Jew for Jesus on the Mets

Shawn Green's New York Mets teammate David Newhan was born to Jewish parents and had his bar mitzvah at a Conservative synagogue. Now, however, Newhan prays to Jesus and considers himself a Messianic Jew. This according to a New York Times report.

Dr. Martin Abramowitz - an expert on Jews in baseball - said the Mets new pinch hitter has "a 'Jews for Jesus' orientation."

Even if Shawn Green hits .220

ESPN.com's Page 2 ran a story yesterday about Dmitriy Salita, an observant Jewish boxer from Brooklyn.

Jeff Pearlman wrote about how Jews have a great love for Jewish professional athletes. You should read the story in its entirety, but here's an interesting excerpt:

"while Jewish people often struggle when it comes to slugging a baseball or dunking or knocking out a bully, we worship the chosen few among us who can. It's why, even if Shawn Green hits .220 for the Mets this season, he'll never have to worry about losing a core fan base. It's why former 49ers offensive lineman Harris Barton can walk into any Bay Area synagogue and be swarmed. It's why Perry Klein and Steve Ratzer and Steve Dubinsky -- anonymous sports schlubs to 99.9 percent of America -- maintain a special place in the hearts of Jewish die-hards. We loooooove our athletes."

It's so true. Sad but true.

Spring Fever

Spring is here and Opening Day is approaching quickly. The Jew York Mets blog -- celebrating Shawn Green on the Mets -- is back in business.

The Mets will open the 2007 season with three Jewish players - Shawn Green, David Newhan and Scott Schoeneweis. Only Green played for the New York Mets last season. Schoeneweis signed a three year contract to join the Mets bullpen. Newhan's role will be limited to late-inning defensive replacement and pinch hitting.

Shawn Green's role is not certain. He had the starting right field job coming into spring training, but he has struggled at the plate in exhibition games. Lastings Milledge has been hot all spring. There's a chance he could overtake Green for the starting job. We'll see over the next 10 days.

A multicultural household

Excellent story about New York Met Shawn Green's Jewishness in yesterday's New York Daily News.

His upbringing: "He wasn't bar mitzvah'd. His parents didn't really practice the religion... Shawn would go to an occasional Passover seder around Southern California, that was about it."

His family: "Shawn married a Christian, Lindsay, and the family is raising two kids in a multicultural household."

His plans for next week and beyond: "Green will fast and he will contemplate and that will be fine. Next season, he says, he probably will move to Manhattan, become more involved in local functions and in New York City's Jewish community, population nearly one million."

The media: "Jay Horwitz, vice president of media relations for the Mets, says there were 11 Jewish newspapers and organizations on the phone for Green the day he was acquired by the Mets... He's been invited to everything from Brises to bar mitzvahs."

No conflict for Green

As we approach the High Holy days, "MOT" baseball fans often consider which players might be affected by the schedule. In past seasons, Shawn Green has missed games for Yom Kippur but he has also played baseball on the fast day. This year no Mets games will be played on the holy day. It's the off-day between the regular season and the playoffs. (I'm still looking for postseason tickets, if you want to help me out.) Today's Daily News reports that Green has not yet discussed with Willie Randolph if he'll skip a workout.

Looking for other "MOT" baseball players in this year's postseason? St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Jason Marquis could pitch to Shawn Green in the Division Series (NLDS). If the Phillies make the playoffs, Mike Lieberthal could bat against the Mets in the Championship Series (NLCS).

The Red Sox have 4 Jewish players on their 40-man roster but they lost the division to the New York Yankees and won't be in the playoffs this season. Do you know who the 4 players are? Post your guess in the 'comments' section. We'll reveal the correct answer later.

Give me a ticket, please

Who wants to give me Mets playoff tickets?

At this point I'm just looking for tickets to the NL Division Series. I don't want to be too optimistic to think about the NLCS or the World Series just yet.

The Mets will have the top postseason seed in the National League. If the Phillies win the wild card, the Mets will play the division winner with the worst record. In that scenario, they play NLDS Game 1 on October 3 and Game 2 on October 5. Neither day is shabbat or yom tov. In other words, I'm available! If there's a 5th game, it would be played at Shea on October 9 - chol hamoed - I'm available!

If the wild card team comes from another division, the Mets will face the wild card team in the first round of the playoffs. Games 1 & 2 of the NLDS would be played at Shea Stadium on October 4 and 5. Again, not shabbat or yom tov. Game 5, if necessary, would be played on October 9.

The bottom line is this - the Jewish holidays do not conflict with the Mets home schedule for the Division Series. But I don't have any tickets. I entered the Mets lottery but didn't win.

I NEED PLAYOFF TICKETS!!!

Sure, I could always buy from StubHub. I've done that before and I've always been very happy with their service. They guarantee that you'll get the tickets in time for the game. StubHub has Game 1 tickets available now for just over $100. That's not a bad price!

(I see that TicketsNow also has Mets playoff tickets for sale but I've never used that site.)

Anyway, now that I'm blogging about Shawn Green and leading his Mets Jewish fan club, don't I deserve a freebie? I shouldn't need to pay for a ticket. I'm kind of like a member of the press now, right? Anyone know how I could get a press pass to Shea Stadium?

Mr. Green, when you read this post, please feel free to arrange for a game ticket for me. I deserve it. I really do. Thank you!!!

Bought a Mets division champs hat

That was quick! It used to be that when a baseball team won a championship - division, league or world series - there'd be ads in the newspaper the next morning offering all the souvenirs, such as championship hats and tees.

In the internet age, you don't need to wait for the next day. I saw this post and clicked through to the mlb shop and ordered a Mets division champion cap. According to the site, it's in stock now and I should have it by the weekend. I won't wear it to shul on Rosh Hashana (my rabbi likes the Yankees) but I'll have it in time for the NL Division Series games next week.

Let's go Mets!

Mets win division title!

Shawn Green's New York Mets shut out the Marlins today to win the NL East. It's the first division title for the Mets in 18 years.

You can register now on the Mets' official website for a chance to buy postseason tickets for games at Shea Stadium. To qualify for the NLCS drawing, you must register before 11:00 p.m. ET on Monday, September 25. The Mets will notify winners by e-mail by Wednesday, 9/27, and will have an opportunity to buy tickets to Mets Championship Series home games at Shea.

Shawn Green has fun

New York Mets baseball fans.... Shawn Green has arrived!!!!

In today's doubleheader, Green went 6 for 8 with 4 runs and 3 RBI. He belted a home run in each game. Omar Minaya is kvelling!

The AP quotes the Mets outfielder as saying, "It was a big day for us, to have the type of pitching performances we had and to put some runs up on the board. It was a great day all around.... It was a lot of fun. If you could pick one lineup in baseball to hit in, this would be it. It's got everything."

Face of the Jewish ballplayer

Today's Record reports that when Sunday's New York Mets game was cancelled for rain, "[Shawn] Green came out of the locker room to meet with a group of 15 to 20 reporters, most from Jewish publications that had little interest in the day-to-day workings of the Mets. But they wanted to speak to Green because he is the... face of the Jewish ballplayer. " (Sunday was Shea Stadium's annual Jewish Heritage Day. Since the baseball game was postponed, tickets to the game were honored on Monday.)

Shawn Green was quoted as saying, "When it came to Yom Kippur [in L.A.], I had to do what was consistent with my own beliefs rather than what everyone else expected. As far as off-the-field stuff, there's only a few Jewish players in the game and there's a ton of Jewish fans. I do what I can and that's all I can do."

The newest New York Met also said he wants to take a prominent role in the Jewish community after the (post-)season ends, "next year I want to be in New York and kind of not just go there and play baseball. I want to be a part of their Jewish community."

Pre-game minyan

Morry Alter of New York's WCBS News took to the streets of Kew Garden Hills to discuss the Mets' acquisition of Shawn Green with innocent Jewish bystanders, including the owners of Benjy's Kosher Pizza.

The video is available here.

During his post-report banter with the news anchors, Alter remarks that if one day two teams each have five Jewish players, they could have a pre-game minyan.

Green was Greenberg

On August 27, Murray Chass wrote in the New York Times about Shawn Green's pursuit of the career home run record for Jewish players. He's 17 short of Hank Greenberg's 314 homers.

Hank's son, Steve, is quoted as saying, “I’m fine with it. think it’s great. I’m fine with anything that keeps my dad’s name in the news.” According to the article, Steve Greenberg is an investment banker, engaged in selling naming rights for the Mets’ new stadium, replacing Shea Stadium in 2009.

"If Green does pass Greenberg for career home runs, the name of the standard-bearer won’t change all that much," Chass reports, "In fact, Green’s grandfather shortened the family name from Greenberg."

Shawn Green is the real deal

"So when a star ballplayer who happens to be Jewish comes to play in the New York area, a capital of Jewish culture, home to nearly two million Jews, it is cause for much rejoicing.

Americans, Jewish and otherwise, may not hold sports stars in the esteem they once did. Jews no longer feel quite the need to prove themselves as Americans by, for instance, excelling at sports.

But still the Jewish people hunger for a hometown hero to call their own.

Mr. Green, acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks this week to give the Mets an offensive lift as they look toward the playoffs, is the real deal."

-- New York Times, August 26, 2006, "A Power Hitter. And a Source of Jewish Pride."

Shawn Green #20 New York Mets Jersey

Shawn Green is playing with jersey #20 on the Mets. He wore #15 with the Diamondbacks, Dodgers and Blue Jays.

I found this site where you can customize a Mets jersey with Green's name and number.

Active in the Jewish community

"Bobby pins would have slid off Carlos Delgado's bald head, so he used sticky tape to make sure the yarmulke stayed in its proper place. Shawn Green was getting married, and it wouldn't be kosher if the guys in the wedding party looked unkempt.

Delgado chuckled as he recalled the story. Yes, the anecdote was true, but when he was probed for more minutiae, like whether he danced the hora, Delgado scoffed. It's all in the details, he was told, and Delgado nodded. Here was one more piece of advice he could tuck away and share with Green at a later date. Be cognizant of the details."

-- Lisa Olson, New York Daily News, August 25, 2006

""I'll try to blend in and contribute when I can," said Green. He and his wife plan to live in Manhattan, where they'll soak in new cultures and become active in the Jewish community. Delgado promised to remind him of his priorities, should Green's attention be diverted. Delgado's used to guiding Green. They were at Delgado's wedding in Puerto Rico last December when Delgado made his own request. If Delgado could tape a yarmulke to his head, Green could salsa dance."

-- Lisa Olson, New York Daily News, August 25, 2006

Shea Stadium Jewish Heritage Day

This Sunday, August 27, is the annual Jewish Heritage Day at Shea Stadium. Watch Shawn Green, David Wright, Carlos Delgado and the rest of the New York Mets take on the Phildelphia Phillies.

Come out to Shea, wear a Mets jersey, and show your support for Shawn Green and his teammates! (The Mets still have not announced a uniform number for Shawn Green. Carlos Beltran wears his #15.)

Plenty of tickets are still available at StubHub.

Carlos Delgado's kippah problem

"[Carlos] Delgado has kept his head shaven for years and seldom thought twice about it. But his smooth scalp created a problem when he was a member of [Shawn] Green's Jewish wedding party in 2003.

Delgado had to wear a yarmulke during the service, but the yarmulke wouldn't stay on his head.

The solution: two-sided tape."

-- From 8/23/06 MLB.com article by Marty Noble and Chris Girandola

If he wasn't completely shaven, Carlos Delgado could have used Kippon...

Shawn Green and New York's Jews

"[Shawn] Green, who is Jewish, discussed the move with his wife, and the two decided that the move [to the New York Mets] had value because of New York's large Jewish population. New York City is 11 percent Jewish and has the second-largest population of Jews outside of Tel Aviv with an estimated 972,000.

"It's definitely head and shoulders in the country and probably the world," Green said. "I'm looking forward to being a part of it. It will be an interesting and fun experience." "

-- From 8/23/06 MLB.com article by Marty Noble & Chris Girandola

Shawn Green to the New York Mets

The New York Mets just traded for today's premier Jewish major league baseball player - Shawn Green!!!

Green and greenbacks (millions of them) to the Mets in exchange for Evan MacLane, a minor league pitcher. Shawn Greene waived his no-trade clause and the MLB commissioner's office gave a green light to the deal.

I want to buy a new MLB Shawn Green Mets authentic home jersey (or maybe a replica jersey) but I don't know his new jersey number. He wore #15 with the Diamondbacks, Dodgers and Blue Jays but Carlos Beltran wears 15 for the Mets. What uniform number will Green choose?

What do you think of the trade for the New York Mets?