Baseball

The discovery of a Jewish Negro League star forces a rewrite of Jewish baseball history

Oscar Levis was one of the finest pitchers of his era. He was Black and he was Jewish. And for a century, baseball didn’t have the categories to say so.

Oscar Levis, known early in his career as “Chick Levy,” and later as “Oscal,” was celebrated as the premier pitcher in Panama before joining the Cuban Stars and Hilldale Daisies in the Negro Leagues.
Peter Kurz wears his Israel baseball shirt with pride.

'Where Traditions Meet': The inside story of Israeli baseball's rise from nonexistent to Olympics

Callie Mitchell at her Jerusalem home wearing a Baltimore Oriole’s shirt –  one of the teams her father, Jerry Narron, coached.

Baseball in Israel gets a boost from Jerusalem’s passionate baseball mom

MLB: New York Mets at New York Yankees Saturday, 12th September 2026, 05:40

Fan carrying a Palestinian flag ran onto the field in Yankee Stadium during 9/11 commemorations


‘Emotional support alligator’ expelled from baseball game

Wally was turned away from the stadium, despite having been invited to the game.

Cuban crocodiles (Crocodylus rhombifer) recovered from a poacher, and given by the police to the director of the crocodile hatchery, rest inside a plastic bag before being released into nature at Zapata Swamp, Cienaga de Zapata, Cuba, August 24, 2022. Illegal hunting and hybridization with American

The MLB has more Jewish players than ever

None of them will face a Yom Kippur dilemma this year, like Sandy Koufax's decision to sit out Game 1 of the 1965 World Series.

 Max Fried delivers a pitch in a spring training game against the Tampa Bay Rays, March 21, 2021.

Remembering Jewish baseball legend Hank Greenberg’s 1934 Rosh Hashanah dilemma

In the end, Greenberg played. As the Tigers took the field, Jews in Detroit took their seats for Rosh Hashanah services.

 A BASEBALL team will never win a game by everyone only trying to hit home runs.

Catcher writes about how playing for Israel brought him closer to Judaism

In “Baseball and Belonging", Ryan Lavarnway chronicles his life, athletic career and how a call from Israel’s burgeoning baseball program helped him find his Judaism.

 Ryan Lavarnway, September 28, 2011.

How ‘Pitching Ninja’ Rob Friedman became one of the most popular Jewish personalities in baseball

How did Friedman, a lawyer by trade with only scant amateur baseball experience, become one of the most popular personalities in the sport?

 A BASEBALL team will never win a game by everyone only trying to hit home runs.

Why has Israel been hosting so many international sports tournaments?

In recent years, Israel has hosted European and global tournaments in lacrosse, flag football and athletics, and will soon add volleyball, water polo and baseball to the list.

 MANY OF players who suited up for Team Israel at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 will be back donning the blue-and-white this month at the World Baseball Classic, where Israel will be playing in Pool D in Miami.

These six Jewish baseball players were just drafted into the MLB

The best bellwether of what’s to come is the MLB Draft, which included 20 rounds split between the past three nights. A total of 614 players were drafted this year.

 Illustrative photo of a baseball.

Jewish University of Virginia star Jake Gelof selected in second round of MLB Draft

Gelof joins a talented group of Jewish prospects who have been drafted in recent years.

 Jake Gelof playing for the University of Virginia, April 10, 2022.

MLB team members forced to take New York public transportation due to motorcade

While professional athletes spend months training for their season, they may not have been trained to sit in stand-still traffic while crossing paths with President Joe Biden's motorcade in NYC.

Citi Field baseball stadium in New York, home field of the New York Mets

Chicago Cubs slugger Matt Mervis sells Hebrew merch to ‘help grow’ baseball in Israel

“I learned a lot,” he said about his experience on Team Israel. “Just talking to everybody and learning more about the culture and life in Israel and things that my grandmother grew up with.”

Jun 10, 2023; San Francisco, California, USA; Chicago Cubs first baseman Matt Mervis (22) is congratulated by teammates after hitting a home run against the San Francisco Giants during the second inning at Oracle Park