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Baseball in Israel

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In Israel, baseball is a game that is not extremely popular, although there have been several attempts at changing this. There are approximately 2,000 baseball players in Israel and Israel is ranked 19th in the world in the sport.[1]

History

See also: History of baseball outside the United States

Baseball was first played in the British Mandate of Palestine on July 4, 1927.[2] The first field in Israel was built in Kibbutz Gezer in 1979, and the country now has a baseball field at the Yarkon Sports Complex in Petach Tikva. Israel sends national teams of various age groups to international baseball tournaments each year. The best recent showing to date in International Play (Pool A) was a 1st place by the Israeli Juvenile (ages 10–12) in the 2009 European Championships (CEB). Between 500 and 1,000 Israelis regularly play baseball in amateur league play. Baseball is growing at an accelerated pace, with much greater baseball identity associated with the country.[3]

Israel Association of Baseball

The Israel Association of Baseball (IAB), established in 1986, is a non-profit organization in Israel. Their goal is to promote and develop baseball in Israel. In order to accomplish this they teach baseball to youth, organize national tournaments as well as aid in assisting Israeli teams to compete internationally, and procuring the required equipment. Additionally they will help organize the league, ensure they have a proper field, train the coaches, umpires and player.[4]

The IAB is a member of The Olympic Committee of Israel, The Confederation of European Baseball and The International Baseball Association. The above organization in addition to the Israel Sports Authority, recognizes the IAB as the sole governing body for baseball in Israel.[5]

Notable players to play in the IAB include Alon Leichman and Dean Kremer.

The following clubs are registered to participate in the IAB; these are mostly youth clubs (Senior teams have a star next to their name:)

  • Bet Shemesh Blue Sox
  • Bet Shemesh Comets
  • Bet Shemesh Mavericks
  • Gezer Bats
  • Ginot Shomron Wild Boars
  • Hashmonaim Aztec Flames
  • Jerusalem Lions*
  • Lev Hasharon Nationals
  • Modiin Miracles*
  • Ra'anana Raiders*
  • Rehovot Raptors
  • Tel Aviv Comrades*
  • Zofit Warriors

Israel Baseball Academy

Under the authority of the IAB the Israel Baseball Academy launched in October 2014.[6] The first year's program started in mid-October at Yarkon Sports Complex in Petah Tikva.[6]

Academy players will partake in weekly training. This will give them the opportunities to play in the Israel National Team Program, to be recognized as Elite Athletes in the IDF. The program is also recognized by Major League Baseball and will give them access to programs designed for the best young players in Europe.[7]

The co-directors will be IAB National Director Nate Fish and National Team Coach David Schenker. Dan Rothem, a former college pitcher and Israel National Team player will be the pitching coach.[7] Each year the program plans to include 10 kids age 14-21.[7] In addition to the first year's participants there are 20 kids which are being scouted for year two.[7]

Year two will start in October 2015 with approximately 15 kids.

Israel Baseball League

See also: Israel Baseball League

In 2007, the Israel Baseball League played its one and only season.[8] The six league teams were the Tel Aviv Lightning, Netanya Tigers, Bet Shemesh Blue Sox, Petach Tikva Pioneers, Modi'in Miracle, and Ra'anana Express.[9] All the leagues games were played at three ballparks. The Yarkon Sports Complex, Gezer Field, and Sportek Baseball Field.[10]

In November 2007 it was announced that a new six-team league, the Israel Professional Baseball League, was taking shape, and would play its first season in 2008. Those behind the new league included billionaire Jeffrey Rosen, a major IBL investor who also owns the Maccabi Haifa basketball team, which he bought in the summer of 2007, and is the chairman of Triangle Financial Services of Aventura, Florida; Andrew Wilson, who was a facilitator on the ground for the IBL and now works for Rosen; Alan Gardner, a lawyer from New York, who was the centerfielder for the Bet Shemesh Blue Sox; and Michael Rollhaus, a businessman from Queens and major IBL investor.[11][12]

World Baseball Classic

Main article: Israel at the World Baseball Classic

2009 Tournament

Israel applied, unsuccessfully, to participate in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. They were subsequently invited to participate in the newly created qualifying round of the 2013 World Baseball Classic.

2013 Tournament

Main article: Israel at the 2013 World Baseball Classic

Israel, was placed in the Qualifier 1 bracket with Spain, South Africa and France.

Israel competed in their first qualifying match for the 2013 tournament on 19 September 2012. In this game they defeated South Africa by a score of 7-3. Nate Freiman had two home runs in the victory.[13]

Israel's second qualifying match was against Spain on 21 September 2012. Israel won the game by a score of 4-2. Nate Freiman once again homered twice for Israel in the victory.[14]

Israel's third qualifying match was once again against Spain on 23 September 2012. Israel lost this game by a score of 9-7 in 10 innings. With the victory Israel was eliminated from the tournament and Spain moved on to the next round.[15] Although Israel had won their first two games they were eliminated due to the tournaments modified double-elimination format. This meant that the final game was winner-take-all.

2017 Tournament

Main article: Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic

Israel, was placed in the 4th Qualifier in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. They will be playing 22-25 September 2016 at MCU Park, New York City, New York, United States.[16]

Major League Baseball

In June 2015 Dean Kremer became the first Israeli to ever be selected in the Major League Baseball draft, when he was drafted by the San Diego Padres.[17] It was announced on July 22 that he would honor his commitment and play for the UNLV Rebels, which left three years on his eligibility at the time,[18] with the plan of playing professionally after college.[19] In the 2016 Major League Baseball Draft, Kremer was picked in the 14th round by the Los Angeles Dodgers, 431 overall.[20] His signing was announced by the Dodgers on 16 June[21] and he made his professional debut on 3 July for the Ogden Raptors of the Pioneer Baseball League.

Ballparks

Currently there are three main ballparks in Israel.

The Yarkon Sports Complex, seating 15,000, in the Baptist Village in Petach Tikva, just outside Tel Aviv.[22]

Gezer Field, about halfway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.[23]

Sportek Baseball Field, in Tel Aviv.[24]

See also

References

  1. ^ IBAF World Rankings - Retrieved 18 August 2015
  2. ^ "israelbaseballleague.com: Recent History". www.israelbaseballleague.com. Retrieved June 16, 2008.
  3. ^ Embassy of Israel.
  4. ^ http://www.ibaf.org/en/nation/ebcc9784-ed5b-4471-8b1b-42fb474e9511
  5. ^ http://www.baseball.org.il/
  6. ^ a b First Israel baseball academy could be a real game-changer - Retrieved 30 October 2014
  7. ^ a b c d The First Israel Baseball Academy has Begun - Retrieved 30 October 2014
  8. ^ http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Israel_Baseball_League
  9. ^ http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1164881960205
  10. ^ http://jstandard.com/content/item/This_fan_had_a_ball/
  11. ^ http://www.thejewishweek.com/viewArticle/c41_a1081/News/Short_Takes.html
  12. ^ Sports Shorts – Haaretz – Israel News
  13. ^ http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/wbc/2013/video/play.jsp?content_id=24911733&topic_id=41680128&c_id=mlb
  14. ^ http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/wbc/2013/video/play.jsp?topic_id=31426364&content_id=24952435&query=game_pk%3D342969
  15. ^ http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/wbc/2013/video/play.jsp?topic_id=31426364&content_id=25045977&query=game_pk%3D342971
  16. ^ 2017 World Baseball Classic qualifiers are set
  17. ^ Dean Kremer Becomes First Israeli Citizen Picked in MLB Draft, by San Diego Padres
  18. ^ UNLV Rebels
  19. ^ First Ever Israeli Dean Kremer Drafted By The San Diego Padres
  20. ^ Stephen, Eric (June 12, 2016). "MLB Draft 2016: Dodgers 14th-round pick Dean Kremer was first Israeli drafted in MLB". SB Nation. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
  21. ^ Stephen, Eric (June 16, 2016). "Dodgers sign 8th-round pick Andre Scrubb". SB Nation. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
  22. ^ https://www.triposo.com/poi/Yarkon_Sports_Complex
  23. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/1992/08/23/style/out-there-kibbutz-gezer-king-solomon-s-nines.html
  24. ^ http://jstandard.com/articles/2572/1/Batter-up
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