Tagged: Ryan Braun
Daily Minyan – May 31, 2009
In honor of Matt Wieters’ first major league hit – A TRIPLE!!! I want to share with you what I found on sale at the Yards!!!
MATT WIETERS’ JERSEYS!!!!
I know that you can buy some of these guys jerseys so let’s see how they did in their actual jerseys!
Brad Ausmus, C – Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad pinch hit for pitcher Guillermo Mota in the fifth inning and ground out to the shortstop. He lowered his average to .344.
Ryan Braun, OF, 3B – Milwaukee Brewers
Ryan went 2-for-5, and hit his 9th home run, a solo shot in the Brewers win over the Reds. He also threw out Reds catcher Ryan Hannigan at home to get the final out of the 4th inning, as seen below. His average increased to .318.
He earned a Chai 5 for his all-around play!
Craig Breslow, P – Oakland A’s
Craig didn’t pitch in the A’s big loss to the Rangers.
Scott Feldman, P – Texas Rangers
After earning his 4th victory of the year, Scott had a well-deserved day of rest.
John Grabow, P, Pittsburgh Pirates
John pitched a scoreless 8th inning to earn his 7th hold of the season in the Pirates win over the Astros. His ERA fell to 4.50. He earned a Chai 5 as well!
Gabe Kapler, OF – Tampa Bay Rays
Gabe went 0-for-2 and walked once in the Rays vistory over the Twins. His average remained below the Mendoza Line and is currently .181.
Ian Kinsler, 2B – Texas Rangers
Ian went 2-for-4, drove in 4 runs and scored 2 runs in the Rangers crushing of the A’s. He hit his 12th double of year, walked twice and took part in 2 double plays. His average continued to climb back up and is now at to .281.
Jason Marquis, P – Colorado Rockies
After pitching one of his best games this year, Jason also earned a well deserved rest.
Scott Schoeneweis, P – Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott is currently dealing with the unexpected loss of his wife. My prayers are with him.
Kevin Youkilis, 1B, 3B – Boston Red Sox
Youk went 0-for-4, with three strikeouts in the BoSox loss to the Blue Jays. He lowered his average to .362.
Macher (Big Shot) of the Day – Ian Kinsler
Daily Minyan – May 23, 2009
1926 – Hack Wilson smacks a fifth inning home run off the Wrigley Field scoreboard, situated at ground level, to start a 14-8 rout of the Braves. Wilson is the first player to hit a ball off the scoreboard, which, in 1937, will be moved atop the newly built bleachers.
Picture of Wrigley Field showing the field level scoreboard – a rare find!
Let’s see if any of the boychiks got a few good hacks in themselves!!
Brad Ausmus, C – Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad didn’t play in yesterday’s Dodgers loss to the Angels.
Ryan Braun, OF, 3B – Milwaukee Brewers
Ryan went 2-for-4, and drove in his 31st RBI of the year. He raised his batting average to .331.
Craig Breslow, P – Oakland A’s
Craig pitched 2/3 of a scoreless inning in his debut in an A’s uniform! He faced one batter and induced an inning ending double play. He now has gone three straight appearances not allowing a runner on base after allowing at least one baserunner in each of his previous 11 appearances. He lowered his ERA to an even 6.00.
Craig had earned a Chai 5!
Scott Feldman, P – Texas Rangers
Scott is scheduled to pitch later today against the Astros.
John Grabow, P, Pittsburgh Pirates
John didn’t pitch in yesterday’s Pirates loss to the ChiSox.
Gabe Kapler, OF – Tampa Bay Rays
Gabe pinch-hit for BJ Upton in yesterday’s Rays victory over the Fish. He went 0-for-1 and drew a walk to lower his average to .197. Which means that this charming picture of Mario Mendoza remains!
Ian Kinsler, 2B – Texas Rangers
Ian went 0-for-5 and took part in 2 double plays in the Rangers extra-inning victory over the Astros. His average continues to fall and now stands at .287.
Jason Marquis, P – Colorado Rockies
Jason is scheduled to pitch today against Detroit.
Scott Schoeneweis, P – Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott is currently dealing with the unexpected loss of his wife. My prayers are with him.
The article below is courtesy of AP.
The Diamondbacks will be represented by several pitchers at Monday’s memorial service for Gabrielle Schoeneweis.
The funeral is in the morning at the Messenger Pinnacle Peak Mortuary in Scottsdale, Ariz.–and Arizona will be getting ready to play a home day game against San Diego.
“It’s obviously a tough time for everybody,” manager A.J. Hinch said Saturday before the Diamondbacks played the middle game of a weekend series against the A’s. “We want to be there for him. If it were a night game we’d have chartered a bus.”
Schoeneweis returned to the Phoenix area after his wife, Gabrielle, was found dead at their home Wednesday. The team still had little information about her death, Hinch said.
“I assume they’re going through the medical procedures,” he said. “We’re respecting his privacy. Our thoughts and prayers are with him.”
Schoeneweis was placed on the bereavement list and left the team when he received the news before a doubleheader at Florida on Wednesday.
Kevin Youkilis, 1B, 3B – Boston Red Sox
Youk went 0-for-3 and struck out 3 times, however he was hit by a Johan Santana pitch! His average fell below .400 to slightly to .390.
After Santana hit Youk on the elbow they exchanged words. Youk said he reacted by saying, “‘That hurts.’ I was joking around.” He also said Santana wasn’t throwing at him.
But Santana took it seriously.
“Two outs, two strikes, there’s no way I’m going to try and hit somebody,” Santana said. “I hit him and he started looking at me. If you look at me, I’m going to give it back.”
Macher (Big Shot) of the Day – Ryan Braun
Daily Minyan – May 22, 2009
Today marks the 64th anniversary of death Jake Atz, of one of the first Jewish players in Major League Baseball history.
John Jacob Atz, born Jacob Henry Zimmerman in Washington, D.C. (born July 1, 1879 — May 22, 1945) was one of the first Jewish players in Major League Baseball. Early in his career he changed his name from Zimmerman to Atz. Atz was an second baseman for the Washington Senators (1902) and Chicago White Sox (1907-1909). He also was the most successful minor league managers of the 1920s, winning all or parts of the Texas League championship in seven consecutive seasons (1919-25) as skipper of the Fort Worth Panthers.
In four major league seasons, he played in 209 games, had 605 at bats, 64 runs, 132 hits, 21 doubles, three triples, 49 RBIs, 23 stolen bases, 69 walks, a .218 batting average, .304 on-base percentage, .263 slugging percentage, and 33 sacrifice hits.
Atz’ first managerial assignment was the Providence Grays of the East League in 1911, and he failed dismally, losing 69 of 108 games (.361). Three years later, in 1914, he took over Fort Worth. His Panthers had winning records in his first 13 seasons. During their seven-year skein as kings of the Texas League, the Panthers won over 100 games five times – with records of 108-40 (.730) in 1920, 107-51 (.677) in 1921, 109-43 (.717) in 1922, 109-41 (.727) in 1924, and 103-48 (.682) in 1925. In 1926, the Panthers fell to third and Atz would not win another pennant until 1939, with Henderson in the Class C East Texas League, three levels below the Texas League. His career record as a manager in the minors over 27 seasons was 1,972 wins, 1,619 losses (.549), still one of the best winning percentages among longtime minor league skippers.
He died in New Orleans, Louisiana, at age 65.
Let’s see how the the modern day Jewish ballplayers did yesterday.
Brad Ausmus, C – Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad didn’t play yesterday because the Dodgers were off.
Ryan Braun, OF, 3B – Milwaukee Brewers
Ryan went 2-for-4, including his first triple of the year in yesterday’s Brewers win over the Astros. He drove in his 30th run of the year and scored his 31st run of the year – vert nice balance! His average rose to .326.
But perhaps the highlight of his night was when threw out Astro’s first baseman Lance Berkman at home. Berkman didn’t like the call as was ejected by Umpire Delfin Colon.
Ryan threw home and catcher Jason Kendall tagged Berkman as he slid and touched the plate with his left hand. When Berkman was called out he jumped and screamed in the umpire’s face. Astros Manager Cecil Cooper then ran out of the dugout, pushed Berkman away and started yelling at Colon, who took offense and ejected Cooper as well.
Craig Breslow, P – Oakland A’s
Craig, 28, will be joining his fifth major league team. He was a surprise success in the Twins’ bullpen last season, posting a 1.63 ERA in 42 games after getting claimed off waivers from Cleveland.
Until then, he was probably better known for his academic resume. As mentioned previously in this blog, Craig graduated from Yale and majored in molecular biophysics and biochemistry.
“I’m excited about taking a look at him,” A’s manager Bob Geren said. “He’s a left-handed guy that’s experienced. He’s had some success at this level.”
The A’s had seven right-handed relievers and no lefties for Wednesday’s 7-6 victory over the Rays. Though Geren typically downplays the need for a lefty specialist, he acknowledged it will be convenient having that option with Breslow.
Lefties were hitting .211 against him this season and righties .226. But Breslow has battled control problems in 17 appearances, walking 11 in 141/3 innings
Scott Feldman, P – Texas Rangers
Scott didn’t pitch in yesterday’s Rangers loss to the Tigers.
John Grabow, P, Pittsburgh Pirates
John didn’t pitch in yesterday’s Pirates loss to the Nats.
Gabe Kapler, OF – Tampa Bay Rays
Gabe went 1-for-3, clubbing his 7th double of year, recorded an RBI and scored a run. All of Gabe’s action occurred in the 2nd inning, when he knocked in the Rays first run and scored their second run in their victory over the A’s. His average is now right on the Mendoza line, .200. Thus, Mario Mendoza’s card will remain.
However, I’m feeling generous, so I’m awarded Gabe a Chai 5:
Ian Kinsler, 2B – Texas Rangers
Ian went 1-for-5 and stole his 10th base of the year as the Rangers lost to the Tigers. His average fell to .295.
Jason Marquis, P – Colorado Rockies
Jason is scheduled to pitch this weekend in Detroit.
Scott Schoeneweis, P – Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott is currently dealing with the unexpected loss of his wife. My prayers are with him.
The article below is courtesy of AP.
Schoeneweis was back in suburban Phoenix, where his wife was found dead at their home Wednesday. Police said the cause of death hadn’t been determined. The pitcher released a statement late Thursday through his agent Scott Boras.
“On behalf of my and Gabrielle’s entire family I want to express my deepest appreciation for the prayers and support of my current and former teammates, front office and team personnel and dear friends both inside and outside of the baseball community,” Schoeneweis said. “Your support is needed and appreciated during this most difficult time. We want all of you to know how important your love and friendship is to all of us.”
Funeral services were scheduled for Monday at the Messenger Pinnacle Peak Mortuary in Scottsdale. The family asked that in lieu of flowers donations be made to the Ronald McDonald House of Phoenix.
Schoeneweis left the team when he received the news before a doubleheader at Florida. He declined an offer to have teammate Jon Garland accompany him home.
“It’s a long flight,” Garland said. “It was completely up to him, and he felt he would be all right. I couldn’t even imagine what he’s going through.”
Hinch told the team 30 minutes before Wednesday’s doubleheader about the death of Schoeneweis’ wife, Gabrielle, who was 39. The couple celebrated their 10th anniversary in January and had three children together.
“It lets you know the things you have, you need to cherish,” Garland said in the clubhouse before Thursday’s game. “I think everybody at that moment put that in perspective. It was a weird feeling in here. Everybody was quiet and sitting around. The guys handled it in a professional manner and went about their business.”
The Diamondbacks and Marlins split a doubleheader that ended at 1:48 a.m., with Arizona winning the second game in 13 innings.
“It was quite a day,” general manager Josh Byrnes said. “We’ll move forward, but it was a tough day.”
Schoeneweis was placed on the bereavement list. The Diamondbacks were scheduled to conclude their series at Florida on Thursday before flying to Oakland for a weekend series.
“It’s impossible for any of us to not think about Scott and his family,” Hinch said. “On the professional side, the schedule doesn’t stop. We have to play and find a way to play a baseball game time and time again.
“Are we playing with heavy hearts? Yes. Are we playing with one of our own struggling through one of the worst tragedies you can imagine for your family? Yes. But these guys will show up and be ready to play.”
And the message Hinch texted to Schoeneweis?
“Just letting him know we’re here and supporting him and thinking about him,” Hinch said.
Hinch and Schoeneweis worked out together last offseason and have known each other since college, when they were Team USA teammates.
Kevin Youkilis, 1B, 3B – Boston Red Sox
Youk went 1-for-3, drove in a run, scored and walked in the BoSox victory over the Blue Jays. His average fell slightly to .402.
Youk also earned a Chai 5.
Macher (Big Shot) of the Day – Ryan Braun
Daily Minyan – May 20, 2009
Tragic news (courtesy of AP):
The wife of Scott Schoeneweis was found dead at her home Wednesday.
The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office said deputies found the body of 39-year-old Gabrielle Dawn Schoeneweis on the floor of the master bedroom in the family’s suburban home shortly after noon.
Authorities said her 14-year-old daughter called the sheriff’s office to report that she had found her mother lying there and unresponsive.
A team spokesman said Schoeneweis had left the team, which was playing a doubleheader in Florida on Wednesday night, and was returning to Phoenix.
“At this point, anything we can do to support Scott and his family, will be our focus,” said Diamondbacks general manager Josh Byrnes, who was with the team. “I have talked to Scott Boras, the agent, a few times. We’re trying to get the facts the best we can. It’s devastating news. Everyone is taking it very hard.”
The 35-year-old Schoeneweis came to the Diamondbacks last December in a deal with the Mets.
Schoeneweis, a survivor of testicular cancer, is 45-55 with a 4.89 ERA in 11 seasons with five teams.
Scott and Gabrielle Dawn Schoeneweis celebrated their 10th anniversary in January. They had three children together, and she already had a daughter when they were married.
“His world was just rocked. He and his kids, his family, his extended family, his in-laws, everybody’s lives are changed forever. He took it as expected, very hard,” Diamondbacks manager A.J. Hinch said after Arizona lost 8-6 to Florida in the first game. “As I told the team, just give him as much support as you can. Really, tell people that you love them if you do. You can never expect something like this to happen.”
Francisco Rodriguez (K-Rod), who teamed with Schoeneweis in the Angels bullpen in 2002 and 2003, said he was “speechless” when he heard the news.
“I’m sad for him,” Rodriguez said. “I can’t imagine what he’s going through right now, all the pain he’s going through.”
Former Mets teammate Ryan Church added: “He’s always been able to battle through adversity because he’s had cancer before. Everybody needs to be thinking about him and his family and just pray, pray a lot.”
Mets manager Jerry Manuel said he still considers Schoeneweis part of his family. “I mentioned that to our people, that we’ve got to reach out and do all we can to help support him at this time,” Manuel said. “And whatever he needs from us, we’ll be here for him.”
Please join me in saying a prayer for Scott and his family.
Brad Ausmus, C – Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad didn’t play in yesterday’s Dodger win over the Mets. But I’m pretty sure that he was very actively involved in the Dodger’s Jewish Community Night as the only Jewish ballplayer on the team!
Ryan Braun, OF, 3B – Milwaukee Brewers
Ryan went 0-for-2, but walked twice and came around to score each time in yesterday’s Brewers win over the Astros. His average fell to .323.
Craig Breslow, P – Minnesota Twins
Craig pitched a scoreless 8th inning, including one strike out, in yesterday’s Twins loss to the ChiSox. This perfect outing lowered his ERA to 6.28.
And in a shocking turn of events, today, the Twins cut Craig, but he was immediately claimed off waivers by the Oakland A’s. Below are excerpts from the A’s official website about this transaction:
The A’s have gone without a left-hander in the bullpen at times this season, and at times they’ve carried lefties in whom they seemed to have little confidence.
Their search for a successful southpaw might have come to an inexpensive end Wednesday, when they claimed Craig Breslow off waivers from the Twins.
Breslow, 28, was 1-2 with a 6.28 ERA in 17 games with the Twins this season, but in 2008, he was one of the most underrated lefty relievers in the game.
While splitting the season between Cleveland and Minnesota, he posted a 1.91 ERA in 49 games and 47 innings. His ERA was the second-best among American League lefty relievers who worked at least 35 innings, and it was the ninth-best among all AL pitchers who worked at least 40 frames.
A 2002 Yale graduate with a degree in molecular biophysics and biochemistry, Breslow has a career 2.91 ERA with 76 strikeouts in 89 2/3 innings.
“I’m excited about having a left-handed guy who’s experienced and has had some success at this level,” A’s manager Bob Geren said, who noted that left-handed hitters batted .183 against Breslow last season. “He could be a nice weapon to have.”
Breslow, whose one-year contract pays him $422,000, is expected to join the team on Thursday in time to be available in the finale of a four-game series against the host Rays at Tropicana Field.
Scott Feldman, P – Texas Rangers
Scott earned a well deserved day of rest.
John Grabow, P, Pittsburgh Pirates
John didn’t pitch in the Pirates extra inning win over the Nats.
Gabe Kapler, OF – Tampa Bay Rays
Gabe went 0-for-3 in the Rays loss to the A’s. His average fell to an even .200, which puts him on the Mendoza line.
Ian Kinsler, 2B – Texas Rangers
Ian went 0-for-4 as the Rangers got shut out by Dontrelle Willis and the Tigers. His average fell to .306.
Jason Marquis, P – Colorado Rockies
Jason had a well deserved day of rest.
Scott Schoeneweis, P – Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott didn’t pitch in the D-backs win over the Marlins.
Kevin Youkilis, 1B, 3B – Boston Red Sox
Youk is on the 15-day disabled list–retroactive to May 5– and is eligible to return from the disabled list on today.
Macher (Big Shot) of the Day – Craig Breslow
Now an Oakland Athletic!!
Daily Minyan – May 19, 2009
May 19 is Jewish Community Night at Dodger Stadium and the Dodgers will honor the Maccabiah Games, an international Jewish athletic competition similar to the Olympics, during pregame ceremonies. Ron Carner, the General Chairman of the USA 18th Maccabiah Organizing Committee, will throw out a ceremonial first pitch.
Jewish Life Foundation, working with Blazer Media Group, produces the annual Jewish Community Day Pre-Game Ceremonies for the Los Angeles Dodgers. More than 500,000 baseball fans have been touched by this day of fun shared with the Southern California Jewish community since its inception in 1998.
Group shot of the day’s honorees and flag bearers.
Mazel Tov to the Dodgers!!
I bet those people in the photo want to know how the boychiks did! So, get some nosh and read about them!
Brad Ausmus, C – Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad didn’t play in yesterday’s Dodger extra inning win over the Mets. But I’m pretty sure that he was very actively involved in the Dodger’s Jewish Community Night as the only Jewish ballplayer on the team!
Ryan Braun, OF, 3B – Milwaukee Brewers
Ryan went 2-for-3, including hitting his 9th double, walking twice and scoring 4 runs in yesterday’s Brewers win over the Cardinals. In addition to scoring every time he reached base, he also recorded his 29th RBI. His average rose to .328.
Ryan earns two Chai 5’s for his day.
Plus, it’s time to reveal a new, very appropriate logo for Ryan:
Craig Breslow, P – Minnesota Twins
Craig pitched 2/3 of a scoreless inning yesterday in the Twins 4th straight loss to the Yanks. This perfect outing lowered his ERA to 6.75.
Scott Feldman, P – Texas Rangers
Scott earned a well deserved day of rest.
John Grabow, P, Pittsburgh Pirates
John pitched one inning yesterday in the Pirates win over the Nats, giving up one run on 2 hits and a walk. John also struck out a batter. His ERA rose to 5.50.
Gabe Kapler, OF – Tampa Bay Rays
Gabe pinch hit for Carl Crawford and remained in the game for the Rays. He went 0-for-2 in the Rays victory over the Indians. His average fell to .212.
Ian Kinsler, 2B – Texas Rangers
The Rangers had a day off yesterday.
Jason Marquis, P – Colorado Rockies
Jason scattered five hits, walked three and allowed one run in eight innings to end a two-start losing streak. He also struck out three batters. The win improved his record to (5-3) .
Jason had given up 16 runs – 14 earned – in his previous two starts, a span of 9 2/3 innings against the Giants and Astros.
Jason, talking about his strategy said, “I pounded the bottom of the strike zone. I was able to attack the strike zone and put the all on the ground.”
Jason also mentioned how confident he was in his pitching
“I feel like every time I get the ball, I’m going to shut them down. I’m out there every pitch battling.”
Thanks AP for the quotes.
Scott Schoeneweis, P – Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott didn’t pitch on Sunday because the D-backs game against the Marlins was postponed by rain. That is the second day in the row that the D-backs were rained out.
Kevin Youkilis, 1B, 3B – Boston Red Sox
Youk is on the 15-day disabled list–retroactive to May 5– and is eligible to return from the disabled list on Wednesday.
Macher (Big Shot) of the Day – Jason Marquis
Daily Minyan – May 18, 2009
This Date in Baseball History (with an Orioles slant):
1957 – Dick Williams of the Orioles hit a ninth-inning, game-tying solo home run against Chicago’s Paul LaPalme seconds before 10:20 p.m. — a time set as a curfew so the White Sox could catch a train out of Baltimore. If Williams had done anything else, Chicago would have won. The game was replayed from the beginning and Baltimore won.
The White Sox obviously weren’t fans of this T-shirt slogan:
1990 – The Baltimore Orioles tied an American League record with eight consecutive singles in a seven-run first inning against Bobby Witt to beat the California Angels 13-1.
So, how did our guys do on Sunday?
Brad Ausmus, C – Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad went 1-for-5, scored a run and struck out twice in Sunday’s Dodgers’ win over the Marlins. Brad is now batting .346.
Brad was catching Clayton Kershaw, who had a no hit bid broken up in the 8th inning.
Ryan Braun, OF, 3B – Milwaukee Brewers
Ryan went 1-for-3, hitting his 8th double, earning a walk and scored 2 runs in Sunday’s Brewers win over the Cardinals. He also was hit by a pitch and scored when Prince Fielder blasted his 9th homer. His average held steady at .320.
Ryan earns a Chai 5 for his day.
Craig Breslow, P – Minnesota Twins
Craig didn’t pitch Sunday in the Twins 3rd straight loss to the Yanks.
Scott Feldman, P – Texas Rangers
Scott pitched six scoreless innings in Sunday’s shutout of the Angels, allowing four hits and two walks along with getting three strikeouts. He left with the game tied 0-0 and Jason Jennings got the win. His effort lowered his ERA to 4.04.
The Rangers shut out the Angels in Texas for the first time since 2003 and had their first home shutout since last September.
John Grabow, P, Pittsburgh Pirates
John didn’t pitch Sunday in the Pirates win over the Rockies.
Gabe Kapler, OF – Tampa Bay Rays
Gabe went 0-for-2, knocked in a run, scored a run and drew a walk in the Rays victory over the Indians. His average fell to .220.
Ian Kinsler, 2B – Texas Rangers
Ian went 1-for-3, scored a run and knocked in one. He also walked (but was immediately picked off) and slugged his 11th double of the year. His average rose to .314.
Jason Marquis, P – Colorado Rockies
Jason was preparing for his Monday start against the Braves.
Scott Schoeneweis, P – Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott didn’t on Sunday because the D-backs game against the Braves was postponed to rain.
Kevin Youkilis, 1B, 3B – Boston Red Sox
Youk is on the 15-day disabled list–retroactive to May 5– and is eligible to return from the disabled list on Wednesday.
Macher (Big Shot) of the Day – Scott Feldman
Daily Minyan – May 13, 2009
I am proud to present the first Macher of the Month to none other than Ryan Braun, who is so good that he merits his own logo!
Ryan Joseph Braun, was born on November 17, 1983, in Mission Hills, CA, won the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 2007, during which he led the National League in slugging percentage. He also won the Sporting News NL Rookie of the Year, the Baseball America Rookie of the Year, the Baseball Prospectus Internet Baseball NL Rookie of the Year, and the Players Choice NL Most Outstanding Rookie Awards. Over the prior decade, the only other NL hitter to win all 5 awards was Albert Pujols, in 2001.
In 2008, Ryan was included on the 2008 NL Sporting News All Star Team, won the 2008 NL Outfielder Silver Slugger Award, and was third in the voting for the 2008 NL MVP award, with 139 points, behind Pujols and Ryan Howard, for which he received a $50,000 bonus.
Ryan’s father, Joe, is Israeli-born and immigrated to the United States at the age of seven. His nickname is “The Hebrew Hammer,” which references his Jewish heritage, former Brewer Hank Aaron (whose nickname was “Hammerin’ Hank”), and the movie The Hebrew Hammer, starring Adam Goldberg.
It is also the nickname of former teammate Gabe Kapler and in the past was a nickname for Al Rosen
and Hank Greenberg.
Ryan is one of the highest-drafted Jewish ballplayers in the history of professional baseball. The New York Yankees made Ron Blomberg the number one pickin the 1967 draft. Ryan was considered the best Jewish minor league baseball prospect in 2006, and became major league baseball’s first Jewish Rookie of the Year the following season. In each of 2007 and 2008, Ryan hit more home runs (34 and 37) than all but 3 of the top 10 career Jewish home run hitters had hit in their best seasons. Only Hank Greenberg (58), Shawn Green (49), and Al Rosen (43) hit more in a single year.
“Braun” was, coincidentally, the family name of Sandy Koufax, until his mother remarried and he took his stepfather’s name. “There’s no (family) connection that I know of,” Braun said, “but it’s kind of cool.” In another coincidence, Ryab lived for a time with his maternal grandfather in a house that previously belonged to Jewish Hall of Fame outfielder Hank Greenberg. Ryan’s grandfather has lived in the house for over 40 years.
In December 2007, Ryan was the only Jewish athlete invited by President George W. Bush to the annual Hanukkah Dinner at the White House, where he talked baseball with the President.
Now on to the updates. As far as I know, none of our boys played on Monday, so this update only covers yesterday’s games.
Brad Ausmus, C – Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad didn’t play in yesterday’s Dodgers’ loss to the Phillies.
Ryan Braun, OF, 3B – Milwaukee Brewers
Ryan went 1-for-4, and scored a run in the Brewers victory over the Marlins. Ryan lowered his average to .342.
Craig Breslow, P – Minnesota Twins
Craig didn’t pitch in yesterday’s Twins victory over the Tigers.
Scott Feldman, P – Texas Rangers
Scott took a shutout into the seventh and gave up one run and four hits in 6 1-3 innings for the first-place Rangers. He also walked 2 and struck out 2 in the Rangers victory over the Mariners. Scott left with game tied 1-1. The Rangers exploded for 6 runs in the bottom of the 7th, giving the victory to rookie Derek Holland, who earned his first career victory. Scott’s stellar pitching performance lowered his ERA to 4.85.
John Grabow, P, Pittsburgh Pirates
John didn’t pitch in yesterday’s Pirates win over the Cardinals.
Gabe Kapler, OF – Tampa Bay Rays
Gabe went 1-for-2, with a single and knocked in a run with a sacrifice fly in the Rays loss to my O’s. His raised his average to .234.
Ian Kinsler, 2B – Texas Rangers
Ian went 3-for-5, and hit his 10th double of the year. He raised his average to .316.
Jason Marquis, P – Colorado Rockies
Jason didn’t pitch in yesterday’s Rockies big victory over the Astros.
Scott Schoeneweis, P – Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott pitched a scoreless 9th inning, with one strikeout, in the D-backs loss to the Reds. He lowered his ERA to 1.80.
Scott gets the Chai 5 for the second time in a row!
Kevin Youkilis, 1B, 3B – Boston Red Sox
Youk was placed on the 15-day disabled list–retroactive to May 5–because of a strained oblique on his left side.
Macher (Big Shot) of the Day – Scott Feldman
Daily Minyan – Weekend Update, May 10-11
I hope that all the mom’s who read this had a happy Mother’s Day! I know that my Mom did!!
Let’s see if the boychiks have made their Mom’s proud lately. So, how’d they do?
Brad Ausmus, C – Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad didn’t play in the Dodgers’ Saturday victory over the Giants, but played on Sunday in the Dodgers’ extra inning loss to the Giants, where he was 1-for-5, with 3 strikeouts. That poor day at the plate lowered his average to .381, which is very, very good.
Ryan Braun, OF, 3B – Milwaukee Brewers
Ryan went 2-for-2 on Saturday, including a homer (#8) and double. He knocked in two runs, scored 3 times, walked twice and stole his third base of the year in the Brewers victory over the Cubs. He also homered on Friday.
On Sunday, he went 1-for-4, walked once and hit his 7th double of year. Ryan is now hitting .345.
Craig Breslow, P – Minnesota Twins
Craig didn’t pitch in Saturday’s Twins victory over the Mariners. On Sunday, he pitched the 9th inning of the Twins loss to the Mariners and gave up a solo homer to Felipe Lopez. On the plus side, he got Ichiro to strike out swinging – not an easy task. That performance raised his ERA to 6.75.
Scott Feldman, P – Texas Rangers
Scott didn’t pitch over the weekend.
John Grabow, P, Pittsburgh Pirates
John pitched the 8th inning in the Pirates loss to the Mets on Saturday and gave up 2 runs on 5 hits. The two runs were the result of John giving up 4 hits in a row to start the inning. He could have given up more if David Wright hadn’t lined out to short with the bases loaded to end the inning. His ERA jumped to 3.95.
However, if you thought that was bad, John once again pitched the 8th inning on Sunday, with even worse results. He gave up 4 runs on 3 hits, a bases-loaded walk and hit a batter. Not a good weekend for John! After his second consecutive poor outing, his ERA skyrocketed to 6.14.
Gabe Kapler, OF – Tampa Bay Rays
Gabe went 1-for-3, with a strikeout, in the Rays pounding of the BoSox on Saturday. He didn’t play in the Red Sox win over the Rays on Sunday. His raised his average to .222
Ian Kinsler, 2B – Texas Rangers
Ian went 1-for-5, on Saturday, with an RBI in the Rangers loss to the White Sox. On Sunday, he also went 1-for-5 and scored a run. After going 2-for-10 over the weekend his average fell to .316.
Jason Marquis, P – Colorado Rockies
Jason didn’t pitch this weekend for the Rockies.
Scott Schoeneweis, P – Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott pitched 2/3 on a scoreless inning, with one strikeout, in the D-backs loss to the Nationals on Saturday. On Sunday, he faced only one batter, Nick Johnson, and gave up a single who didn’t score, thanks to a double play. After these two outings, his ERA stands at an even 2.00.
Scott gets the weekend’s Chai 5!
Kevin Youkilis, 1B, 3B – Boston Red Sox
Youk sat out the Red Sox’ weekend games with tightness in his left side.
Macher (Big Shot) of the Weekend – You get one guess – of course it’s Ryan Braun once again!!!
Daily Minyan – May 9, 2009
I want to wish all the mother’s who read this a happy Mother’s Day! Especially my Mom!!
Let’s see if the boychiks have made their Mom’s proud lately. So, how’d they do?
Brad Ausmus, C – Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad didn’t play in the Dodgers loss to the Giants.
Ryan Braun, OF, 3B – Milwaukee Brewers
Ryan went 2-for-3 and knocked in the winning run with his 2-run homer in the 8th inning as the Brewers edged the Cubbies, 3-2. Ryan, who is hitting .424 with six homers and 20 RBIs in his last 16 games raised his average to .337.
Ryan’s homer had a familiar feeling. He hit a two-run homer in the eighth against the Cubs in the final game last season that lifted the Brewers to their first postseason appearance in 26 years.
“Not quite as dramatic as the home run last year, but definitely a lot of fun, just the energy, the excitement of the crowd that made it feel a little bit like last year. That’s why you work hard all year is to have an opportunity to be in a situation like that. That’s what makes this game fun,” said Ryan.
Craig Breslow, P – Minnesota Twins
Craig didn’t pitch in the Twins thrashing of the Mariners.
Scott Feldman, P – Texas Rangers
Scott didn’t start and watched fellow starter Matt Harrison shut out the ChiSox, which made my fellow blogger, Jen of http://ajroxmywhitesox.mlblogs.com/ quite unhappy.
John Grabow, P, Pittsburgh Pirates
John didn’t pitch in the Pirates loss to the Mets.
Gabe Kapler, OF – Tampa Bay Rays
Gabe didn’t play in the Rays loss to the BoSox.
Ian Kinsler, 2B – Texas Rangers
Ian had a busy day against the ChiSox. He went 1-for-3, with 2 RBIs, scored a run, walked, sacrificed, stole a base (8) and made an error (#3), In a rare occurrence, both of his RBIs were the result of Ian making outs. His average remained fell to .325.
Ian has earned today’s Chai 5!
Jason Marquis, P – Colorado Rockies
Jason didn’t pitch in the Rockies loss to the Marlins.
Scott Schoeneweis, P – Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott didn’t pitched in the D-backs loss to the Nationals.
Kevin Youkilis, 1B, 3B – Boston Red Sox
Youk sat out his 4th straight game with tightness in his left side.
Macher (Big Shot) of the Day – Ryan Braun (for the 3rd consecutive day)
Daily Minyan – May 8, 2009
Apparently Twinkies are no longer Kosher (I never ate them anyway), and I’m not sure if any of the Minyan keeps Kosher, but let’s see how our (matzo) ballplayers did yesterday!
Brad Ausmus, C – Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad didn’t play in the Dodgers loss to the lowly Nationals.
Ryan Braun, OF, 3B – Milwaukee Brewers
Ryan went 2-for-4 and scored 2 runs in the Brewers loss to the Reds. He raised his average to .327.
Craig Breslow, P – Minnesota Twins
Craig didn’t pitch in the Twins loss to my Orioles.
Scott Feldman, P – Texas Rangers
Scott, who won his second game of the year on Wednesday, didn’t start and chilled on the bench while watching the Rangers lose to the A’s.
John Grabow, P, Pittsburgh Pirates
John didn’t pitch in the Pirates loss to the Cardinals.
Gabe Kapler, OF – Tampa Bay Rays
Gabe went 1-for-4, with a stolen base, his second, in the Rays victory over the Yankees. He is now batting .214.
Ian Kinsler, 2B – Texas Rangers
Ian went 1-for-4, in the Rangers loss to the A’s, hitting his 9th double of the year. His average fell to .325.
Jason Marquis, P – Colorado Rockies
Jason took the loss in yesterday’s start against the Giants. He pitched 6 inninings, gave up 7 runs (5 earned), 8 hits and was twice victimized by Giants catcher Benjie Molina, who blasted a solo homer and a 2-run shot. His record fell to 4-2 and his ERA rose to 3.92.
Yesterday’s game also broke 2 streaks:
Marquis had been 5-0 lifetime at Coors Field before the loss. Molina had been hitless in 12 career plate appearances against Jason.
Scott Schoeneweis, P – Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott pitched 1/3 of an inning, walking a batter and getting the other one to line out in the D-backs loss to the Padres. He lowered his ERA to 2.16.
Kevin Youkilis, 1B, 3B – Boston Red Sox
Youk didn’t play in the Red Sox win over the Indians due to continuing muscle soreness in his left side.
Macher (Big Shot) of the Day – Ryan Braun (for the 2nd consecutive day)
Jews on First 