JEWISH BASEBALL STORIES

You don't have to be big leaguer, owner or general manager to have a memorable experience in baseball. Readers share their stories of how they were touched by the game.

Baseball Stories

I was a 61-year-old rookie

I was a professional baseball rookie in 2017 — at age 61.

I never played Little League, high school or college ball. I played my first game in an adult league at age 45 in 2002.

On July 28 and 29, 2017, I played two games for the White Sands Pupfish of the independent Pecos League in Alamogordo, N.M. On the 28th, I pitched to two Trinidad Triggers batters in my debut, walking one on a 3-2 pitch in the seventh inning and hitting another. The first runner eventually scored, leaving me with an ERA of infinity. The Pupfish lost 5-3.

The next day I played right field as a late-inning replacement and struck out in my only at-bat.

As a 67-year-old six years later, I attempted to reduce my lifetime ERA below infinity by returning to the Pecos League. I was the starting pitcher for the Austin Weirdos in a 22-0 loss to the Alpine Cowboys on July 28. I pitched 4-plus innings, recorded 12 outs and allowed 12 earned runs, reducing my ERA to 29.25. I also struck out and had a sacrifice bunt.

In the first game of a doubleheader the next day, I struck out and caught a fly ball. I also struck out and walked in the second game, eventually scoring a run, giving me an official lifetime on-base percentage and fielding average.

That was the end of my playing career. I returned to the Pecos League in 2024 as pitching coach for the Roswell Invaders for four games and was named bench coach for the North Platte 80s for 2025.

I also co-hosted a 12-episode podcast called “Baseball’s Last Frontier: Stories from the Pecos League.” It was a 2025 finalist in the Sports Podcast Awards for the best baseball podcast sponsored by the Sports Podcast Group.

SHARE THIS STORY
ADD YOUR STORY HERE

Share Your Baseball Story!

Have you ever had a brush with greatness with a star Jewish player like Sandy Koufax or Hank Greenberg? What's our favorite memory in the game? We would love hear your favorite personal stories regarding baseball. Please share them with us here.

  • Drop files here or
    Max. file size: 2 MB, Max. files: 1.
    • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.