Current All-Jewish MLB Team

Here it is.  After
compiling lots of information, I have come up with the MLB All-Jewish
team.  As opposed to many lists that I
have seen in the past that include classic names like Sandy Koufax, Hank
Greenberg, and Shawn Green, this roster lists only current/active baseball players with at least some major league
experience in their careers (Even one game experience counts.  If a guy has spent his career in the minors
but has at least appeared in one ML outing, he counts).

 

The 3 points under each name are (in respective order):
their current team/organization, career stats overall (hitters: AVG, OBP, SLG;
starting pitchers: W-L%, ERA, WHIP; relief pitchers: ERA, WHIP), and
awards/achievements.

 

Starting lineup (by
position):

 

C – Brad Ausmus

            Los Angeles
Dodgers

            .251/.325/.344

            1x
All-Star, 3x Gold Glove

1B – Kevin Youkilis

            Boston Red
Sox

            .294/.394/.497

            2x
All-Star, 1x Gold Glove

2B – Ian Kinsler

            Texas
Rangers

            .281/.356/.466

            2x All-Star

SS – Ryan Braun

            Milwaukee
Brewers

            .307/.364/.554

            NL Rookie
of the Year, 3x All-Star,

                          3x Silver Slugger

3B – Danny Valencia

            Minnesota
Twins

            .311/.351/.448

LF – Sam Fuld

            Tampa Bay
Rays

            .252/.368/.344

CF – Ryan Kalish

            Boston Red
Sox

            .252/.305/.405

RF – Gabe Kapler

            Los Angeles
Dodgers

            .268/.329/.420

 

Bench:

 

Ike Davis 1B

            New York
Mets

            .264/.351/.440

Adam Greenberg OF

            Free Agent

            1 Major
League plate appearance,

                             was hit-by-pitch

Brian Horwitz OF

            Free Agent

            .222/.310/.389

Josh Whitesell 1B

            Washington
Nationals

            .200/.352/.313

Adam Stern OF

            Free Agent

            .116/.156/.209

            Was the
PTBNL in the trade that sent Javy Lopez from the Orioles to the 

                          Red Sox

 

 

Starting rotation:

SP – Scott Feldman
RHP

            Texas
Rangers

            .492, 4.80,
1.442

SP – Jason Marquis
RHP

            Washington
Nationals

            .511, 4.56,
1.429

            1x
All-Star, 1x Silver Slugger

SP – Jason Hirsh RHP

            Free Agent

            .421, 5.32,
1.449

Bullpen:

 

RP – Scott
Schoeneweis LHP

            Boston Red
Sox

            5.01, 1.474

RP – John Grabow LHP

            Chicago
Cubs

            4.24, 1.464

RP – Aaron Poreda LHP

            San Diego
Padres

            2.70, 1.725

RP – Craig Breslow
LHP (Closer)

            Oakland
Athletics

            2.87,
1.175, 5 saves last season

 

And for added Jewishness:

President – Mark Shapiro
(Cleveland Indians)

General Manager – Rubén Amaro, Jr. (Philadephia Phillies)

 

Notes:

 

-Yes, I know Brad Ausmus retired last year.  But since he could technically still come
back, and the 2011 regular season hasn’t begun yet, I am including him.  Main reason being that no other current
Jewish player has ever caught a game in either a MLB or MiLB game.

 

-3 man rotation. 
Why?  There are only 3 active
Jewish pitchers with starting experience (in the last 8 years).  What’s even more odd about the pitching staff
is that the 3 starters are righties, while all 4 relievers are lefties.

 

-Ryan Braun at SS? 
Yes sir/maam!  As with Ausmus, no
current Jewish player has ever played SS in a game at the MLB/MiLB level.  But, since this composition is not official
in any way, shape, or form, there had to be some out of the box thinking
here.  And no, it did not include putting
Amar’e Stoudemire at short.  As a follower pointed
out to me on Twitter, Ryan Braun played SS in high school and college.  So, I did some research, and found out a
lot.  Braun, who played shortstop for all
of high school and part of college at University of Miami (FL), was once rated
the 6^th best SS prospect in baseball.  Here is more info about his high school and
college career.

 

-And as an Oriole note, I have to bring up Steve Stone.  Stone, a pitcher for the Baltimore
Orioles from 1979-1981, was Jewish.  From pitching for the Orioles in
their 1979 World Series season to winning the Cy Young Award in 1980, Stone is
considered to be one of the top three Jewish pitchers all-time.  Stone
currently gives color commentary for the Chicago White Sox, but will always be
remembered for his accomplishments as a Jewish baseball player and his career
that met its end in Baltimore.

And that’s it.  Though you will never find more than 2 or 3 Jewish players on a single team at most times in baseball, it’s nice to know that as a collaboration, there are some strong bright spots on an overall roster.

 

Follow me on Twitter! @2131andBeyond

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*All stats from Baseball-Reference.com