first Israeli selected and signed in MLB draft

Mazel tov to Dean Kemer on being the first Israeli drafted, and signed, to a Major League Baseball team!

In the recent MLB draft, the Los Angeles Dodgers selected Kemer as their pick in the 14th round, and he signed with them. Kemer is a dual-citizen pitcher and has played for the Israel national baseball team in international tournaments.

Kemer was actually drafted in the 2015 draft by the San Diego Padres, but elected to fulfill previous obligations and go to school for another year so did not sign with the Padres.
sources: Wikipedia, JTA, True Blue LA, Times of Israel

As I wrote to Kemer on Twitter, mazel tov, and we will be following his career and rooting for him from Israel!

Is waiting for the day he is scheduled to pitch in the World Series falling out on Yom Kippur to see if he is in the next Sandy Koufax getting a bit ahead of ourselves? Plus, he has to still make the team and then get through the Cubs before that happens...

Depending on how quickly or slowly Kemer makes the team and climbs his way into the Majors, he could be joining fellow MOTT Joc Pederson on the Dodgers...

I would note that other Jews were drafted, but Kemer is the only, and first ever, Israeli.

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