ACCEPTANCE (1960’s-1970’s)

Black-and-white portrait illustration of Sandy Koufax wearing a Los Angeles Dodgers cap.

With Hank Greenberg having painstakingly laid the groundwork, baseball was more than ready for a second Jewish baseball Superstar.  It finally found one in the persona of Brooklyn-born Sanford 'Sandy' Koufax. Like Greenberg, Koufax honored his religion by famously not playing in a World Series game because it fell on Yom Kippur and, like Greenberg, Koufax became the standout player of his era, so much so that he became the youngest player ever elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

The only other true All-Star Jewish ballplayer of this era was Ken Holtzman, a member of the Oakland Athletics' legendary pitching staff. 

However, this period had no shortage of notable, if not All-Star, Jewish baseball players.  Characters such as The Designated Hebrew, Ron Blomberg, and the rabble-rousing African-American Jewish convert, Elliott Maddox, both garnered significant attention.

In addition to ballplayers, the era also featured a new type of Jewish baseball figure, a fiery union leader.  As Director of the Players' Union, Marvin Miller single-handedly changed baseball forever.  Also, future MLB Commissioner Bud Selig began his ascension up baseball's ranks as owner of the Milwaukee Brewers.

THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN ARM

SANDY KOUFAX (1935-  ) 

MIXED MEDIA ON CANVAS MOUNTED TO GATERBOARD from Once upon a time series, 15x22

ARTHUR K. MILLER (2023)

Brooklyn born & raised, Sandy is the greatest LH pitcher in baseball history, as well as the second, and last to date, Jewish baseball player elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. The youngest player ever elected to that esteemed body, he received the most votes of anyone in baseball history. Sandy earlier gained public acclaim by not pitching Game 1 of the 1965 World Series because it fell on Yom Kippur; he had written into his Dodgers' contract that he did not have to pitch on Jewish holidays. Sandy is a deeply private person with a strong sense of personal integrity. He pitched only for the Dodgers, in Brooklyn and then in L.A.  Halfway through his career, lacking control of his pitches, Sandy almost quit, going so far as to throw his glove and spikes into the trash. However, he then received advice from his catcher which transformed him into the most dominant pitcher in baseball. Koufax was the first pitcher to pitch 4 no-hitters (including a perfect game), the first pitcher to win 3 Cy Young awards, was a 3 time pitching Triple-Crown winner, won 5 consecutive ERA titles, and won 25 or more games in a season on 4 different occasions. He also was a 4 time World Champion and 2 time World Series MVP. He set the World Series strikeout record and the  NL season strikeout record. Sandy is revered by fellow players for conducting a historic contract hold-out (with teammate ace Don Drysdale) in 1966, refusing to pitch until the Dodgers met their salary demands. Recognizing the deadly nature of his blazing fastball, Sandy never intentionally threw at a batter, and accidentally hit only 18 batters in his entire career. Sadly, he was forced to retire very young due to traumatic arthritis in his pitching arm. At Lafayette H.S. in Brooklyn, he often pitched in relief of Fred Wilpon, future owner of The NY Mets.  Sandy received a basketball, not a baseball, scholarship to the U. of Cincinnati, hoping to become an architect. Sandy's first marriage was to the daughter of Hollywood movie star Richard Widmark.  After baseball, Sandy had a brief broadcasting career which ended because he found it difficult to criticize ballplayers. In tribute to his undiminished greatness, in 2007, forty-one years after he retired, Koufax was symbolically chosen as the final player in the Israel Baseball League draft.

TITLED "KOUFAX FASTBALL", ARTIST ACRYLIC ON MASONITE, 13x26

ARTHUR K. MILLER (1997)

3D DIORAMA created FOR THE NATIONAL JEWISH SPORTS HALL OF FAME & MUSEUM, 10x11

CHARLES FAZZINO (2008)

NEWSPAPER CARTOON, 10x14

BRUCE STARK (1968)

NEWSPAPER CARTOON, 10x13

BILL GALLO (1962)

CARTOON ON COVER OF THE SPORTING NEWS, 11x16

AMADEE (wohlschlaeger) (1963)

[Not Original]

AN UNEXPECTeD HERO

LARRY SHERRY  (1935-2006)

ACRYLIC ON MASONITE BOARD (part of a sherry brothers Diptych), 20x20

NOAH STOKES (2024) 

Larry was a relatively unknown L.A. Dodgers RH relief pitcher until he became 1959 World Series MVP, with 2 wins and 2 saves, completing all 4 Dodger victories, a feat never accomplished before or since. In the days before baseball salaries exploded, the Dodgers’ World Series winners' share that year was double Larry’s meager regular season salary. Born with two club feet, Larry only overcame his struggle to walk at around age 12. A native Los Angeleno, he was 'discovered' and signed to a pro contract by a fellow Jew, Dodgers' scout/coach Harold 'Lefty' Phillips. Larry was nicknamed Rude Face because of his unusually stern look on the mound. His catcher brother Norm Sherry was instrumental to Larry's career, helping him develop a third pitch - a slider - which turned Larry into a pitching success. He and Norm were the only Jewish brothers to play on the same team, i.e., the L.A. Dodgers, at the same time, and were the last set of Jewish brothers to play in the Major Leagues.

POSTER FOR UNION 76, 8x11

VOLPE (1962)

[Not Original]

ACRYLIC ON MASONITE BOARD (part of a sherry brothers Diptych), 20x20

NOAH STOKES (2024

MR. GOOD ADVICE

NORM SHERRY (1931-2021)

Norm was a great defensive catcher, primarily for his hometown L.A. Dodgers, and his pitching advice changed the course of baseball history. His 1961 suggestions to perennially wild Sandy Koufax, after he had walked the bases full on 12 pitches, to "have some fun out there!" and "just not throw so hard!", turned Koufax into a legend. Norm and his pitcher brother Larry Sherry were the last brother battery in Major League history. Coincidentally, he and his brother had daughters born on the same day and delivered by the same doctor. Norm and Larry went to Fairfax H.S. in L.A., the school which has produced more Major Leaguers than any other. Norm was known as Catcher Face because of his sun-dried, freckled complexion. He had an even longer coaching career than playing career, and while the balding manager of the California Angels, Norm acted in a TV commercial for a toupee company even though his wife despised him wearing a hairpiece.

POSTER FOR UNION 76, 8x11

VOLPE (1962)

[Not Original]

THE ONE AND ONLY

KEN HOLTZMAN (1945-2024) 

ACRYLIC ON ILLUSTRATION BOARD, 13x19

JUSTIN TIGNER (2024)

A son of St. Louis, Ken was a hard-throwing LH All-Star pitcher who was part of the Oakland Athletics' pitching dynasty during its rare World Series ‘3-Peat’ (1972-74). Known for intelligence and strong religious conviction, Ken even kept Kosher on baseball road trips. As a rookie, he defeated Sandy Koufax (his last career loss) and then was dubbed The New Koufax; Sandy retorted that Ken should instead be called the The First Kenny Holtzman. As a Chicago Cub, Ken joined the very elite group of pitchers in MLB history to throw multiple no-hitters. Ken was a fierce union supporter as well as his team's player union rep, with him becoming the fifth NY Yankees player-rep to be traded away by George Steinbrenner. Ken's final Major League loss was in an Aug.1979 game that was delayed for 20 minutes due to darkness (but no rain) - at 3:30 p.m. As of his retirement, Ken was the winningest Jewish pitcher in history, and second only to Koufax in strikeouts. Long after he retired, Ken agreed to manage the Petach Tikva Pioneers in the one-year Israel Baseball League, primarily so that he could make his first trip to Israel.

CARICATURE on paper, 11x16

TASCO (1969)

[Not Original]

A WANDERING JEW

RICHIE SCHEINBLUM (1942-2021)

FELT MARKER ON PAPER, 16x20;

NEIL PORTNOY (2023)

Richie was a New Yorker born in Hell's Kitchen on the west side of mid-town Manhattan, and was raised in Fort Apache in the South Bronx. After escaping those two particularly rough neighborhoods, he eventually graduated college and then began a pro baseball career spanning seven different Major League teams. Richie was a switch-hitter who primarily played OF for the Cleveland Indians. He also was the first Jew to play baseball in Japan, suiting up for the Hiroshima Toyo Carp. The Japanese called him Shane because they couldn't pronounce Scheinblum. Richie also won a baseball league championship in Nicaragua, but he had to hide after the final game to avoid bullets being fired nearby by police against anti-government protestors. Richie's son Monte was the World Long Driving Champion, once driving a golf ball 329 yards to win the U.S. championship.

A baseball player in a New York Mets uniform standing at the plate, holding a bat, with a crowd in the background and a bulldog wearing a Mets cap sitting behind the dugout.

A MIRACLE MET

ART SHAMSKY (1941- )

ACRYLIC ON CANVAS, 18x24

JOHN GIANCASPRO (2025)

DRAWING ON PAPER FROM THE NY DAILY NEWS' SET: THE 1969 NY METS - PORTFOLIO OF STARS, 9x12                       

BRUCE STARK (1970)  

[Not Original]

Art was a LH hitting OF/1B from St. Louis who became an integral member of the 1969 World Series champion NY Mets. Nicknamed Smasher, he was a postseason star for The Miracle Mets that year, batting .538 as their cleanup hitter in the NLCS.  Art is the only Major Leaguer to ever hit 3 HRs in a game without being in the starting lineup. Art's first baseball roomie was Pete Rose, the superstar later banned from MLB for gambling on games. During his time in NY, Shamsky was asked to appear in an episode of the TV show Everybody Loves Raymond because the bulldog on that program also was named Shamsky. Post-retirement, Art opened a NYC restaurant together with NY Yankee Phil Linz, managed the Modi'in Miracles in the Israel Baseball League and wrote a book, The Magnificent Seasons, about NYC's unprecedented 3 pro sport success in 1969-70.

THE PLAYERS CHAMPION

MARVIN MILLER (1917-2012)

DRY BRUSH OIL ON WATERCOLOR PAPER, 16X20

MICHAEL SLOTWINSKI (2024)

Marvin was a labor union executive from Brooklyn, who in his role as Executive Director of The Major Leagues Baseball Players Association made millionaires of the previously poorly paid Major Leaguers. He successfully litigated to defeat the Reserve Clause, establish Free Agency, create Salary Arbitration, and unite the players to go on strike as necessary. Because of how Marvin revolutionized the business of baseball, he is said to be one of the three most important figures in the history of baseball, alongside Babe Ruth and Jackie Robinson. Marvin's actions so angered baseball ownership - although his activity ultimately increased the value of all Major League franchises, that he was not elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame until after his death. On Marvin's retirement, his union leadership was passed to a fellow Jew, his former General Counsel Don Fehr. Marvin was married for over 70 years, until the passing of his dear wife Teresa.

SUPER JEW

MIKE EPSTEIN (1943 -  )   

COMIC test STRIP FOR TOPPS BASEBALL CARD PACKS insert (and A copy of the insert), 6x9

UNCREDITED ARTIST (1973)

Mike was a slugging 1B from NYC who was known as Super Jew. He was the first Jewish ballplayer to adorn his bats and gloves with the Jewish Star of David. Mike also was nicknamed Babe the Blue Ox with Brains because of his size and superior intelligence. He helped win a gold medal for Team USA in the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo, where baseball was still only a 'demonstration sport'. In solidarity with Israel, Mike donned a black armband (together with fellow Jewish Oakland A's teammate Ken Holtzman, and African-American Reggie Jackson) after eleven Jewish Olympians were murdered at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Berlin. Following his baseball career, Mike created, along with his former minor leaguer son Jake, The Epstein School of Hitting, to teach the batting approach of Mike's mentor and former Washington Senators' manager, the great Ted Williams.  Epstein also was surely the only Jewish ballplayer ever to own a ranch in Colorado as well as run a precious metals company. Mike summed up his career as follows: "It was a great ride! How often can a nice Jewish kid from the Bronx bat 4th on a winning World Series team?”

COMIC INSERT

[Not Original]

DRAWING FOR BASEBALL CARD IN ronnie joyner’s WASHINGTON SENATORS COMMEMORATIVE SET, 5x6

(and THE baseball card)

RONNIE JOYNER (1969) 

Mini-COMIC book (multiple pages), 3X3

UNCREDITED TOPPS ARTIST (1970)

[Not Original]

The Baseball Card

THE DESIGNATED HEBREW

RON BLOMBERG (1948 - ) 

CARICATURE ON PAPER FOR NY DAILY NEWS POSTER INSERT, 16X20, (and one of the poster INSERTs, 11X14)

BRUCE STARK (1973)

Ron achieved baseball immortality not as an outfielder or first baseman, but as the result of one special At Bat in 1973. Playing for the NY Yankees on Opening Day, by chance Ron became the 1st DH (designated hitter) in baseball history. He thereafter called himself The Designated Hebrew, while Jewish fans called him The Yiddish Yankee, and everyone else called him Boomer. Ron is an eccentric blond Southerner who insists that half his Georgia H.S. baseball team were Ku Klux Klan. Chosen with the #1 pick in the 1967 draft, he soon became a platoon player because of his ineffectiveness against LH pitchers. Ron loves Jewish food, particularly knishes, and the iconic Stage Deli in NYC named its Reuben sandwich after him. He once won a contest by eating a 72 oz. steak with all the trimmings in 30 minutes....and then asked for seconds. About playing in NY, Ron said: 'To be able to play in front of 8 million Jews! Can't beat it. I lit everyone's candles for every Bar Mitzvah in the City." Ron was twice voted the most popular person in NYC. Long after retiring from MLB, he managed the Bet Shemesh Blue Sox to the championship of the Israel Baseball League.

the POSTER INSERT

DRAWING ON PAPER FOR NY YANKEES OFFICIAL PORTRAITS (in sealed package), 8x11

CHARLES LINNETT (1973)

[Not Original]

an unlikely lantzman

ELLIOTT MADDOX (1947 - )

ACRYLIC, GOUACHE, WATERCOLOR, OIL, INK AND MARKER ON CANVAS MOUNTED TO ILLUSTRATION BOARD, 13x22

TONY CAPPARELLI (2024)

Elliott is a rabble-rousing African-American from New Jersey who converted to Judaism while a NY Yankee, believing that Blacks and Jewish Americans shared a spiritual kinship due to parallel historical experiences. Always a vocal supporter of Black rights, Elliott was the first African-American baseball player at the U. of Michigan since Fleetwood Moses Walker in 1884, shortly before professional baseball was segregated. He also was the first Black to be the Yankees CF, the hallowed former position of DiMaggio & Mantle. Fiercely independent, Elliott once was suspended for refusing to cut his hair. He also has the distinction of being traded from three different teams by the same irascible manager, Billy Martin.  Though a premier defensive outfielder, Elliott's career was cut short by an injury suffered at a rain-soaked Shea Stadium; he unsuccessfully sued NYC, the Yankees and the NY Mets, alleging unsafe work conditions. Amazingly, the Mets later signed Elliott although that lawsuit was ongoing. When asked why he wore a Star of David, Elliott joked: "Because I left my Mezuzah at home." In 2010, thirty-five years after his conversion, he finally had a Bar Mitzvah ceremony, which was held at Ron Blomberg's baseball camp.  

DRAWING ON PAPER FOR NY YANKEES OFFICIAL PORTRAITS, 8x11

CHARLES LINNETT (1973)

[Not Original]

THE COMMISH OF CONTROVERSY

ALLAN 'BUD' SELIG (1934 - )

GRAPHITE, COLOR PENCIL, RAW UMBER ACRYLIC PAINT WASH & OPAQUE ACRYLIC PAINT ON ILLUSTRATION BOARD, 16x20

BRENT NAUGHTON (2024)

Bud is a proud product of Milwaukee, and the scion of a wealthy automotive industry mogul. He had been a primary shareholder of the Milwaukee Braves before the team left for Atlanta despite his best efforts to prevent that. He then became a hometown hero by bringing baseball back to his hometown in the form of the Milwaukee Brewers. Bud eventually became the 9th Commissioner of Baseball, serving from 1992 for 23 years, the second longest tenure of a baseball commissioner, and subsequently was elected to the Hall of Fame. His lawyer daughter Wendy became CEO of the Brewers after Bud became Commissioner. Bud oversaw momentous baseball events and changes, including the greatest revenue/attendance growth in Major League history, introduction of inter-league play, the Wild Card postseason format, Instant Replay, the opening of 22 new ballparks, team revenue sharing, creation of the World Baseball Classic, and an emphasis on diversity/inclusion in baseball. However, Bud's tenure as Commissioner was marred by the 1994 players' strike (causing the first-ever cancellation of the World Series), the first-ever stoppage of the All-Star Game (after 11 innings due to a shortage of players), and the PED, i.e., steroids, scandal that nearly destroyed baseball.

TRUE GRIT

STEVE YEAGER (1948 - )

ACRYLIC WASHES, WATERCOLOR, OIL PURPLE WASH, ULTRA-MATTE MEDIUM & COLORED PENCILS ON ILLUSTRATION BOARD, 16x20            

STEPHEN COLYER (2025)

POSTER FOR UNION 76, 8x11

VOLPE (1962)

[Not Original]

A long-time Los Angeles Dodgers catcher, and the 1981 World Series Co-MVP, Steve was the heart & soul of his Dodgers' teams, as well as one of baseball's all-time great defensive catchers. He invented the throat protector for the catcher's mask, after nearly dying from being pierced by a shattered bat. Steve was nicknamed Raw Meat for his willingness to withstand shattering home plate collisions. A rarity among ballplayers, Steve always wore glasses under his catcher's mask. He also appeared in several of the Major League baseball movies. A late night carouser, his second marriage - to a local rock musician - occurred on the steps of L.A. City Hall with Mayor Tom Bradley as Steve's Best Man. He was the nephew of famed test pilot Chuck Yeager, the inspiration for Sam Sheppard's starring movie role in The Right Stuff. Steve & his family appeared six times on the Family Feud TV show. He converted to Judaism later in life, after marrying the daughter of Holocaust survivors.

the FUNGO MASTER

JIMMIE REESE  (1901-1994)

ACRYLIC ON CANVAS, 18x24

RICHARD WALLICH (2023)

Jimmie was a Los Angeleno who became the much beloved coach of the California Angels. He remained in uniform longer than anyone in baseball history, for 78 years and until age 92, after starting as a 13-year-old batboy for the Pacific Coast League's L.A. Angels. As a hitting coach during fielding practice, Jimmie had the unique ability to place the ball within inches of wherever he wanted using a fungo bat designed & crafted by him for that purpose with a flat surface on one side; he even used that bat also to pitch batting practice. Born Hymie Solomon, Jimmie was the last Jewish ballplayer in the 20th Century to change his name to avoid Antisemitism. During his brief time in the Majors, primarily as a NY Yankees 2B, Jimmie roomed with Babe Ruth or as he liked to say about the often-carousing baseball legend, he roomed "with The Babe's suitcase." Jimmie was regularly called The Nicest Man in Baseball. Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan respected Jimmie so much that he named his second son after Reese. Angels' owner, famed movie star cowboy Gene Autrey, similarly cared so much about Jimmie that he gave him an unheard-of lifetime contract.

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