This article was sent as a newsletter. Sign up for our weekly Jewish sports newsletter here.
Hello! While this year’s Jewish High Holidays are still a couple weeks away, Thursday marked the 90th anniversary of MLB Hall of Fame slugger Hank Greenberg’s famous decision to sit out a crucial game for his Detroit Tigers on Yom Kippur.
Just nine days earlier, after much soul-searching, Greenberg had decided to play on Rosh Hashanah — and hit two home runs as the Tigers won 2-1. On the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, the Tigers were on the verge of winning the pennant, but had not yet clinched.
While Sandy Koufax’s iconic decision to sit out a World Series game on Yom Kippur in 1965 rightfully receives ample attention, Greenberg’s High Holiday conundrum 31 years prior also deserves another look.
Meet the Jewish athlete playing on Japan’s national lacrosse team this weekend
Kinori Rosnow has played for Japan’s national team in multiple international lacrosse competitions. (Courtesy of Rosnow)
Kinori Sugihara Rosnow is the son of a Japanese mother and a Jewish father, as well as the grandson of Holocaust survivors. That blended identity made a 2018 lacrosse match between Japan and Israel extra special for him.
It was the World Lacrosse Championship, hosted that year in the Israeli city of Netanya, and Rosnow helped Japan beat Israel on its home turf to capture sixth place in the tournament.
“Playing in this game was like the collision of my two worlds,” Rosnow, now 29, told JTA. “Because I have my dad’s Jewish heritage, and my mom, she’s Japanese, and we were in this game, and there was this moment. We were just like, this is crazy. This is the combination of everything.”
Rosnow’s grandfather was a member of the partisan group led by the Bielski brothers who fought the Nazis in what is now Belarus, and who were depicted in the 2008 Oscar-nominated film “Defiance.” His grandmother fled Germany and moved to British Mandate Palestine in 1936 before eventually settling in California.
Now Rosnow, who played Division III lacrosse at Oberlin College in Ohio, is preparing to represent Japan internationally for the third time, in this weekend’s 2024 World Lacrosse Box Championships in Utica, New York, an indoor tournament where he could again face Israel.
Rosnow said he feels “fully both” parts of his identity — Jewish and Japanese — rather than half and half. Read our full profile of Rosnow right here.
Halftime report
HONORED. Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris was honored this week at a gala hosted by the Capital Jewish Museum, which he called “bashert,” which conveys “destiny” in Yiddish. Harris was feted alongside other notable D.C.-area Jews “for their contributions to the fight against rising antisemitism,” according to eJewishPhilanthropy.
FRECH PRINCE. Last week — moments after this newsletter was sent — President Joe Biden posted a video where he spoke with two-time Paralympic gold medalist Ezra Frech. Biden congratulates the track and field star for his accomplishments and asks about his work supporting other athletes with disabilities. “You’re incredible, man,” Biden says, before saying hi to Frech’s parents.
CHOSEN ONES. The New York City Basketball Hall of Fame inducted its 2024 class on Thursday, including longtime Yeshiva University basketball coach Jonathan Halpert and sportswriter Charley Rosen.
MOVING ON UP. Jewish golfer David Lipsky finished in second place in last weekend’s Procore Championship, his best career result on the PGA Tour. “I couldn’t be happier right now, it means the world to me,” Lipsky said after his runner-up performance. Fellow Jewish golfer Ben Silverman also had a good weekend, finishing tied for fourth in the tournament.
FOR A CAUSE. Speaking of Jewish golfers, U.S. teen Max Margolis raised $1 million for Israeli victims of terror on Sunday at the Caesarea Golf Club in Israel. Margolis played 101 holes as a reminder of the hostages still believed to be in captivity in Gaza. Margolis told JNS that the Oct. 7 attack “spurred a religious revival in me, and I feel way more connected to Judaism.”
Jews in sports to watch this weekend (all times ET)
⚾ IN BASEBALL…
Jews are taking center-stage in the N.L.’s down-to-the-wire Wild Card race between the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves: Max Fried takes the mound for the Braves Saturday at 4:10 p.m. against the Miami Marlins, while Harrison Bader and the Mets host Garrett Stubbs and the Philadelphia Phillies this weekend; Phillies reliever Max Lazar was sent down to Triple A earlier this week. Alex Bregman and the Houston Astros host Kenny Rosenberg and the Los Angeles Angels; Halos outfielder Kevin Pillar is on the injured list. Jared Shuster and the Chicago White Sox, who are on the brink of suffering the most losses in the modern era, face the San Diego Padres this weekend.
⚽ IN SOCCER…
In European soccer, Manor Solomon and Leeds United host Cardiff City Saturday at 10 a.m., while Matt Turner and Crystal Palace host Man United Saturday at 12:30 p.m. In MLS, Liel Abada and Charlotte F.C. play at 4 p.m., Daniel Edelman and the New York Red Bulls take the pitch Saturday at 7:30 p.m., DeAndre Yedlin and F.C. Cincinnati are in action at 8:30 p.m. and Zac MacMath and Real Salt Lake play at 9:30 p.m.
🏎 IN RACING…
Lance Stroll, who did not finish last week’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix, will race in the Singapore Grand Prix Sunday at 8 a.m.
Shawn Green passes the baton
Last night, Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani put together one of the best offensive performances in MLB history, going 6-6 with three home runs, two stolen bases and 10 RBIs to become the first-ever member of the 51-homer/51-stolen base club, a truly remarkable achievement.
As Ohtani blazed his way to 50/50 (and beyond), he surpassed Jewish Dodger great Shawn Green, whose 49 home runs in 2001 had been the team’s single-season record. Though Green has another achievement to his name: One of the only games better than Ohtani’s was Green’s four-homer slugfest in 2002, in which he tallied 19 total bases, the sport’s single-game record. (Ohtani had a paltry 17 last night.)
Green doesn’t mind being eclipsed, at least when it comes to the home run record.
“Huge congrats to Shohei,” Green said after Ohtani had tied the 49 mark. “If you’re going to have somebody tie and eventually break your record, who better than the greatest player who ever lived.”
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
