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11 June 2025
How a day at the ballpark became a celebration of pride, connection, and community
Where does Jewish identity take root?
Sometimes it’s in a classroom. Sometimes it’s around a Shabbat table. And sometimes—unexpectedly, powerfully—it shows up in the outfield of a summer ballpark, where a Team Israel Olympian throws warm-up pitches to wide-eyed kids, and the air smells like fresh grass and kosher hot dogs.
This is Jewish Baseball Heritage Day, hosted by Bethesda Big Train in partnership with Israel Baseball, returning to Shirley Povich Field on Sunday, June 22. There will be a baseball game that evening—Big Train vs. the Olney Cropdusters—but the heart of the day begins much earlier.
It’s a day about far more than a baseball game. It’s about what happens when Jewish identity, informal learning, and connection to Israel show up outside traditional spaces—and land squarely in the heart of community life.
A Different Kind of Jewish Learning
The day kicks off with a youth clinic led by Israel Baseball coaches, including Olympian Shlomo Lipetz and longtime Major League Baseball (MLB) trainer Barry Weinberg. The coaching is hands-on and engaging, with stories that add depth and meaning to the experience. These aren’t just athletes—they’re Jewish athletes, representing Israel with pride.
In the afternoon, teens step up for their own clinic. The pace picks up, and the questions get sharper—about training, about representing Israel, about the path to professional play.
After the clinics, participants gather for a Q&A with the Israel Baseball staff, trading stories, asking questions, and making connections. An autograph session follows, full of smiles and quiet excitement as kids collect memories they’ll hold onto for a while.
From Picnic to Pride
As the evening approaches, families line up for dinner at the kosher Char Bar stand, friends reconnect in the stands, and conversations ripple through clusters of Jewish organizations and community members.
Clinic participants are honored on the field—a moment of recognition and pride for both the kids and the community that raised them.
Former U.S. Senator Ben Cardin is recognized as a Big Train Community Hero, honored for his decades of service and leadership. It’s another reminder that Jewish values aren’t just studied—they’re lived.
The Game Is the Backdrop. The Community Is the Story.
At 7 p.m., the Big Train take the field to face the Olney Cropdusters. But by then, the deeper story of the day has already been told.
It’s in the kid asking what it means to represent Israel.
In the kosher dinner shared between friends.
In the standing ovation for a Jewish public servant.
In the knowledge that Jewish pride belongs out loud—and outdoors.
A Quiet Kind of Impact
At first glance, Jewish Baseball Heritage Day might seem like just a good day out—kids on the field, families in the stands, a community enjoying summer together.
But look a little closer.
There’s identity being shaped in the dugout, where a child meets a Jewish athlete who has played on the world stage. There’s education happening in cleats and ball caps, as questions spark conversations that stick. And there’s connection to Israel—not as an idea, but through real people, real stories, and shared pride.
No speeches required. No agendas pushed. Just a Sunday that leaves something lasting.
For everyone who showed up, it was a reminder: Jewish life doesn’t just live in sanctuaries or classrooms. It shows up wherever we do. And sometimes, that’s at the ballpark.
For more information about Jewish Baseball Heritage Day, visit: bigtrain.org/israel-baseball