By Michael Sudhalter
Aug. 25, 2025
In an otherwise unremarkable season for the Texas Rangers, teammates Rowdy Tellez and Joc Pederson combined to make Jewish baseball history Sunday afternoon at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
Tellez, a 30-year-old first baseman, and Pederson, a 33-year-old designated hitter, became the first Jewish teammates in Major League Baseball to hit home runs in the same game in 87 years.
Eighty-seven years and five days earlier, Philadelphia Phillies teammates Morrie Arnovich and Phil Weintraub homered in a victory over the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds in New York. In that game, Harry Danning, also Jewish, hit a home run for the Giants.
Tellez broke a scoreless tie with a two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth inning of the Rangers’ 5-0 win over Cleveland. Pederson added an insurance run with a solo shot in the bottom of the seventh.
Both Californians, Tellez and Pederson seemed an unlikely duo to accomplish the feat. Tellez was released by the division rival Seattle Mariners on June 26 and signed with the Rangers on July 5. His home run was just his third of the season and second in two days — he also went deep in the Rangers’ 10-0 win over Cleveland on Saturday.
Pederson, a high-profile free agent who won consecutive World Series titles with the Dodgers (2020) and Braves (2021), endured an 0-for-41 slump earlier this season. After fracturing his hand in May, he didn’t return until July 27.
Against Cleveland, Pederson hit the game-winning double in Friday’s 4-3 victory, the opener of the Rangers’ three-game sweep.
Pederson played for Team Israel in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. Tellez was invited to join Team Israel but chose instead to play for Team Mexico.
