(Photo By: Getty Images via JTA)
By: Jacob Gurvis - October 27, 2021
JTA — The World Series is upon us, and there are likely more Jewish players in this year’s edition than there have been in decades.
The American League champion Houston Astros, who ousted Chaim Bloom’s Boston Red Sox last week, feature star slugger Alex Bregman. The National League champion Atlanta Braves boasts an impressive duo of Jewish players: pitcher Max Fried and outfielder Joc Pederson.
(The Astros did not include Jewish backup catcher Garrett Stubbs on their roster. Had Stubbs been added, this would probably be the most Jewish World Series ever.)
For Bregman and Pederson, it is a rematch of the infamous 2017 World Series, when Bregman’s Astros beat Pederson’s former team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, while using illegal sign-stealing techniques that led to high-profile suspensions. Pederson hit three home runs during the series, and Bregman added two of his own.
Read More: Times of Israel