Only 117 days until professional baseball begins… in Israel! That’s right, folks: The Holy Land is going hardball. The Israel Baseball League will start play on June 24th, with two time MLB Executive of the Year, Dan Duquette serving as Director of Baseball Operations.

The league has signed former MLB stars Art Shamsky, Ken Holtzman, and Ron Blomberg to manage. The inaugural season will include six teams: The Bet Shemesh Blue Sox, The Modi’in Miracle, The Netanya Tigers, The Petach Tikva Pioneers, The Ra’anana Express, and The Tel Aviv Lightning.

The IBL will have some interesting rules: 7 inning games and a Home Run Derby when a game is tied after 7 innings. Believe it or not, I think it’s a great idea. I wouldn’t like it on the Major League Level, but in the minors, why not?

Anyway, I’ll be covering IBL news as we get it. Until then…

Mazol Tov, Citizens!