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Zack Gelof becomes the 18th Jewish MLB player this year — a likely record
(JTA) — When Zack Gelof makes his MLB debut for the Oakland Athletics, which could happen as soon as Friday night, he will become the 18th Jewish player to appear in the big leagues this season.
That is likely an all-time record, topping last season’s group of 17, according to info compiled by the Jewish Baseball News, a site that tracks Jewish baseball players.
Gelof, who played for Team Israel in this year’s World Baseball Classic, entered the season as Oakland’s No. 3 prospect. The 23-year-old infielder excelled in Triple-A, posting a .304 batting average with 12 home runs, 44 runs batted in and 20 stolen bases. His .930 on-base-plus-slugging-percentage led the Las Vegas Aviators.
The Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, native joins the A’s just two years after being selected 60th overall in the 2021 MLB Draft. Zack’s younger brother Jake, a fellow alum of the University of Virginia, was taken 60th overall last weekend by the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was one of six Jewish players drafted this year.
J. the Jewish News of Northern California reported earlier this year that Gelof did not have a bar mitzvah but grew up attending Hebrew school in their Seaside Jewish Community. He and Jake could both represent Israel in 2026.
Gelof will join a talented group of Jewish players who have played in the MLB this year. Some, like Max Fried and Alex Bregman, are considered among the best players in the game. Others, like Spencer Horwitz and Zack Weiss, played in only a handful of games before being sent back down to the minor leagues.
Here are the other 17 Jewish players, with the team for which they most recently played:
Pitchers: Jake Bird (Colorado Rockies), Richard Bleier (Boston Red Sox), Fried (Atlanta Braves), Dean Kremer (Baltimore Orioles), Eli Morgan (Cleveland Guardians), Ryan Sherriff (Boston Red Sox), Jared Shuster (Atlanta Braves), Weiss (Los Angeles Angels)
Infielders: Bregman (Houston Astros), Matt Mervis (Chicago Cubs), Garrett Stubbs (Philadelphia Phillies), Rowdy Tellez (Milwaukee Brewers)
Outfielders: Harrison Bader (New York Yankees), Dalton Guthrie (Philadelphia Phillies), Kevin Pillar (Atlanta Braves)
Designated Hitters: Horwitz (Toronto Blue Jays), Joc Pederson (San Francisco Giants)
Jewish fans celebrated the news of Gelof’s historic call-up.
When @ZackGelof makes his MLB debut for the Oakland A’s tomorrow, he will become the 18th Jewish player to appear in at least one big league game this season, topping last year’s single-season record of 17 players.
An incredible achievement in Jewish baseball history! pic.twitter.com/rWiFdS8x8e
— Zack Raab (@ZackRaab) July 13, 2023
With several months remaining in the MLB season, it’s possible Gelof will not be the last Jewish player to appear this year. There are more than a dozen Jewish players currently playing in Triple-A, including many with previous MLB experience.
Fellow Team Israel alumni Brandon Gold, a pitcher in the Rockies system, and Evan Kravetz, a pitcher in the Cincinnati Reds organization, could make their debuts later this season when MLB rosters expand in September. Pitcher Zack Leban, infielder Jake Scheiner and infielder Chase Strumpf are also playing in Triple-A and have yet to appear in the major leagues.
Scott Effross, a relief pitcher for the New York Yankees, could have added to the historic total but has been out all season after undergoing elbow surgery.
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The post Zack Gelof becomes the 18th Jewish MLB player this year — a likely record appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.