Jewish New Year and Jewish Professional Athletes, L' Shana Tova

Rather than do more about the usual today, I would like to share some personal "stuff" with my readers.  My high holy days begin tomorrow at sundown with Rosh Hashanah.  There was a joke once that went "Did you read the book on Jews in Sports?  It is only 2 pages."   But that is not so, and I would like to honor a few Jewish athletes who have enriched my life for 57 years.

I have to start with my great uncle Ben Cohen.  He was the youngest of 18 kids, poor beyond what people can imagine today, and literally fought his way up from total poverty.  He was known as Benny Irish Cohen and was a bantam weight champion in the 1920's.  His boxer shorts were bright green with a big Star of David on them.  At 5'2" and barely 100 pounds, Uncle Ben was one of the sweetest men ever to grace my life.   Saturday nights at the fights — that was my first memory of sports on the black and white TV.

Then came baseball.  I heard rumblings about the Jewish ball player who was a U.S. spy diring WWII and I found him, Morris "Moe" Berg.  He was an average ball player, a great scholar and an American Hero!  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moe_Berg 

There were many others before and after, but then came the two we all know:  Hank Greenberg and Sandy Kofax.  Sandy and Hank were every Jewish boy's heroes.  They encountered the same prejudice on the field the rest of us encountered in daily life and rose above it.  They are ever enshrined in my heart for refusing to play ball on Yom Kippur.  I felt great, and even though I was a girl armed only with broomstick, half ball and big telephone wire in the concrete back alley, I felt like I could play with the best of them. (I sucked.)  We all held our heads up high, and Jewish boys flocked to little leagues all wearing Sandy or Hank's number on their jerseys.  My husband still wears 32 on his office league's jersey.   Sandy lives locally and he is one person I want to meet in my lifetime.

I remember Bernie Kosar, and my Dad yelling for him all the time to score, dammit.  Even though he was not an Eagle...he was better, he was one of us...and his mother let him play football.  

There are more Jews in pro sports than one can imagine, and my goal is to find autographed memorabilia from each and every player out there — past, present and future.  Shawn Green's baseball with his signature Star of David graces my mantle piece at home and has a place of honor at my sports café.  Reuben Amaro, Jr., of my own Phillies, is also Jewish.  A few years back we had a Minyan (10 Jewish men) all playing baseball at the same time.

Basektball at one time was a bunch of little Jewish guys who could really throw a ball.  Ossie Schectman scored the first basket of NBA in 1946. Owners Mark Cuban and Ed Snider also belong to the tribe.

Suffice it to say that this book of Jews in Sports in not two pages... it is volumes and growing.  Thanks for all the great moments my Jewish Sports Heros have given my family.  Please see for yourself and take a moment to reflect on this Rosh Hashana.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Jewish_American_sportspeople

L'Shana Tova and may everyone be inscribed in The Book of Life for a Healthy, Happy and Prosperous New Year.  May all of the current Jewish athletes always remember the guys who came before them and honored our traditions. To the Jewish athletes still with us, L'Chaim!  To those dearly departed, may you always live on in our memories and the memories of those children yet to come.

Happy New Year Everyone!