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The Jewish Sport Report: 18 Jewish players in the MLB is a likely — and fitting — record
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Good afternoon, Jewish sports fans!
Few families had as exciting a week as the Gelofs did. On Sunday, Jake Gelof, a power-hitting third baseman from the University of Virginia, was drafted 60th overall by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the MLB Draft. (More on him and the other Jewish draftees below).
Then on Wednesday, older brother Zack Gelof, another UVA alum who was drafted (also 60th overall!) by the Oakland Athletics in 2021, received the news every young ballplayer dreams of: he’s being promoted to the big league club.
Zack, who played for Team Israel in the World Baseball Classic earlier this year, will become the 18th Jewish player to appear in the MLB this year — a likely record.
What a way to start the second half of the season! Mazel tov to the Gelof fam.
Meet Daniel Edelman, rising MLS superstar
At just 20, Jewish player Daniel Edelman is a rising star for the New York Red Bulls. (Courtesy New York Red Bulls)
New York Red Bulls midfielder Daniel Edelman is only 20 years old, but his star has already risen considerably in the past year.
Edelman won the Red Bulls’ Newcomer of the Year award last season. Then, as captain of the under-20 U.S. Men’s National Team, he led the team to the quarterfinals at the under-20 World Cup in Argentina in May. He was also selected as one of the New York Jewish Week’s “36 to Watch” for 2023.
This past weekend, Edelman received an honor befit for a hero: the team held a Marvel Night at Red Bull Arena and gave away an Edelman bobblehead inspired by a “Guardians of the Galaxy” character.
“It’s really exciting,” Edelman told my colleague Lisa Keys. “It’s my second season with the team, and to have a bobblehead made of me is pretty cool. This is a team I grew up looking up to, admiring all the players.”
Read our profile of the soccer star here.
Halftime report
SOLOMON’S NEW KINGDOM. Israeli soccer phenom Manor Solomon has signed a five-year contract with Premier League powerhouse Tottenham, a club with a rich (and at times controversial) Jewish history. The team’s fanbase, which has historically included many Jews, has called itself the “Yid army.”
ROAD TEAM. A team of 14 baseball players from the North Israel Little League are traveling to Kutno, Poland, today to represent Israel in the Little League World Series qualifiers. This is Israel’s first appearance in the tournament. “When I look at this team, I see what Israel should be,” team manager David Weiss said in a press release.
UNBOXING. The Los Angeles Times announced this week that it would stop posting box scores in its sports section — a change that upset many Jewish fans who rely on the paper for sports news on Shabbat. The Forward has the story. (Plus, The New York Times announced it would shutter its sports section and instead focus on its coverage in The Athletic.)
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE. In the pantheon of sports executives, Adam Neuman is a rising star. After a stint as chief of staff for strategy and operations at the Big Ten Conference, Neuman is returning to his hometown to serve in a similar role with the Baltimore Ravens.
FULL COURT PRESS. New Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia, who purchased the team late last year, has already had an impact in the organization. According to ESPN, Ishbia “has let it be known how he is going to run the Suns: aggressively and from the front.”
Meet the 2023 Jewish MLB Draft class
Jake Gelof, left, and Zach Levenson, right, headline the group of Jewish players drafted into MLB in 2023. (Getty Images)
Over 600 baseball players were drafted across 20 rounds of the MLB Draft this week — and six of them are Jewish.
There’s the aforementioned Jake Gelof, who just set the all-time home run record at UVA.
Then there’s outfielder Zach Levenson (158th), who was ranked 204th in MLB’s prospect rankings, plus Lucas Braun (189th), RJ Schreck (277th), Ben Simon (396th) and Will King (609th).
Meet all six draftees right here.
Jews in sports to watch this weekend
IN BASEBALL…
Dean Kremer takes the mound for the Baltimore Orioles against the Miami Marlins tonight at 7:05 p.m. ET. Jake Bird and the Colorado Rockies face Harrison Bader and the New York Yankees tonight at 8:40 p.m. ET. Zack Gelof is likely to make his major league debut as his Oakland A’s host the Minnesota Twins tonight at 9:40 p.m. ET.
IN SOCCER…
Daniel Edelman and the NY Red Bulls host Real Salt Lake tomorrow at 9:30 p.m. ET. Manor Solomon and his new club Tottenham begin their preseason friendly matches Tuesday at 6 a.m. ET against West Ham.
IN GOLF…
Max Homa is across the pond this weekend for the Scottish Open, while Ben Silverman is competing at The Ascendant tournament in Colorado.
Highlights from the JCC Maccabi Games
The victorious under-17 boys soccer team at the JCC Maccabi Games (Courtesy of JCC Association)
The JCC Maccabi Games wrapped up this week, where 74 delegations of more than 1,000 Jewish teens from 10 countries competed for four days in Israel.
A mixed team of athletes from Morocco, Ukraine, Israel, Washington and Indiana won a gold medal in under-17 boys soccer — despite speaking four different languages. In swimming, a pair of Ukrainian teens won gold. And now that the competition is over, teens will spend time touring Israel on an educational program.
Congrats to all the medal winners!
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The post The Jewish Sport Report: 18 Jewish players in the MLB is a likely — and fitting — record appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Lebanon Must Disarm Hezbollah to Have a Shot at Better Days, Says US Envoy
Thomas Barrack at the Brooklyn Federal Courthouse in Brooklyn, New York, U.S., November 4, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
i24 News – Lebanon’s daunting social, economic and political issues would not get resolved unless the state persists in the efforts to disarm Hezbollah, the Iranian proxy behind so much of the unrest and destruction, special US envoy Tom Barrack told The National.
“You have Israel on one side, you have Iran on the other, and now you have Syria manifesting itself so quickly that if Lebanon doesn’t move, it’s going to be Bilad Al Sham again,” he said, using the historical Arabic name for the region sometimes known as “larger Syria.”
The official stressed the need to follow through on promises to disarm the Iranian proxy, which suffered severe blows from Israel in the past year, including the elimination of its entire leadership, and is considered a weakened though still dangerous jihadist outfit.
“There are issues that we have to arm wrestle with each other over to come to a final conclusion. Remember, we have an agreement, it was a great agreement. The problem is, nobody followed it,” he told The National.
Barrack spoke on the heels of a trip to Beirut, where he proposed a diplomatic plan for the region involving the full disarmament of Hezbollah by the Lebanese state.
The post Lebanon Must Disarm Hezbollah to Have a Shot at Better Days, Says US Envoy first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Report: Putin Urges Iran to Accept ‘Zero Enrichment’ Nuclear Deal With US
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of a cultural forum dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the birth of the Turkmen poet and philosopher Magtymguly Fragi, in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Oct. 11, 2024. Photo: Sputnik/Alexander Scherbak/Pool via REUTERS
i24 News – Russian President Vladimir Putin has told Iranian leadership that he supports the idea of a nuclear deal in which Iran is unable to enrich uranium, the Axios website reported on Saturday. The Russian strongman also relayed the message to his American counterpart, President Donald Trump, the report said.
Iranian news agency Tasnim issued a denial, citing an “informed source” as saying Putin had not sent any message to Iran in this regard.
Also on Saturday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that “Any negotiated solution must respect Iran’s right to enrichment. No agreement without recognizing our right to enrichment. If negotiations occur, the only topic will be the nuclear program. No other issues, especially defense or military matters, will be on the agenda.”
The post Report: Putin Urges Iran to Accept ‘Zero Enrichment’ Nuclear Deal With US first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Syria’s Al-Sharaa Attending At Least One Meeting With Israeli Officials in Azerbaijan
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa speaks during a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron after a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, May 7, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/Pool
i24 News – Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa is attending at least one meeting with Israeli officials in Azerbaijan today, despite sources in Damascus claiming he wasn’t attending, a Syrian source close to President Al-Sharaa tells i24NEWS.
The Syrian source stated that this is a series of two or three meetings between the sides, with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani also in attendance, along with Ahmed Al-Dalati, the Syrian government’s liaison for security meetings with Israel.
The high-level Israeli delegation includes a special envoy of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, as well as security and military figures.
The purpose of the meetings is to discuss further details of the security agreement to be signed between Israel and Syria, the Iranian threat in Syria and Lebanon, Hezbollah’s weapons, the weapons of Palestinian militias, the Palestinians camps in Lebanon, and the future of Palestinian refugees from Gaza in the region.
The possibility of opening an Israeli coordination office in Damascus, without diplomatic status, might also be discussed.
The source stated that the decision to hold the meetings in Azerbaijan, made by Israel and the US, is intended to send a message to Iran.
The post Syria’s Al-Sharaa Attending At Least One Meeting With Israeli Officials in Azerbaijan first appeared on Algemeiner.com.