Baseball players at Rochelle Zell prepared for the 2017 season like many other area teams.
They fielded ground balls, took batting practice and worked on baserunning. Early in March, they also watched a lot of baseball on TV to stay mentally sharp.
Specifically, the Tigers watched Team Israel in the World Baseball Classic.
Team Israel was the early surprise of the tournament by winning three straight games to advance to the final eight. Israel was eventually eliminated by Japan.
“We’d be doing warmups and dynamic stretching or throwing progressions, and one of the topics the boys would be talking about was the (WBC),” coach Paul Chanan said.
“It’s something we can connect to and an easy thing to talk about,” junior catcher Max Pivo added.
This is the fourth year of the Rochelle Zell program. Chanan, a longtime youth coach in Deerfield, is in his first year as the Tigers’ coach. He is instilling a clear baseball culture with the Tigers that emphasizes defense and fundamentals. But that’s not all.
Israel’s success at the WBC aligns with an overarching theme for Rochelle Zell this spring: Connecting their Jewish faith with the game of baseball.
“When we play, we are representing the Jewish people. We take lot of pride in that,” junior shortstop Ben Saxton said. “It’s important we keep in mind who we are.”
The team does not practice or play games from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday in recognition of the Jewish Sabbath, known as Shabbat in Hebrew.
Chanan teaches at Solomon Schecter Day School, a Jewish school in Northbrook. Last summer, he coached an under-14 team of Chicago-area baseball players to a gold medal at the Maccabi Games, an annual Olympic-style competition sponsored by the JCC Association of North America.
Chanan said the values of Judaism are omnipresent in his everyday life and carry over to the baseball field.
“The messaging has a different nuance when you are coaching at Rochelle Zell,” Chanan said. “Discussions and traditions often come into play, and the boys respond very well to that type of messaging.”
Those traditions were on full display at the WBC, as the Rochelle Zell baseball players watched as others with Jewish heritage compete against some of the best athletes in the world.
While watching the games, Pivo noticed some players were wearing the traditional kippah under the baseball cap.
“I wear (a kippah) under my cap, and I always have it. I thought it was a nice connection I had with the team,” Pivo said. “It reminded me of our connection to God.”
Baseball is considered a fringe sport in Israel, but the WBC has spurred talks to increase the sport’s limited infrastructure in Israel.
That’s welcome news to Rochelle Zell athletes who might consider representing Israel one day in international play.
“I watched every game I could, and it felt awesome,” said sophomore second baseman Owen Stern of Evanston. “To see them and know that is who we are, that is what we hope to be some day if we strive for success and stay committed to our sport.”
This spring, the 18 Rochelle Zell players will take the field for at least 13 games. They plan to work the count, turn double plays and grind out some wins.
For them, that style of baseball not only honors the game, but also their faith.
“We are recognized as a Jewish baseball team,” Pivo said. “We choose to embrace that, not run away.”
Jon J. Kerr is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter @Pioneer_Press
