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The Jewish Sport Report: Your guide to Team Israel and the World Baseball Classic
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Good morning!
This week, we’re talking all things Team Israel. The World Baseball Classic is just days away, and we’ve got you covered with a full tournament preview.
If you want to keep up with all the Team Israel news between now and our next newsletter, be sure to follow our brand new Jewish Sport Report Twitter account, where I’ll be providing updates throughout the WBC. I head to Miami in just a couple days and I hope you’ll come along for the ride.
Everything you need to know about Team Israel and the WBC
From left to right: Dean Kremer, Richard Bleier, Ian Kinsler and Joc Pederson. (Photos from Getty Images; Design by Mollie Suss)
The World Baseball Classic is back next week after a six-year hiatus, and Team Israel is looking to recreate the magic from its unexpected 2017 run.
Israel’s 2023 roster features the most big-league talent it has ever had — with All-Star outfielder Joc Pederson and pitchers Dean Kremer and Richard Bleier among the many players currently in the MLB or with big-league experience. Israel will also face its toughest competition yet, including the star-studded Dominican Republic.
Ian Kinsler, Israel’s manager and a retired four-time MLB All-Star, told me he is feeling good about his team’s chances.
“In baseball, anything can happen,” Kinsler said. “This isn’t a five-game or seven-game series. This is one game [at a time], and if we can put together a really solid game, solid nine innings against these other teams, we have just as good a chance as anybody. I know the guys are fired up and ready to go and compete, so it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
So who’s on Team Israel? Who do they play, and when? How exactly does the WBC work?
All of that and more in our WBC preview right here.
Halftime report
UGH. In case you missed it last week, Boston Red Sox top baseball executive Chaim Bloom told the Boston Globe that he’s faced death threats and an antisemitic slur as his team underperforms.
NEW DIGS. After weeks of rumors, the Arizona Coyotes finally traded Jakob Chychrun on Wednesday, sending the defenseman to the Ottawa Senators for three future draft picks.
WINNING. Duke University men’s basketball coach Jon Scheyer had a tall task this year, stepping into the role after Duke legend Mike Krzyzewski, who led the team for 42 years. Turns out, Scheyer’s up for it: he made history this week as the first head coach in the ACC to go undefeated at home in his first season.
NOT IN COMMAND. The Dan Snyder saga continues in Washington, where ESPN reports on a secret $55 million loan Snyder secured without the knowledge of his co-owners, which could amount to bank fraud. With a federal probe underway alongside the team being sold, this episode is sure to drag on well into 2023.
THE BUCK STOPS HERE. Speaking of Jewish team owners selling, Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry has sold his stake in the team to the owners of the Cleveland Browns for a reported $3.5 billion. Lasry joined the ownership group in 2014. His son Alex Lasry, a Bucks executive, briefly ran for the U.S. Senate in 2021.
YEESH, YEEZY. When a team loses a championship, all the premade merchandise often gets donated to underprivileged communities. But what happens when a sportswear giant unexpectedly has to cut ties with a massively lucrative but apparently antisemitic business partner? Adidas is trying to answer that question — and they have $500 million worth of Kanye West’s sneakers to deal with.
MIND YOUR MANORS. Manor Solomon’s star is rising at Fulham F.C., where the Israeli soccer player — likely the only Jewish player in the English Premier League — has been excelling lately. According to some reports, Solomon may be on the verge of a £100 million contract.
Join us online and in Miami for an exciting event about Jews and baseball!
Our event “Jews on First: A Celebration at the World Baseball Classic” is just days away, but it’s not too late to get tickets to join us in person in Miami or online.
I’ll be sitting down with an all-star panel to talk Jews and baseball, Team Israel and the WBC.
You’ll hear from ESPN’s Jeff Passan, veteran reporter and podcast host Meredith Shiner, trivia guru Scott Rogowsky and former Team Israel players Jonathan de Marte and Mitch Glasser.
Jews in sports to watch this weekend
IN FORMULA ONE…
The F1 season gets underway this weekend, with the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday at 10 a.m. ET. Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll begins the season as the only Jewish racer on the grid, though Ferrari reserve driver Robert Schwartzman, who was born in Israel, isn’t far from the action.
IN HOCKEY…
The Detroit Red Wings and Jake Walman, who just signed a three-year extension, take on the New York Islanders tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. ET. Over in Beantown, Adam Fox and the Rangers face the Boston Bruins, who are on a historic winning pace this season. And Sunday at 7 p.m. ET, Jack Hughes and the Devils play Chychrun’s former team, the Coyotes.
IN BASKETBALL…
Deni Avdija and the Washington Wizards host the Toronto Raptors tomorrow at 5 p.m. ET and the Milwaukee Bucks Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET. Ryan Turell and the Motor City Cruise return to New York on Tuesday for an 11 a.m. game on Purim that, as we reported in January, is sure to be a festive matchup.
IN BASEBALL…
Spring training continues! Tomorrow at 1:05 p.m. ET, Richard Bleier and the Boston Red Sox face Alex Bregman and the Houston Astros, while Max Fried and the Atlanta Braves take on Dean Kremer and the Baltimore Orioles. Atlanta fans will also want to keep an eye on Jared Shuster, who was named the organization’s top prospect and will likely reach the big leagues this season.
IN GOLF…
Max Homa looks to continue his excellent 2023 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational this weekend. Homa remains a vocal defender of the PGA.
WBC you later
Thanks for reading, and we’ll see you in Miami!
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The post The Jewish Sport Report: Your guide to Team Israel and the World Baseball Classic appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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‘The Art of the Yiddish Monologue’ and other mini-courses in Yiddish
במשך פֿונעם חודש יאַנואַר 2026 וועט ייִוואָ פֿירן די ווײַטערדיקע מיני־קורסן אויף ייִדיש:
• „די קונסט פֿונעם ייִדישן מאָנאָלאָג“, וווּ מע וועט לייענען און אַרומרעדן מאָנאָלאָגן פֿון שלום עליכם, י. לץ פּרץ, דער טונקעלער, ב. קאָוונער, משה נאַדיר, רחל ברכות און יצחק באַשעוויס. מע וועט אויל אַרומרעדן די געשיכטע פֿונעם מאָנאָלאָג אין ייִדישן טעאַטער (שיין בייקער)
• שעפֿעריש שרײַבן, וווּ מע וועט אויפֿן סמך פֿון ליטעראַטור־מוסטערן באַטראַכטן די וויכטיקע באַשטאַנדטיילן פֿון פּראָזע — שפּראַך, סטיל, דיאַלאָג, געשטאַלט און פּייסאַזש (באָריס סאַנדלער)
• יצחק־לייבוש פּרץ און זײַנע באַציִונגען מיט די נײַ־געבוירענע ייִדישע סאָציאַליסטישע קרײַזן אין משך פֿון די 1890ער יאָרן (עדי מהלאל)
• די גרויסע אַקטריסע אסתּר רחל קאַמינסקאַ, וווּ די סטודענטן וועלן לייענען אירע זכרונות אויף ייִדיש (מיכל יאַשינסקי)
• די לידער פֿון דוד האָפֿשטײן, וואָס איז מערקווירדיק צוליב זײַן צונױפֿפֿלעכט פֿון דײַטשישע, רוסישע און אוקראַיִנישע ליטעראַרישע טראַדיציעס מיט תּנכישע און מאָדערנע ייִדישע השפּעות (יודזשין אָרנשטיין)
• די ייִוואָ־גדולים אין זייערע אייגענע ווערטער, וווּ מע וועט לייענען די שריפֿטן פֿון א. טשעריקאָװער, מ. װײַנרײַך, י. לעשטשינסקי, י. מאַרק, ש. ניגער, נ. פּרילוצקי, ז. קלמנאָװיטש, ז. רייזען, י. שאַצקי און נ. שטיף (דוד בראַון)
The post ‘The Art of the Yiddish Monologue’ and other mini-courses in Yiddish appeared first on The Forward.
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Suspect at Large in Brown University Shooting that Killed at Least Two, Injured Eight
Police vehicles stand near the site of a mass shooting reported by authorities at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, U.S., December 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Taylor Coester
Police in Rhode Island were searching for a suspect in a shooting at Brown University in Providence in which two people died and eight were critically wounded at the Ivy League school, officials said.
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley told a news conference that police were still searching for the shooter, who struck at Brown’s Barus & Holley engineering building, where exams were taking place at the time. Officials said police were looking for a male dressed in black and were scouring local video cameras in the area for footage to get a better description of the suspect.
Smiley said officials could not yet disclose details about the victims, including whether they were students. He lamented the shooting.
“We are a week and a half away from Christmas. And two people died today and another eight are in the hospital,” he said. “So please pray for those families.”
Brown is on College Hill in Providence, Rhode Island‘s state capital. The university has hundreds of buildings, including lecture halls, laboratories and dormitories.
President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House that he had been briefed on the situation, which he called “terrible.”
“All we can do right now is pray for the victims and for those that were very badly hurt.”
Compared to many countries, mass shootings in schools, workplaces, and places of worship are more common in the US, which has some of the most permissive gun laws in the developed world. The Gun Violence Archive, which defines mass shootings as any incident in which four or more victims have been shot, has counted 389 of them this year in the US.
Last year the US had more than 500 mass shootings, according to the archive.
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Rights Groups Condemn Re-Arrest of Nobel Laureate Mohammadi in Iran
Taghi Ramahi, husband of Narges Mohammadi, a jailed Iranian women’s rights advocate, who won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize, poses with an undated photo of himself and his wife, during an interview at his home in Paris, France, October 6, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Christian Hartmann
International human rights groups have condemned the re-arrest of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi in Iran, with the Nobel committee calling on Iranian authorities to immediately clarify her whereabouts.
Mohammadi’s French lawyer, Chirine Ardakani, said on X that the human rights activist was arrested on Friday after denouncing the suspicious death of lawyer Khosrow Alikordi at his memorial ceremony in the northeastern city of Mashhad.
Mashhad prosecutor Hasan Hematifar told reporters on Saturday that Mohammadi was among 39 people arrested after the ceremony.
Hematifar said she and Alikordi’s brother had made provocative remarks at the event and encouraged those present “to chant ‘norm‑breaking’ slogans” and disturb the peace, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.
The prosecutor said Mashhad’s chief of police and another officer received knife wounds when trying to manage the scene.
CALLS FOR RELEASE
The Norwegian Nobel Committee called on Iranian authorities “to immediately clarify Mohammadi’s whereabouts, ensure her safety and integrity, and to release her without conditions.”
The European Union also called for Mohammadi’s release. “The EU urges Iranian authorities to release Ms Mohammadi, taking also into account her fragile health condition, as well as all those unjustly arrested in the exercise of their freedom of expression,” an EU spokesperson said on Saturday.
A video purportedly showing Mohammadi, 53, without the mandatory veil, standing on a car with a microphone and chanting “Long Live Iran” in front of a crowd, has gone viral on social media.
Ardakani said Mohammadi was beaten before her arrest.
Reporters Without Borders said four journalists and other participants were also arrested at the memorial for human rights lawyer Alikordi, who was found dead in his office on December 5.
Authorities gave the cause of his death as a heart attack, but rights groups have called for an investigation into his death.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said the crowd also chanted “death to the dictator,” a reference to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as: “We fight, we die, we accept no humiliation.”
Mohammadi, who received the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize, has spent more than 10 years of her life in prison, most recently from November 2021 when she was charged with “propaganda against the state,” “acting against national security,” and membership of “illegal organizations.”
This year’s Nobel Peace Prize winner, the Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, said on Saturday that the opposition’s campaign in Venezuela was akin to that taking place in Iran.
“In Oslo this week, the world honored the power of conscience. I said to the ‘citizens of the world’ that our struggle is a long march toward freedom. That march is not Venezuelan alone. It is Iranian, it is universal,” she said on X on Saturday.
