Jewish heritage celebrated at Marlins home game
As the Miami Marlins defeated the visiting San Diego Padres 9-3 on July 25, Jewish heritage was celebrated at LoanDepot Park.
The game drew 12,765 people and the total amount of ticket buyers for the Marlins’ Jewish Heritage Celebration was just shy of 200. A portion of the proceeds from each ticket benefited the organization’s Surfside Relief Fund.
Due to COVID-19 protocols, the event was more scaled back than in previous years.
Fans who bought ticket packages received a Jewish Heritage Marlins T-shirt. Before the game, “Hatikvah” (Israeli national anthem) and the “Star Spangled Banner” (America’s national anthem) were performed in the presence of the flags representing the two countries before the game. “Hava Nagila” was sung following the seventh inning stretch.
A highlight from the game was Marlins’ relief pitcher Richard Bleier, who is Jewish, throwing a scoreless seventh inning. Bleier grew up in Plantation and now lives in Fort Lauderdale. He represented Team Israel in the 2013 World Baseball Classic’s qualifying round. He made his MLB debut in 2016 at age 29 for the New York Yankees. He was traded to the Baltimore Orioles in 2017 before coming to the Marlins in 2020.
Men’s clubs from Conservative synagogues throughout South Florida sold tickets for the event and brought groups to the games A portion of the proceeds from the tickets that the local men’s clubs sold benefited the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs.
Larry Schwartz, president of the men’s club for Temple Beth Am in Margate, thought the ambiance for the event was nice.
“There was a nice turnout,” Schwartz said. “I saw a lot of people around me wearing the shirts that you were able to get by getting a ticket through this.”
Schwartz thought it was nice that Bleier was able to pitch in the game.
“Once I found out he was Jewish, I thought it was nice to know that the Marlins have a Jewish player and they actually put him in the game for this event,” he said.
Gary Dalin, a board member for Temple Torat Emet in Boynton Beach and past president for the Florida Region of the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs, said regarding the Marlins celebration of Jewish heritage, “It gives you a sense of Jewish pride.”
“The Marlins have had other heritage celebrations, such as Puerto Rican and Dominican heritage celebrations, so this means that we’re part of the community and that South Florida, and Miami in particular, is made of of many ethnic and religious backgrounds,” Dalin said.
