Baseball: That American Jewish pastime

You know I love Jews and sports. I write about them often. Basketball. Baseball. Football. Boxing. Weightlifting. Badminton—OK, not badminton. And right now a documentary is making the rounds titled “Jews and Baseball: An American Love Story.”

“Jews and Baseball” is coming to LA this month. I’ll have to check it out. Based on the above trailer, it looks like an, um, home run.

Edmon J. Rodman has a preview in JTA:

Narrated by the Academy Award-winning actor Dustin Hoffman, the feature-length production combines archival footage and more recent interviews to supply a decade-by-decade look at the contributions of Jewish players, coaches and owners, as well as the game-changing players’ union president Marvin Miller.

Highlights include a rare interview with Sandy Koufax, the greatest Jewish hurler of all time, and interviews with celebrities like talk show host Larry King and director Ron Howard. ...

The film makes the point, especially in the segment about the Dodgers abandoning Brooklyn, that the story of Jews and baseball is not just about the players, like Koufax, Hank Greenberg, Mo Berg and Al Rosen, or those who made their mark in the front office or owner’s suite. It’s also about generations of lovestruck Jewish fans.

That legacy and love continue. Koufax remains a major source of pride for me, and I can’t help but root for guys like Ryan Braun, Youk and Ian Kinsler.