Israel looking to get strong Team for World Baseball Classic Qualifier

[nebo86]

The Israel Association of Baseball is starting to put together a team to compete later this year in a new qualifying round for the World Baseball Classic.

The WBC is an international tournament featuring some of the best players in the world. It has been held twice before, but never has had a qualifiers round for countries that don’t excel in baseball.
Aaron Pribble of San Francisco, a standout high school pitcher in Marin in the mid-1990s, is among the players expected to receive an invitation to try out for the Israeli squad.

Former major leaguers Brad Ausmus, Shawn Green and Gabe Kapler have expressed interest in playing or coaching for Israel, the IAB noted. Two pitchers with Bay Area roots — Scott Feldman of Burlingame (Texas Rangers) and Aaron Poreda of Moraga (Double-A in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization) — are other possibilities.

“The first efforts will be toward major league Jewish players, and then the rosters will fill in from there,” an IBA spokesman said in an email. Pribble said one of the organizers told him there would be three tryout sessions.

Pribble pitched in the short-lived Israel Baseball League in 2007 and wrote a book about the experience titled “Pitching in the Promised Land.”

Read @Israel getting team together for World Baseball Classic | j. the Jewish news weekly of Northern California

[dabynsky]

I am guessing Sandy Koufax would still be their best pitcher...

[astrosfanatic]

can they bring Hank Greenberg back from the dead?? or maybe Ryan Braun can catch on with them.....

[nebo86]

WBC Qualifiers will not feature any players that are on current MLB 40 man rosters. So, Koufax may get an invite

[yankeebiscuitfan]

I still do not agree with this. Israel doesn't have any baseball tradition whatsoever. Countries like the Czech Republic are more deserving to participate.

[nebo86]

I still do not agree with this. Israel doesn't have any baseball tradition whatsoever. Countries like the Czech Republic are more deserving to participate.

I agree with you, but I also realize it's all about marketing. Sweden has a better home grown program than Great Britain, Israel and New Zealand, but MLB doesn't find them appealing enough. The WBC is a few editions away from having true Qualifiers where teams can just participate without an invitation.

[yankeebiscuitfan]

I agree with you, but I also realize it's all about marketing. Sweden has a better home grown program than Great Britain, Israel and New Zealand, but MLB doesn't find them appealing enough. The WBC is a few editions away from having true Qualifiers where teams can just participate without an invitation.

So in fact it is a tainted tournament. Weird thing is that players are allowed to play for a country that they have never played for or even never have been to. But only because some blood ties to the second degree (correct me if I'm wrong) they can play for that country; even if they are American citizens.
Don't get me wrong, I love the WBC, but I disagree on these points.

[Mr. Baseball]

When do you qualifying rounds start? I can't seem to find any information online...

[nebo86]

Here is some info...
http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/D...03/22/WBC.aspx

The rosters for the Germany group have yet to be announced. The prevailing sentiment is that no MLB 40 man roster players will be allowed to play; that has not been officially announced.