Jews and Baseball

This history follows up on the well-received first volume and traces the arc of Jews in baseball after Hank Greenberg retired in 1948. During this postwar period, Jews saw greater acceptance into the American mainstream as organized anti–Semitism was largely displaced by greater affluence, education, and a more geographically dispersed Jewish community. Jews continued to flourish in baseball—new stars like Al Rosen, Sandy Koufax and Shawn Green debuted, and off the field the era brought more Jewish owners, executives, sportswriters, broadcasters, and even a commissioner. This book further demonstrates how and why Jews and baseball have continued to grow together.

A member of the Society for American Baseball Research, Burton A. Boxerman taught history for 30 years and contributes to numerous historical journals. A longtime baseball fan, he lives in St. Louis, Missouri.
Writer and researcher Benita W. Boxerman is retired from one of the largest public relations firms in the United States and is a member of SABR. She lives in St. Louis, Missouri.

Burton A. Boxerman and Benita W. Boxerman
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 340
Bibliographic Info: 81 photos, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2016 [2010]
pISBN: 978-1-4766-6810-9
eISBN: 978-0-7864-5705-2
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments      vii
Foreword by Ron Kaplan      1
Prologue      3

1. A New Golden Age Begins      5
2. “…and Last in the American League”      30
3. The Next Jewish Superstar      42
4. Spanning the Decades      56
5. Sandy Koufax—“Super Jew”      74
6. Baseball’s Master Statistician      92
7. The Voice of Baseball      98
8. The Class of 1965–66      111
9. The Winningest Jewish Pitcher      130
10. The Man Who Revolutionized Baseball      137
11. Baseball’s First Designated Hitter      153
12. The Numbers Decline      161
13. Another Cy Young Winner      175
14. Jews by Choice      182
15. Two Jewish Managers      199
16. The Resurgence of Jewish Players      206
17. A New Icon Arrives      235
18. The First Jewish Commissioner      242
19. The Twenty-First Century      253
20. Certified Stars      269

Epilogue      280
Notes      283
Bibliography      315
Index      321

“definitive…solid. No detail in the long history of Jews in baseball has been left out…lovingly and painstakingly compiled”—St. Louis Jewish Light; “full of history and memory…richly and appropriately ornamented with stats, color commentary, and lots of evocative photographs…noteworthy”—The Jewish Journal; “the Boxermans…love affair with the game shows in the care and perseverance they used to track down so many stories from so many sources. This volume includes an impressive 38 pages of notes and bibliography”—jweekly.com; “intriguing…a thorough and worthy contribution”—School Library Journal; “a good addition”—Library Journal; “well-researched”—Sports Collectors Digest; “If you liked Volume 1, you’ll like Volume 2. The book is a seamless continuation for seamheads of all varieties”—Jewish Book World; “indispensible…[The Boxermans] have not only written a compendium of Jewish participation in America’s national pastime, but they also reveal a sharp eye for the social and cultural environment that attracted American Jews to baseball”—Midstream; “‘must-have’…a thorough resource”—Ron Kaplan’s Baseball Bookshelf; “as their book attests, the Boxermans obviously love baseball and have lovingly and painstakingly compiled a two-volume treasure trove on Jews and America’s pastime. Both volumes should be on the shelves of every Jewish sports fan”—access.stljewishlight.com; “The Boxermans have chased down some delightfully obscure characters and made an effort to focus on all aspects of the game—players, owners, journalists, umpires statisticians. … The authors’ love of baseball carries the day and makes this a worthwhile read for fans of the sport.”—Jewish Book World; “will fascinate…puts together a piece of the story of American Jewry and its acculturation into the broader society”—Chicago Jewish Star; “a grand slam hit…comprehensive…high-quality”—Association of Jewish Libraries Newsletter; “captivating…its richness transcends the story of a few members of one ethnic group’s involvement in a professional sport…extremely well-researched…draws parallels between the convergence of baseball becoming “America’s Pastime” and the growth of the American Jewish population…details the very significant role Jews played in the development of Major League Baseball as we know it today…packed with fascinating facts…highly readable…some of the most graceful, thoughtful, and poignant baseball writing in history”—The American Israelite; “scholarly…belongs next to any other study about the Jewish-American experience”—New Jersey Jewish News; “fun reading”—The Jewish Daily Forward; “while there have been other books about Jewish baseball players, none packs as much of a scholarly punch as this new title”—NJJN-MetroWest; “while there have been other books about Jewish baseball ballplayers, none packs as much of a scholarly punch as this new title presented by Burton and Benita Boxerman”—SABR Bibliography Committee Newsletter; “[The Boxermans] show that Jewish Americans loved—and influenced—the national pastime from its very earliest days”—Jane Henderson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch.