Jewish Sports Stars
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GOLDMAN rom Sandy Koufax, one of the best Fpitchers in Major League Baseball history, to Olympic gymnastics hero Aly Raisman, Jewish Sports Stars takes readers on a journey of some of the greatest STARS JEWISH SPORTS moments of Jewish sports stars past and present. This book is packed full with fascinating facts, statistics, and stories about some of sports’ biggest stars. ATHLETIC HEROES PAST AND PRESENT HEROES PAST ATHLETIC KAR-BEN This Page Left Blank Intentionally DAVID J. GOLDMAN To my sister, Sharon Goldman Lerner, and cousin, Jay David Kremen, who were stars to me and loved sports in their own way, and to Jeremy Glick and the other athlete-heroes of Flight 93. —D.J.G. David J. Goldman received his journalism and law degrees at the University of Minnesota. He lives in Minneapolis, where he continues a lifelong interest in playing and following sports. He shares this interest with his two sons and grandson. David Goldman is also the author of Presidential Losers, published by Lerner Publications Company. Text copyright © 2013 by David J. Goldman All rights reserved. International copyright secured. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means— electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the written permission of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc., except for the inclusion of brief quotations in an acknowledged review. KAR-BEN PUBLISHING A division of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. 241 First Avenue North Minneapolis, MN 55401 U.S.A. 800-4KARBEN Website address: www.karben.com Main body text set in ITC Stone Serif Std Medium 10/14. Typeface provided by Adobe Systems. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Goldman, David J. Jewish sports stars : athletic heroes past and present / by David J. Goldman. — 2nd revised edition. pages cm Includes index. ISBN 978–1–4677–1206–4 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN 978–1–4677–1649–9 (eBook) 1. Jewish athletes—United States—Biography—Juvenile literature. I. Title. GV697.G5G65 2013 796.089’924073—dc23 2012048532 Manufactured in the United States of America 1 – DP – 7/15/13 TABLE OF CONTENTS FOREWORD ...........................................................................................................5 BASEBALL ...............................................................................................6 BASKETBALL ..........................................................................................25 BOXING ................................................................................................36 FOOTBALL ..............................................................................................48 HOCKEY ................................................................................................60 OLYMPICS ............................................................................................63 SOCCER ................................................................................................85 TENNIS .................................................................................................88 GOLF .....................................................................................................95 INDEX ................................................................................................................96 Mike Rossman, right, throws a punch at Victor Galindez during a bout in 1978. Rossman won by a knockout in 13 rounds. 4 FOREWORD Growing up, I would sometimes visit the Men’s Health Club at our local JCC. There was a pool table, a Ping-Pong table, and the prerequisite steam bath and whirlpool. I was too young to enter on my own, but my father would take me there once a month. While I wouldn’t admit it then, I did actually enjoy listening to the old guys talking sports. On occasion I would hear, with proud voices, talk of Jewish boxers who would wear the Star of David on their trunks. I had only vaguely heard these names before, and sometimes in a different context—the name Benny Leonard, for instance, was much more familiar to me as an AZA youth group chapter. I knew it was unlikely that I’d actually see a Jewish boxer on television. From time to time, I would turn on the fights, and one night I found myself watching a light heavyweight bout between the formidable cham- pion Victor Galindez and a smaller fighter sporting a mop of dark, curly hair named Mike Rossman. I noticed Rossman had an icon of some kind on his trunks, but it was small and the picture was a little grainy. Could this be a modern version of one of the revered Jewish boxers the old men at the health club reminisced about? Even though the announcers barely gave Rossman a chance, he was fighting gamely and I started to pay more attention. After studying the screen closely from various angles, I realized Rossman was indeed wearing a Star of David. Instinctively, I felt a great sense of pride, and though I often cheered for the underdog during boxing matches, I felt this was an extremely special moment. Rossman did go on to upset Galindez, and there hasn’t been a Jewish boxing champion since. This was the start of my search for modern Jewish athletes. We live in a sports-crazy world, and I count myself as one of the crazed. For a few, sports are big business, and for fewer still, they are a profession. As fans, we tend to identify with the players on our home teams. We have a more personal experience when we are able to connect as a fan to athletes who may identify with us as well. Jews are a very small minority in the United States, and nowhere is this more obvious than in our national sports scene. Growing up, I wanted to become a professional athlete because to me this represented the accumulation of hard work, talent, popularity, and luck. When I noticed that an athlete was Jewish, I found that I was able to identify more personally with his/her success and failure. We all have our own personal stories of Jewish pride, but my first was Rossman defeating Galindez. I hope this book will inspire a few more. —Adam Lerner President of Lerner Publishing Group BASEBALL RYAN BRAUN Born: November 17, 1983, Granada Hills, CA I’m extremely proud to be a role model for young Jewish kids. —Ryan Braun Milwaukee Brewers left fielder Ryan Braun is continuing a long tradition of slugging Jewish baseball heroes. Known by fans as the Hebrew Hammer, Ryan is one of the biggest stars in Ryan Braun takes a massive swing Major League Baseball (MLB). against the San Diego Padres. He took the game by storm in 2007 when he won the National League (NL) Rookie of the Year award. In 2011 Ryan proved that he was one of the best baseball players in the world when he won the NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. Ryan Joseph Braun was born in Mission Hills, California, on November 17, 1983. Ryan’s father, Joe, was born in Israel. Joe is a retired insurance salesman. He began working for his son when Ryan became a professional baseball player. The elder Braun helps Ryan with charity work and day-to-day business. Joe also throws batting practice for his son in the offseason. Ryan’s mother, Diane, works for the brewing com- pany Anheuser-Busch. Ryan has a younger brother named Steve. 6 Ryan was a natural athlete as a child. His favorite sport was basketball. He was also a good soccer player. But by high school, Ryan was focused on becoming a pro baseball player. “[Baseball] offered the best opportunity, even though I think soccer was always my best sport,” Ryan said. Most freshmen athletes play for their high school’s junior varsity team. That’s the team Ryan expected to play for during his first year at Granada Hills Charter High School in California. But the varsity team’s second baseman was forced to miss the season’s opening day game. Ryan was told he would take the open spot. Ryan hit a single in his first at bat. Then he hit a two-run home run. When Ryan came to bat for the third time in the game, he hit a double. Ryan played with the varsity team for the rest of his high school career. He showed the rare combination of power and ability to hit for a high batting average that would make him a star in the major leagues. By Ryan’s senior year in 2002, he was ranked among the top 100 baseball prospects in the United States by Baseball America. Despite Ryan’s strong play, he wasn’t drafted by an MLB team after high school. He decided to attend the University of Miami in Florida. As a college freshman, Ryan made an even bigger impact on his team than he did during his first year in high school. In 2003 Ryan had a .364 batting average, smashed 17 home runs, and notched 76 runs batted in (RBI). He led his team in all three catego- ries. He was named Baseball America Freshman of the Year. Ryan was happy with his success. But he knew he could still improve his game, and he worked hard in the offseason to get better. “I’ve gotten much faster than I was last year, so more bunting and steals should help me,” Ryan said in 2004. “I’ve also gotten better defensively than I was last year.” The increased speed paid off. Ryan had a .335 batting average as a sophomore in 2004, and he contin- ued to slug home runs. He also stole 21 bases. The next year, Ryan had an amazing .388 batting average to go with 18 home runs and 23 stolen bases. He had shown the world that he had the potential 7 to be a star at the next level. The Brewers chose Ryan with the fifth pick in the 2005 MLB draft. Milwaukee wanted Ryan to play in the minor leagues before bring- ing him up to the big club. In the 2005 and 2006 seasons, Ryan played for the Helena Brewers, the West Virginia Power, and the Brevard County Manatees. He kept crushing the ball and moved steadily up through the Brewers’ system. In 2007 Ryan was assigned to start the season with the Nashville Sounds. He smashed 10 home runs in his team’s first 34 games. Milwaukee decided Ryan was ready and called him up to the major leagues.