Life-changing experience for local ballplayers at Maccabiah Games

Team USA steamrolls to a gold medal


Israel is the Land of Milk and Honey. The Holy Land. The Promised Land.

For the USA baseball team, it’s also the land of gold medals.

Fielding a roster packed with Marmonte League players, Team USA won the gold medal at the 18th Maccabiah Games in Israel in July.

The Maccabiah Games, which features 9,000 Jewish athletes from 60 countries, is the second largest sporting event in the world behind the Olympics.

The tournament that’s held every four years is bigger than the World Cup.

“It’s something I’ll never forget,” said Jordan Pollack, who will be a senior left fielder at Calabasas High in the fall.

“It’s the greatest experience of my life.”

The United States defeated Canada 12-6 in the gold-medal game on July 21. Team USA outscored its opponents, which also included squads from Israel and Mexico, 150-20 during its eight-game rampage.

Drew Sandler of Simi Valley picked the right time to go out on top as a pitcher.

Sandler, who will play catcher for UC Irvine next spring, earned the win in the finale. The former Pioneer had five strike outs and allowed only one hit in four innings—his only pitching appearance in the tournament.

“Winning championships is my favorite thing to do,” said Sandler, who captured a CIFSouthern Section Division I title with Simi Valley in 2008.

“My arm didn’t feel 100 percent, but it felt good enough to compete and throw strikes.

“I like pressure—I’ve pitched at Dodger Stadium. I told myself to relax and have fun.”

Adam Landecker of Calabasas hit a two-run home run in the gold-medal game to give the USA a commanding 8-2 lead in the fourth inning.

Landecker, who will play shortstop at USC next year, enjoyed the monthlong trip—his first to Israel.

“The experience was great,” he said. “It was a lot of fun to play baseball and to see our heritage.”

The opening and closing ceremonies at Latrun Amphitheatre— and the medal ceremony—moved many players.

“The medal ceremony was amazing,” Pollack said. “They played our national anthem. We all got chills.”

Agoura’s Shane Crofts and Calabasas Coyotes Jacob Fields, Dustin Green and Brian Rivera also played on Team USA.

USA assistant coach Hal Sandler, who lives in Oak Park, said his players represented their country well.

“Israelis got to see the way baseball should be played with the U.S. team,” said Hal Sandler, who formed the Los Angelesarea Maccabee baseball team 18 years ago.

“We would take our pregame warm-ups, and people in the stands would go, ‘Ooooh’ and ‘Ahhhh.’ It was like a show.”

Before and after games, the players signed autographs, talked and posed for pictures with youngsters.

“Our players were treated like they were major leaguers,” Hal Sandler said.

Team USA enjoyed touring the country.

During the trip, players visited the Western Wall, the Dead Sea, Tel Aviv, Masada, the Golan Heights, the Sea of Galilee and Yad Vashem, the Holocaust museum.

“I can’t speak for everyone, but the Holocaust museum was really emotional,” Landecker said. “I’ll probably always remember that.”

Hal Sandler thought Yad Vashem was important for his players to visit.

“It was really a moving experience for all these kids,” the coach said. “It gives you an idea why there is an Israel and why it needs to stay there, not just for (the Jewish people) but from a humanistic standpoint.”

Crofts, a left-handed pitcher who will play at Chapman University at Orange next spring, said the team bonded during its short time together.

“Our team was like a family in Israel,” the former Charger said. “We all got along really well.”

Pollack said he talked with Jason Lezak, a goldmedal Olympic swimmer, while doing laundry at a hotel in Tel Aviv. The Coyote also ran into Bruce Pearl, the men’s basketball coach at the University of Tennessee.

Although the tournament is over, the players said they are doing their best to stay in touch with everyone around the country.

The baseball stars will always have their memories—and the gold medals.

Pollack’s gold medal hangs above his computer at home, where he said he can see it every day. He also has team articles from the Jerusalem Post
hanging on his wall and a baseball signed by every player on the team.

“People should get to experience Israel the way I got to,” Pollack said.

“I’ve always wanted to go to Israel, and playing baseball is something I love to do. Being able to play in Israel was amazing.”


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *