Tag Archives: Pittsburgh Pirates

Jew of the Week: Barney Dreyfuss

The World Series

Barney Dreyfuss, creator of the World Series

Barney Dreyfuss, creator of the World Series

Bernhard Dreyfuss (1865-1932) was born in Germany to a Jewish-American family that had returned to Germany when the American Civil War broke out. When he was 16, Dreyfuss moved to the US to avoid being drafted into the German army, where conditions for Jews were not very good. Arriving in Kentucky, he lived with his distant relatives, the Bernheim family – famous for their ‘I.W. Harper’ bourbon whiskey – and soon played a key role in their family business. Meanwhile, Dreyfuss fell in love with baseball. He began organizing baseball tournaments for his co-workers, then moved on to organize baseball clubs in Kentucky. In 1889, he bought a stake in the Louisville Colonels, a pro team with the American Association. The following year, his team won the championship (against the Brooklyn team that became the LA Dodgers). After the American Association collapsed, the Colonels moved to the National League. By 1899, Dreyfuss had complete ownership of the Colonels, and also purchased a stake in the Pittsburgh Pirates, which went on to win three championships in a row. At the same time, the American League was becoming ever popular, igniting a “baseball war” between the two major leagues. In 1903, Dreyfuss put together a “peace treaty” between the leagues, and drafted a single set of rules to govern the sport. He also included a set of games that would determine the best baseball team of both leagues, and thus was born the World Series. Dreyfuss continued to play a key role in both the development of baseball, and in American business, until the very end of his life. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2008, and a monument in his honour still stands at PNC Park, the current home of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Words of the Week

Your fellow is your mirror. If your own face is clean, the image you perceive will also be flawless. But should you look upon your fellow man and see a blemish, it is your own imperfection that you are encountering – you are being shown what it is that you must correct within yourself.
– Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov

Jew of the Week: Hank Greenberg

The Hebrew Hammer

Hank Greenberg - 'The Hebrew Hammer'

Hank Greenberg – ‘The Hebrew Hammer’

Hyman ‘Henry Benjamin’ Greenberg (1911-1986) was born in New York to a Romanian-Jewish family. As a child, he was faced with many physical challenges, including flat feet, a stutter, and lack of coordination. He worked hard to overcome these issues, becoming his high school’s best all-around athlete, especially in basketball. He preferred baseball though, and after a year of university was signed by the Detroit Tigers. At 19, he became the youngest player ever to make the big leagues. He went on to be a 5-time All-Star and 2-time MVP, still holding the American League record for most RBIs in a single season. Not forgetting his heritage, one of his most famous moments was abstaining from playing a critical game because it was scheduled on Yom Kippur. In the midst of his baseball career, World War II began, and Greenberg was the first player to be drafted to the US Army. He was soon released from the military, but that was two days before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Greenberg thus re-enlisted – the first Major League player to volunteer – and served for 45 months, the longest of any baseball player. He rose to the rank of First Lieutenant in the US Air Force, fighting in China, Burma, and India. At the end of the war he returned to baseball, still in good form and immediately making the All-Star team. He was later sold to the Pittsburgh Pirates, who offered him $80,000 so that he wouldn’t retire, making him the highest-paid player of that time period. After retiring, he turned to management and brought great success to several teams, especially the Cleveland Indians. Perhaps most significantly, Greenberg changed the face of the sport, sponsoring more African-Americans than any other baseball executive. In fact, he befriended and supported Jackie Robinson, the very first African-American player in the major leagues. Having experienced severe racism and anti-Semitism of his own, Greenberg worked hard to make the world of sport open and equal to all. A Hall of Famer, Greenberg is still considered one of the greatest baseball players of all time.

 

Words of the Week

The entire world is a very narrow bridge, and the most important thing is not to be afraid at all.
– Rabbi Nachman of Breslov