UPDATE 1/21/26:
Since this article was first published, Elie Kligman has made history.
This spring, the University of Michigan Baseball program welcomed Kligman as the first Orthodox Jew to play Division I baseball, where he joined the team as a catcher. Now 22, Kligman is a graduate student at the university and continues to balance elite athletics with full Orthodox Jewish observance.
“Elie Kligman is making history,” Michigan Baseball wrote in announcing his arrival.
He was also the second ever Orthodox Jew drafted to the minor leagues after Jacob Steinmetz in 2021 to the Washington Nationals.
Feb 17, 2021:
Elie Kligman is a born and bred Orthodox Jew, and at a young age, his family noticed he had a talent for baseball. He started to hone that talent, and now, as a senior in high school, several Division 1 Colleges and even some Major League Baseball teams have noticed too.
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Jacob Steinmetz is from HAFTR High School and is Orthodox and has a Di Scholar ship to Fordham University D!. His father coaches D3 basketball at Yeshiva University
Very cool!
I am VERY PROUD of this young boy! He certainly has his head on his shoulders & knows what is Important to him like his Jewish Religion. I Pray for him & his continued success ! May Hashem bless & protect him where ever he may go!