Mose Solomon

Mose Hirsch Solomon, nicknamed the Rabbi of Swat (December 8, 1900 – June 25, 1966) was an American left-handed baseball player who briefly played for the New York Giants in 1923.

Early life

Solomon, who was Jewish, was born on Hester Street the Lower East Side in New York City.^[1] The son of a junk dealer, who grew up in Columbus, Ohio, Mose also went by the nickname "Hickory". Even though the family was observant, he pursued baseball.

Minor leagues

While in the minors he played first base and outfield and hit from the left side.

Solomon was a minor league legend. In 1921 he was picked up by Vancouver in the Pacific Coast International League. He hit .313 his first year, matching his lifetime minor league average.

In 1923 he hit 49 home runs for the Class C Southwestern Conference Hutchinson Wheat Shockers, in only 108 games, with a .421 average. Unfortunately, he also made 31 errors (at first base). Only Babe Ruth had more home runs in a single season.

John McGraw, of the New York Giants bought out his contract from the Hutchinson, Kansas franchise in September 1923. By that time he had developed quite a reputation for himself. On the day that he left the club, he was batting .421 for the season, and was leading the league in runs, hits, and doubles, as well as breaking the previous minor league home run record established in 1895. The Sporting News ran a headline in 1923, "Dick Kinsella [Giants scout] Finds That $100,000 Jew".^[2]

The press gave him the nickname "The Rabbi of Swat",^[2] establishing him as "the Jewish Babe Ruth".

But he had another reputation as well. As was common for players of ethnic origin, other than Irish or German ancestry, Solomon was forced to earn the respect of the other players. He could punch.^[2] Word soon went around to "lay off the big Jew".^[2][3]

Major leagues

In 1923, the New York Giants were desperate for a slugger to offset crosstown Yankee star Babe Ruth, known as "The Sultan of Swat". They called up Solomon from the minors, and publicized him as "The Rabbi of Swat". But manager John McGraw did not dare play him in the field. In his brief big-league stint, Solomon's fielding average was .833. His .375 batting average (three for eight) in his two big-league games included one double and one RBI. His career slugging average is thus a robust .500. His entire major league career consists of two games for the Giants in 1923.

He died in Miami, Florida on June 25, 1966

See also

• Jews and Baseball: An American Love Story, 2010 documentary
• List of select Jewish baseball players

References

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
• BR Bullpen profile
• Jews in Sports bio
• Jewish Journal article at the Wayback Machine (archived November 8, 2007)