When the Washington Nationals selected Cimarron-Memorial’s Elie Kligman with their past prime successful the Major League Baseball draught July 13, it was much than believing successful the imaginable of a long-shot prospect.
It was virtually a leap of faith.
Kligman was the 2nd orthodox Jewish subordinate ever selected successful the draught and the 2nd successful 2 days. The Arizona Diamondbacks took Jacob Steinmetz, a pitcher from Long Island, New York, successful the 3rd circular with the 77th wide pick.
A shortstop and pitcher who is making the modulation to catcher, Kligman honors the Jewish Sabbath, meaning helium would not beryllium disposable for games starting astatine sundown Friday done the completion of Saturday night.
“I would accidental the work is being a bully relation exemplary and conscionable showing a bully example,” the well-spoken teen said of shining airy connected his religion aft barnstorming with Israel’s nationalist shot squad earlier the Olympics. “If I tin animate radical to beryllium beardown successful their faith, that’s awesome. If I tin animate radical to enactment devout and prosecute what they privation to bash contempt the challenges they mightiness have, past that’s awesome.”
He said helium expects fewer challenges from the Nationals should helium forsake a assemblage vocation to crook pro. By switching to catcher, a presumption which lends itself to disconnected days, sitting retired connected weekends won’t beryllium arsenic large an contented arsenic it would for mundane players.
“They drafted maine knowing my concern 100 percent,” said Kligman, whose father, Marc, is simply a shot cause whose clients person included erstwhile Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz and archetypal baseman Justin Bour.
Support from Southern Nevada’s Jewish assemblage besides has been strong. “Elie is an highly talented jock who is proving to the satellite that determination is simply a spot for observant Jews successful large league shot and successful each sports,” said Larry Monkarsh, a Jewish National Fund-USA donor based successful Las Vegas.
There’s inactive a batch of shot to beryllium played earlier the section youngster takes a spot among Hank Greenberg, Sandy Koufax, Ken Holtzman and dozens of different players of Jewish ancestry successful the large leagues.
But arsenic erstwhile astir apt was said astir those guys, religion conquers all.
Congrats to Elie Kligman connected getting drafted by the @Nationals! Elie learned helium was drafted portion traveling connected the #TeamIsrael autobus to Hartford for accumulation games this week. We're each arrogant of him! #blueandwhite_baseball pic.twitter.com/aM8e9QPqxE
— Israel Baseball (@ILBaseball) July 13, 2021
Around the horn
— In a related note, Mitch Glasser, a erstwhile societal studies teacher astatine Green Valley High who has moved backmost to his autochthonal Chicago, is simply a inferior antheral for Israel’s Olympic squad aft having played 2nd basal earlier the squad added Ian Kinsler, a four-time MLB All-Star.
Mitch Glasser '12 was named to Team Israel's shot roster for this summer's Tokyo Olympics! @GlasserMitch was an All-Region and All-MIAC infielder for @MacalesterBase, and helped Macalester triumph the 2011 MIAC championship. Congrats! #GoScots #heymac https://t.co/YlbLRLRGym
— Macalester Athletics (@MacalesterScots) July 8, 2021
— A T-shirt with Kinsler’s sanction and jersey fig is listed among the champion sellers connected the official Team Israel shot website. Other fashionable designs see “Matzo Baller,” “Shlo Motion” and “Shalom Batta, Batta.”
For the archetypal clip since 1976, Israel volition beryllium participating successful a squad athletics astatine the Olympics. Team Israel’s Ian Kinsler discusses baseball's maturation successful the state and the upcoming Tokyo games.
Full communicative by @davidbrandtAP: https://t.co/Tbr0ZUYCIi pic.twitter.com/26npzzBFah
— AP Sports (@AP_Sports) May 16, 2021
— Only six of the 16 caput coaches successful spot erstwhile Desiree Reed-Francois became UNLV’s diversion manager successful 2017 are inactive employed by the university. In a fewer months it volition beryllium lone 5 erstwhile longtime Rebels men’s shot manager Rich Ryerson retires.
Join america successful giving a large @unlv Rebel invited to caller @UNLVTrackCC caput manager Dorian Scott‼️
Former student-athlete and two-time Olympian comes from Florida State wherever helium was Director of Field Events/Throws Coach for past 9 years
MORE ➡️ https://t.co/TjREaZ2G0r#BEaREBEL pic.twitter.com/fyeQOEhx25
— UNLV Athletics (@UNLVathletics) July 14, 2021
NEWS: Hall of Fame Coach Dwaine Knight To Move Into Director of @UNLVGolf Position
Assistant manager @AJ_McInerney volition service arsenic interim caput manager of the Rebel program
MORE ➡️ https://t.co/zU7xvLChxP#BEaREBEL pic.twitter.com/mQFJWZsHr3
— UNLV Athletics (@UNLVathletics) July 13, 2021
— UNLV was erstwhile again picked to decorativeness past successful the Mountain West successful a canvass released during the conference’s shot media days astatine The Cosmopolitan. In a somewhat much absorbing development, second-year Rebels manager Marcos Arroyo was ranked No. 37 by ESPN among the 130 existent FBS coaches. The coaches were ranked based connected their exploits arsenic assemblage players. Arroyo was a backmost astatine San Jose State.
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First names for $100, Alex:
James Holzhauer, the “Jeopardy” fable and Las Vegas resident, was reminded however fleeting fame tin beryllium aft throwing retired the ceremonial archetypal transportation astatine Friday’s Mariners-A’s crippled successful Seattle.
“I posed for a selfie with a fan,” the astute feline wrote connected his Twitter account, ” and she said, ‘Thank you Ken, you’re my favorite!’ ”
I posed for a selfie with a instrumentality and she said “thank you Ken, you’re my favorite!” 🤦♂️ https://t.co/MyDeIJ6lyz
— James Holzhauer (@James_Holzhauer) July 24, 2021
Contact Ron Kantowski astatine rkantowski@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-383-0352. Follow @ronkantowski connected Twitter.