenom Garrett Wittels

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Florida International University has produced an 8-minute video commemorating sophomore Garrett Wittels‘ 56-game hitting streak. The video is full of details large and small, from the dimensions of the 20-year-old infielder’s bat (33 inches, 30 ounces) to his many superstitions (such as the Bubblicious watermelon bubble gum his younger brother and…

Braun and Kinsler are All-Stars; Youkilis still has a chance

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…

Oh, bitter irony

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — I was watching my beloved (but struggling) Tampa Bay Rays play the Minnesota Twins last night (7/2/2010) when Twins 3B Danny Valencia came to the plate in the 7th inning with the score tied 1-1. That’s the same Danny Valencia whom Jewish Baseball News recently identified as a fellow Member of…

Lisa Robbins wins bumper-sticker contest

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Congratulations to Lisa Robbins, winner of the Jewish Baseball News bumper-sticker contest. Robbins, Jewess extraordinaire of Tampa, Fla., harangued ten Facebook friends into ‘like’-ing JBN’s Faceboook page. For her effort, Robbins will receive a free JBN bumper sticker (and a date with any JBN hunk who can handle her). Great job,…

Bumper-sticker contest ends today; send in your ‘friends’ names

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Today is the final day of our bumper-sticker contest. To all contestants: Before midnight tonight, e-mail us (sbarancik@jewishbaseballnews.com) a list of all the Facebook friends you urged to ‘like” the Jewish Baseball News Facebook page. Tomorrow, we’ll determine how many of your friends followed your advice. The five best-recruiting contestants will…

Garrett Wittels nominated for ESPN’s ‘Best male college athlete’ award

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — Florida International University infielder Garrett Wittels is one of five NCAA athletes nominated for ESPN’s 2010 ‘Best male college athlete’ award. Fan voting will determine the winner. Wittels, 20, garnered national press by finishing the 2010 baseball season with a 56-game hitting streak, second-longest in Division 1 history. He will have…

Another Jewish draftee: Harris Fanaroff

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — The running count of Jews chosen in this month’s MLB amateur draft has reached six. Harrison Fanaroff, a high-school pitcher out of Potomac, Md., was selected by the Washington Nationals in the draft’s 50th and final round (1,496th overall). According to Washington Jewish Week, Fanaroff was thrilled to be picked but,…

Not a Jew: Stephen Strasburg

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — It’s only natural: flame-throwing pitcher is called up from the minors with great fanfare. First four outings exceed almost any rational expectation of what a 21-year-old rookie might accomplish. And baseball fans everywhere begin checking Google to find out his religion. Who wouldn’t want to claim Washington Nationals right-hander Stephen Strasburg…

Monsters of the Mound

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS —  “Exceedingly tall” is not a common stereotype of the Jewish people. But nobody told the Monsters of the Mound. Of the 19 Jews currently pitching in baseball’s minor leagues, eight are at least 6-foot 5-inches tall, six are at least 6-foot-6, and five are 6-foot-7 or taller. Closest to the upper-deck…

Schwartz signs with White Sox, heads to summer rookie league

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — University of Tampa 1B Mike Schwartz has signed with the Chicago White Sox and will play for the team’s Appalachian Rookie League squad this summer. A 23-year-old power hitter, Schwartz  had a breakout season during his senior year at the University of Tampa, where he was named 2010 Sunshine State Conference…

Facebook contest: Win a Jewish Baseball News bumper sticker

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — It’s the bling everybody’s talking about: Jewish Baseball News’ new bumper sticker. How can you get yours? Soon, you’ll be able to buy one. But in the meantime, you can get one for free — or, more accurately, without submitting cash. Because to win our Bumper Sticker Contest, you will have…

Jews in the MLB draft

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — At least five Jewish players were selected in this week’s MLB amateur draft, two of them out of Duke University. They include: Jake Lemmerman (Los Angeles Dodgers: 5th round, 172th overall pick). A 6’2″ shortstop who just completed his junior year at Duke (Div. I), Lemmerman led his team in eight…

Davis drives Mets to 9th straight home win with game-winning HR

JEWISH BASEBALL NEWS — New York Mets rookie Ike Davis hit a game-winning home run against the San Diego Padres on Tuesday (6/8/2010), an 11th-inning, upper-deck blast that gave the Mets their ninth straight home victory. The home run was Davis’ 7th of the season. See a video of the blast here. And a video…