Joshua David Wolf (born September 1, 2000) is an American
professional baseball pitcher for the
Cleveland Guardians organization and the
Israeli national baseball team
The Israel national baseball team ( he, נבחרת ישראל בבייסבול) represents Israel in international competitions. It is managed by Israeli-American former Major League Baseball World Series champion, World Baseball Classic champion, ...
.
Early life and amateur career
Wolf was born in
Bellaire, Texas, and is Jewish. He had his
Bar Mitzvah at the
Western Wall in
Jerusalem, and was a member of
Congregation Beth Israel in Houston.
His mother is from Israel and his father is from
Cincinnati.
Wolf attended
St. Thomas High School in
Houston,
Texas. Wolf played for the school's baseball team and was twice named All-State.
As a junior he was 4-1 with a 1.06
earned run average (ERA), and 53
strikeout
In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...
s in 39
inning
In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other team ...
s. In his senior year, he struck out 126 batters in 69 innings, had a 1.52 ERA, and was named Outstanding Male High School Athlete of the Year by the Jewish Sports Heritage Association.
He committed to attend
Texas A&M University.
Professional career
The
New York Mets selected Wolf in the second round, with the 53rd overall selection, of the
2019 MLB draft
The 2019 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 3 to 5, 2019. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was set based on the reverse order of the 2018 MLB season standings. In additi ...
.
He was ranked the 36th-best prospect by MLB.com, and the 55th-best prospect by ''Baseball America''.
At the time of the draft, he could throw a
fastball, and had an above average
curveball
In baseball and softball, the curveball is a type of pitch thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball, causing it to dive as it approaches the plate. Varieties of curveball include the 12–6 curve ...
. He signed with the Mets for a $2.15 million
signing bonus
A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...
, forgoing his commitment to Texas A&M. He made his professional debut in 2019 with the
Rookie-level Gulf Coast League Mets, going 0–1 with a 3.38 earned run average over eight innings, in which he struck out 12 batters and walked one batter.
On January 7, 2021, the Mets traded Wolf,
Amed Rosario,
Andrés Giménez
Andrés Alfonso Giménez Osorio (born September 4, 1998) is a Venezuelan professional baseball shortstop and second baseman for the Cleveland Guardians of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut with the New York Mets in 2020.
Care ...
, and
Isaiah Greene to the
Cleveland Indians for
Francisco Lindor and
Carlos Carrasco. At the time, Wolf was the number 9 prospect in the Mets system.
Indians president of baseball operations
Chris Antonetti
Chris Antonetti is an American professional baseball executive, currently serving as the President of Baseball Operations for the Cleveland Guardians of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Biography
Antonetti is a graduate of Amity Regional High School ...
said: “He's a young, hard-throwing right-handed pitcher with a good mix of pitches. He's got an above-average fastball, up to 96
ph He's got a really good slider. His changeup is his third pitch, and that's developing. He has the ingredients to develop into a successful starting Major League pitcher.”
For the 2021 season, Wolf was assigned to the
Lynchburg Hillcats of the
Low-A East. Over 18 games (17 starts), Wolf went 1–3 with a 5.35 ERA, striking out 67 batters over innings. He split 2022 between the ACL Guardians and Lynchburg, and was 2-2 with a 5.61 ERA, striking out 25 batters in 25.2 innings.
Wolf pitched for the
Israeli national baseball team
The Israel national baseball team ( he, נבחרת ישראל בבייסבול) represents Israel in international competitions. It is managed by Israeli-American former Major League Baseball World Series champion, World Baseball Classic champion, ...
in the
2023 World Baseball Classic
The 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC), an international professional baseball tournament, is set to be the fifth iteration of the World Baseball Classic. It was originally set for 2021 (as per tradition to hold the event every four years), but wa ...
.
See also
*
List of Jewish baseball players
This list of Jewish athletes in sports contains athletes who are Jewish and have attained outstanding achievements in sports. The topic of Jewish participation in sports is discussed extensively in academic and popular literature (See also: Lis ...
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolf, Josh
2000 births
Living people
Baseball pitchers
Baseball players from Texas
Gulf Coast Mets players
Jewish American baseball players
People from Bellaire, Texas
Sportspeople from Harris County, Texas
2023 World Baseball Classic players
21st-century American Jews