By Scott Barancik, Editor Max Fried, a 23-year-old pitcher picked 7th overall in the 2012 draft, was called up today by the Atlanta Braves. Fried’s call-up is nothing less than surprising. The 6’4″ southpaw missed most of 2014 and all of 2015 with injuries and Tommy John surgery, and he didn’t exceed Single-A ball until this season, when…
By Ethel Hilsenroth, contributor It’s August, and Richard Bleier‘s ERA this season is 1.56. That’s after pitching in 31 games for the Baltimore Orioles. A total of 40.1 innings. How special is that? Well, to put it in perspective, not one other American League pitcher who has pitched 40 or more innings this season has as low…
By Scott Barancik, Editor Ryan Lavarnway, a 29-year-old catcher who last played Major League ball in 2015, was called-up by the Oakland Athletics today. Lavarnway was hitting .274 with 4 HRs, 20 RBIs and a .362 on-base percentage at Triple-A when he got the news. He is replacing C Josh Phegley, who took a three-day paternity leave,…
By Scott Barancik, editor When the Los Angeles Dodgers drafted catcher Sam Finfer out of high school in 2013, nabbing him in the 29th round, the Bellevue, WA, native took a pass. Thus began a collegiate odyssey that took him from Seattle University and Bellevue College to Marshall University. After a lackluster junior year at Marshall, where…
By Scott Barancik, editor Jewish Baseball News recently updated its page devoted to all-time Jewish batting leaders. Following are some highlights from the stats, which are current through the end of the 2016 season: It’s been nearly 70 years since Hank Greenberg last swung a bat in the major leagues, but he remains the most dominant player…
(Note to readers: Jewish Baseball News invited author and JBN contributor Ron Kaplan to write about his new book on Hank Greenberg and how it came together.) By Ron Kaplan, contributor When I first began work on my new book, Hank Greenberg in 1938: Hatred and Home Runs in the Shadow of War, it was…
By Scott Barancik, editor With Team Israel’s surprising run at the World Baseball Championship behind us, Jewish Baseball News turns to that beloved annual rite: Spring Training. A total of 19 Jewish players were invited to MLB Spring Training camps this year, either as part of their teams’ active roster, 40-man roster, or non-roster invitee…
By Scott Barancik, editor You had to rise at 4:30pm ET today to watch underdog Team Israel play Korea live in the 2017 World Baseball Classic opener, but seeing Israel triumph 2-1 in 10 innings was worth missing some sleep. There were a few ulcer-inducing moments. Israel — which knocked out 8 hits and drew…
By Scott Barancik, editor When Team Israel announced its 28-man roster for the World Baseball Classic a couple weeks ago, Craig Breslow was on the list. The veteran Major League hurler would anchor Israel’s bullpen during the March tournament in South Korea, equipped with a nearly side-armed delivery he honed during the off-season. But now that he’s legitimately fighting…
By Ron Kaplan, correspondent “Slide, Kelly, Slide!” was usually heard in association with the great 19th-century player King Kelly, who played for several Major League teams and was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945. But fans of the Israeli team that will be participating for the first time in the upcoming World Baseball Classic…
By Jonathan Mayo, special to Jewish Baseball News I never thought the two sides of my life would ever come together. Baseball and Israel. I mean, for most of my life, that would be like peanut butter and tomato sauce. Jews and baseball, now that’s long been a thing. That “Great Jews in Sports” pamphlet they joke about…
By Scott Barancik, editor At 6:00pm ET today, Israel released its final, 28-man roster for the World Baseball Classic in South Korea this March. The list includes a number of players who have never before represented Israel, and a handful who did so both in the 2013 and 2016 WBC qualifiers. The players are: Dylan…
By Scott Barancik, Editor The latest athlete to join the ranks of Jewish ballplayers is a 6-foot-4-inch first baseman with prodigious power and a promising future with the Toronto Blue Jays. California native Rowdy Tellez, 21, turned down a roster spot at USC in 2013 when the Blue Jays offered him an $850,000 signing bonus out…
By Scott Barancik, editor The roster of players set to represent Israel in the World Baseball Classic in South Korea this March is taking shape. Team Israel general manager Peter Kurz, whose squad of former Major League and current minor-league athletes guided Israel to a qualifying-round win in September, said Tuesday that 15 ballplayers had already committed to…
By Stuart M. Katz, correspondent When centerfielder Sam Fuld and nine other Jewish athletes head to Israel on January 3 for what might be dubbed a ‘Baseball Birthright’ trip, they won’t be alone. Wives, parents, sons, and a fiancée will be traveling with this minyan of Major League players and prospects, all of whom plan to represent…
By Sam Brief, Correspondent In September’s qualifying round for the 2017 World Baseball Classic (WBC), Colorado Rockies prospect Scotty Burcham tallied a .455 batting average, the best on Team Israel and among the top 15 for all teams. If not for Facebook, Burcham might never have swung a bat in Brooklyn. Since anyone who is Jewish or has…
By Scott Barancik, Editor On September 5, 1927, Lefty Weinert tossed a 6-1, complete-game win over the St. Louis Cardinals in the first game of a doubleheader at Wrigley Field, yielding 5 hits and no earned runs. It wasn’t just the 25-year-old southpaw’s Chicago Cubs premiere. It also marked the very first Jewish appearance in this storied franchise’s history….
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…
