Jeremy Bleich

Jeremy Bleich (pronounced BLYSH; ; born June 18, 1987) is an American-Israeli former professional baseball pitcher who currently serves as an assistant general manager for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball (MLB). He also pitches for Team Israel. He played in MLB for the Oakland Athletics in 2018.

In high school, Bleich was named a 2005 first-team All-American by Collegiate Baseball (Louisville Slugger), a third-team All American by Baseball America, and was twice named All-State in Louisiana. He was profiled by author Michael Lewis in his short book Coach: Lessons on the Game of Life, published in 2005. He was named a Cape Cod Baseball League All-Star in 2006.

Bleich was selected in the First Round of the 2008 Major League Baseball draft (44th overall) by the New York Yankees, out of Stanford University. He was named a Hawaii Winter Baseball post-season All-Star in 2008, had surgery to repair a torn glenoid labrum in his throwing shoulder in 2010, and was named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week on May 26, 2014. Bleich pitched for Team Israel in the 2017 World Baseball Classic qualifier, and for Team Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic. He made his major league debut in 2018.

He pitched for Team Israel in the 2019 European Baseball Championship. He also pitched for the team at the Africa/Europe 2020 Olympic Qualification tournament in Italy in September 2019, which Israel won to qualify to play baseball at the 2020 Summer Olympics. He pitched for Team Israel at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo in the summer of 2021.

Early and personal life Bleich was born in Metairie, Louisiana, a suburb 15 minutes west of New Orleans, to Stan (a cardiologist and Chair of the board of cardiology at East Jefferson General Hospital, who grew up in Brooklyn) and Caron Bleich. Bleich is Jewish, grew up in a Conservative Jewish home with Orthodox Jewish grandparents, had a bar mitzvah and went to Israel on Birthright, and is a member of Shir Chadash Conservative Congregation. His paternal grandparents George (from Poland) and Yolanda Bleich (from an area of Czechoslovakia that is now Ukraine; seven of her siblings were killed) were Auschwitz concentration camp Holocaust survivors. He said: "it’s something I feel ... defines me.... It gives you a foundation for some of the struggles you go through, gives you perspective in the moment."

He has a sister (Dr. Lauren Feldman), and a brother (Dr. Steven Bleich). He is close friends with former outfielder Sam Fuld, whom he credits with being a great sounding board throughout his career.

High school He attended Isidore Newman School in New Orleans, graduating in 2005.

College career Bleich then attended Stanford University, majoring in economics. Baseball America named him the 19th-best player in the league. Baseball America named him the Yankees' ninth-best prospect for 2010. He was named a Hawaii Winter Baseball post-season All-Star in 2008, pitching for the Waikiki BeachBoys, for whom he was 3–1 with a 1.77 ERA (2nd in the league among starters) in 7 starts.

In 2012, he was 2–1 with a 2.76 ERA as he pitched in 16 games for the GCL Yankees of the rookie–level Gulf Coast League, the Staten Island Yankees, and the Tampa Yankees.

Pittsburgh Pirates On November 18, 2014, Bleich signed a minor league deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. In 2015, he pitched in one game for the Bradenton Marauders of the High–A Florida State League, made 25 relief appearances and had 4 saves for the Altoona Curve of the Double–A Eastern League, and had a 2.60 ERA in 13 relief appearances for the Indianapolis Indians of the Triple–A International League.

Philadelphia Phillies On January 25, 2016, Bleich signed a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies. Bleich was released on the last day of spring training. Bleich was signed again by the Somerset Patriots in April 2017. Mid-season, his fastball was up to 95 mph, complemented by his curveball, changeup, and slider, and Oklahoma City pitching coach Matt Herges observed: "He's a strike machine, and he's fearless." He pitched in 31 games for Oklahoma City (for whom he was 5–3 with a 3.22 ERA, allowing opponents a .261 average — .228 by right-handers — as his fastball was in the mid-90s) and seven for the Class Double-A Tulsa Drillers while in the Dodgers system, and had a combined 5–4 record with 3 saves and a 3.77 ERA.

Oakland Athletics On January 15, 2018, Bleich signed a minor league contract with the Oakland Athletics organization and was invited to Major League spring training. A's general manager David Forst said, "Jeremy proved with his performance last year that he can pitch at this level." For the 2018 season with Nashville, he was 1–2 with one save and a 2.63 ERA in innings over 38 games. He made his major league debut that night against the San Francisco Giants, a decade after being drafted and after pitching for 14 different teams, at 31 years of age. After he pitched in two major league games, he was designated for assignment on August 6. He elected free agency following the year on November 2. He faced 3,106 batters in the minor leagues, before facing just four in the majors.

Boston Red Sox On December 18, 2018, Bleich signed a minor league deal with the Philadelphia Phillies organization. He pitched in spring training for the Phillies, and was released on March 21, 2019.

On April 17, 2019, Bleich signed a minor league deal with the Boston Red Sox organization. He pitched in the 2019 season with the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox, with whom he was 2–2 with a 5.59 ERA, and the Low–A Lowell Spinners, with whom in nine relief appearances he was 1–0 with an 0.71 ERA and 16 strikeouts in innings.

Minnesota Twins Bleich was traded to the Minnesota Twins on July 25, 2019, in exchange for cash considerations. Pitching for the Triple–A Rochester Red Wings in 2019, he was 1–1 with a 5.40 ERA and 17 strikeouts in innings. Bleich elected free agency following the season on November 4.

Post-playing career Pittsburgh Pirates Beginning in 2020, Bleich served as a hybrid advance scout and analytics whiz for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He worked on the positioning and shifting of the defense, in part by combining tendencies gleaned from advance scouting and from the available statistics.

International team experience Team USA Bleich was a member of the U.S. Junior National Team in 2005, as it placed second at the 2005 Pan American Championships in Mexico. Bleich first pitched during the second game of the series, throwing 23 pitches over innings, giving up two hits while recording three strikeouts. Bleich again pitched during the third and final game of the series, throwing 13 pitches over of an inning, giving up two hits, an unearned run, and a walk.

Bleich pitched for Team Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic main tournament, in March 2017. He appeared in three games, and struck out two batters in innings. Bleich said: "It was an unbelievable experience.... Those guys will forever be like family. We battled together in a tough environment and we succeeded." He also pitched for the team at the Africa/Europe 2020 Olympic Qualification tournament in Italy in September 2019, which Israel won to qualify to play baseball at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

He pitched for Team Israel at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo in the summer of 2021. He was 0–1 with a 3.86 ERA in three relief appearances, in which he limited opposing batters to a .125 batting average.