Dawgs Softball in Israel | ñåôèáåì éùøàì - äãåâæ

Photo from Mar 09, 2010.

The Dawgs were a Men's Fastpitch Softball team based in the center of Israel. This team played in the framework of the ISA (see their link in our Links page) from 1997 to 2013, at Kibbutz Gezer, Baptist Village in Petach Tikva, and Mosav Ma'or. 

The Dawgs folded after the 2013, and most of the players either retired from playing or moved to other teams. The Amuta (non-profit organization) was transferred to The Warriors - a youth team run by Corey Vyner and Brian Klaf. 

For those of you new to the sport, softball is similar to baseball, but a lot easier to play. Israel softball and baseball are fast becoming popular in the country. 

Sign in to our Guestbook, we've got a whole bunch of teams already there . . .

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äãåâæ äéà ÷áåöú ñåôèáåì ùì âáøéí îîøëæ äàøõ. àðçðå îùç÷éí áîñâøú ääúàçãåú äñåôèáåì ìéùøàì. äîùç÷éí ùìðå äéðí áòé÷ø á÷éáåõ âæø åáëôø äáôèéñèéí áôúç ú÷åä.

ñåôèáåì äåà ñôåøè ãåîä ìáééñáåì, àáì äøáä éåúø ÷ì ìùç÷, åòãééï ëéó ìà ðåøîìé.

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The season start is just around the corner, but fields have been wet, and we have not been able to get a practice together. But we do have a preliminary roster: 

Roster:

Lowell Blackman
Daniel Bar-Am
Shmuel Goldstein
Dani Machlis
Yigal Rozval
Jeff Weiner
Yuval Amir
Sergei Shishkin
Robert Even

And Daniel reports that there are several promising new players from the youth league in Rehovot. We hope to see them soon.

Natan Mandel just got married, and is now busy with that, and as most of you know by now, Michael Moronov has joined ZionTours. Barry Medderick is injured, and Brent White returned to the U.S.

The season is just starting, and we've had two successful practices. Here is our roster for 2010: 

Roster:

Lowell Blackman
Michael Moronov
Daniel Bar-Am
Shmuel Goldstein
Dani Machlis
Natan Mandel
Yigal Rozval
Jeff Weiner
Yair Amir
Eden Bir
Barry Medderick
Brent White
Yuval Amir
Matan Mesika
Sergei Shishkin


Sometimes:

Robert Even 
Mamma Maor

In a season that started out poorly for the Dawgs, with the loss of fireballer Aron Kurz to greener pastures outside the country, the Dawgs were again in the market for an accurate fast pitcher. With Michael Moronov promising, and improving, but still wild after a couple of innings, and Shmuel Goldstein not quite having "it" back, the Dawgs were faced with an uphill battle.

The Dawggies nevertheless came back on May 13 at Kibbutz Gezer and won their first game of 2008 against the Shimshon Hi-Tech team, 12-11 in extra innings.

To make a long story short, Shmuel Goldstein came back with his windmill pitching, closing down the Shimshon bats after a shaky first inning in which they scored 6 runs. Backed by inspired defense (especially a clutch play by Mamma at short), the rest of the Dawggies responded to Shmulik's presence on the mound, and their defensive play was top notch.

 In the extra inning, Robert Even showed extreme cool at bat, with a single that pushed Dani Machlis forward, and a stolen base. Newcomer Yaakov Mandel then hit a sacrifice grounder that scored Machlis and put Robert at third, tieing the game at 11. Robert, in his haste, tried to stretch the play to a game-winning run, but was caught in a rundown. Fortunately for us, Shimshon couldn't handle it and Robert was left safe at third. Shimshon's Gadi Bossin then pitched a wild and high one, and Robert scored on the pitch, winning the game for the Dawgs.

Playing tonight was: Shmuel (P), Shaul Daya (1B), David Sommer (2B), Mamma Maor (SS), Robert Even (3B), Jeff Weiner (C), Dani Machlis (LF), Yaakov Mandel (CF), and Natan Mandel (RF). 

Jeff was solid behind the plate, and Natan Mandel was tonight's manager.  

Dawg players Dudu Zozin and Shmuel Goldstein played in the David Lelchook memorial game this past Friday, August 3, 2007.

See the following link for an article from the Jerusalem Post:  Click here.  

But this time, Ha-Aretz did a better job: Click here.

A more detailed and accurate account is below, from the game's organizer, Gadi Bossin:

It was advertised as the Dave Lelchook Memorial Softball Game to be played at Kibbutz Shomrat. The organizers of the event invited teams in the Israel Softball Association (ISA) league to send one or two or three players each to the game. The hope was that there would be enough ballplayers to play the game.

The organizers also hoped that perhaps two dozen spectators might show up. They got the word out through the newspapers and on the Web.

Friday, August 3, the day of the game, 42 players, coaches and umpires arrived in uniform ready to play and officiate. Ron Blumenthal made the trip the length of Israel from Eilat. A crowd of more than 100 was on hand, including Steve Goldman, onetime Adamit-Shomrat playing coach, all the way from New York City. Dave's mother Doris, sister Judy, brother Alex, and nephew Noah, all from Boston, and Estie Lelchook and daughters Yael and Michal of Kibbutz Saar were guests of honor.

There were moving opening and memorial ceremonies. There was music. Free ice cream and drinks were provided. There was a family atmosphere alongside the tribute to Dave Lelchook and his family.

Dave, a catcher on Israel's national softball team in the 1989 Maccabiah Games, was killed by a Katyusha rocket on a pathway just outside his Kibbutz Saar home during last summer's Second Lebanon War.

Play-by-play announcers took turns calling the games in English, Hebrew and Spanish.

That's right, I said the games, with the accent on the plural "s." The number of players who came to play allowed for a quick realignment from a single game into a three-team mini-tournament. Players from different league teams combined to form the three tournament teams.

The managers of the teams were Ed Friedman and Yehuda Beinin, two of the founders of the ISA thirty years ago, and Rabbi Bob Samuels, a veteran softball league stalwart and an elected member of the Brandeis University Sports Hall of Fame. Each of the managers played in the games. All three reached base, Beinin and Samuels on solid base hits, and Friedman with his hustle causing a throwing error.

An outstanding defensive performance was turned in by Shmuel Goldstein of The Dawgs who made two half-diving, half-sliding game-saving catches in right field for Team Ed. Ron Blumenthal of Eilat Flames and Roni Bossin of the Tel Aviv Tigers alternated in left field for Team Bob. Both made fine running catches as if they were in mid-season form and not on a mid-summer break from softball. Tim Cummings of the Galil Twisters and Tal Beinin of the Israel Women's National Team combined on a shortstop to catcher throw and tag for a bang-bang put out for Team Yehuda. Beinin had just returned from the national team's successful appearance in the European Tournament in Croatia.

Cummings and Roberto Popowski (Cerveceros/Team Bob) had the tournament's key hits, each with a 2-RBI single, and Natan Tamari (Twisters/Team Yehuda) smashed a run-scoring double.

Ami Baran (Penticon/Team Ed), Bill Arscott (Twisters/Team Yehuda) and Shalom Menora (Shimshon Hi-Tech/Team Bob) sparkled in the innings they pitched, as did Gadi Bossin (Shimshon/Team Bob) and Yosi Ajzenwaser (Cerveceros/Team Yehuda) and Hezi Ganz (Cerveceros/Team Ed) in their innings. Ganz struck out the final batter of the tournament to give Team Ed the tournament championship.

The scores of the three abbreviated games: Team Ed 4-3 over Team Yehuda; Team Yehuda 1-0 versus Team Bob; 1-1 between Team Bob and Team Ed in the final game. Team Ed captured the tournament title with one win and one tie. Team Yehuda finished second with one win and one loss. Team Bob was third with one loss and one tie.

Calling the games were ISA umpires Howie Litz, Bob Kessler, Shmuel Goldstein, Brian Aron and Goose Gillett.

Gillett, of the ISA executive, presented the Lelchook family with two balls signed by the players. Gadi Bossin presented memorial tournament souvenir certificates to the family.

Rabbi Shimon Gorelik of Nahariya, a personal friend of Dave's, spoke and then chanted El Maleh Rachamim.

Jonathan Friedland, US Consul in Haifa, also addressed the gathering, as did Rabbi Bob Samuels and Alex Lelchook, Dave's brother.

Bill Arscott, Dave's pitcher and battery mate on the Shomrat Cubs during the 1980s and 1990s, shared his thoughts and feelings one year after: "In a way, this gentle giant is immortal to me. A day doesn't go by when I don't hear his voice in my head. I miss my catcher. I miss my friend. I miss my brother. I miss our Dave."

Photo below shows "Team Ed" in the game, including (right to left) Dawg players Dudu Zozin, Shmuel Goldstein, batboy Yona Goldstein, former Dawg Yechezkel Ganz, and (fourth from left) former Dawg Leandro Leon.