Posted to Crown Heights News on

Welcome to the Crown Heights Softball League!

CROWN HEIGHTS, Brooklyn [CHI] — While they may not be as well-known as the Yankees, Crown Heights has five of its own home-grown softball teams comprised of young men with an enormous store of energy, a great sense of fun, and a real aversion to babysitting.

The Crown Heights Softball League was founded in 2005 by Zevi Steinhauser and Danny Cole. After four years of playing on a team representing Crown Heights in the Kings County Softball League they got permits to rent a field for their own private games and the two teams with 11 players each played each other every week. Today the league boasts five full-size teams: the Hebrew Hammers, Kloppers, Mulles, Red Heifers, and Skullcaps.

More pictures in the Extended Article!

Every Sunday morning from nine to one and on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from seven thirty to eleven, under the strong beams of the Troy Avenue and Bergen Street lights, 70 Lubavitch men, ranging in age from 21 to 43, hold a softball game. The games resemble everything you have seen in the stadiums – bleachers for adoring fans, snazzy orange, red, green and black uniforms, beards and dangling Tzitzis.

In the beginning of the season the following sponsored the five teams in the league: Dovid Teich of Regency Dry Cleaners who is a general League sponsor, Sholom Laine and Zev Cadaner, of the PrintHouse donated the bright orange Hebrew Hammer’s uniforms, Mendy Gansburg from Landmark Funding Group is the Red Heifers’ sponsor, Arke Tzivin of House of Glatt sponsored the Kloppers Chesky Malamud of FastCash sponsored the Mulles, and Albert Benaroch of Sweet Expressions sponsored the Skullcaps.

The league is proud of their success. Zevi relates that they have been challenged to play against other teams from Bedford Stuyvesant. They are avid watchers of the Crown Heights games, they cheer, they clap, and occasionally throw old beer bottles.

There is no real underlying of deep reason that the teams are expanding and that the games continue to rock the park; Zevi says, “We just want to play ball!”

Visit the softball league website by Clicking Here!

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34 Comments

  • hadas

    It would be great if we could organize a little league for young boys?! Anyone
    interested?

  • anash

    I am sure the Rebbe is having much Nachas from the teams!
    Do all that you can to bring Moshiach.
    YAY!!

  • AWESOME

    go u go u go u go!!!this leGES R AWESOME!!!!GR8 FIELDS!!!!!!!AWESOME!AWESOME!I WATCHED THEM PLAY ONCE!!

  • cc

    Very nice! How bout putting up a video clip (on Mendy Pellin’s show?) of the games?
    loved the pic of the Dvar Malchus w/ the mit. love us chabadniks. nobody like us.

  • jack

    we all know who you are
    “baseball fan!!!!!! wrote:

    GOOOOO DOVIE SMITH!!! MVP!!!!!”
    quite obvious

    it’s nice how you mixed in some OLD pics

  • qkfngers

    Go Dovid Teich!
    It’s great fun out there. the families and friends should come out to cheer them on.
    by the way, there are organized baseball games for the kids in C.H. One is at Prospect park, done by Yehudis Bartfield; and one is at Rochester Park, done by Devorie Krasinanski.

    PLAY BALL!

  • NY Fan in Sydney

    can we get a ,list of the players on each team. and a blog to see updates
    thanks

  • baseball scout

    DOVVIE SMITH U LOOK LIKE UR A PLAYER FROM THE YANKEES
    DOVVIE SMITH IS HTE CAPTAIN AND THE BEST!!!!!!!

  • m.

    i would like to ask something really stupid:
    wouldn’t be better for men to sit and learn torah than playing baseball?

  • a would be fan

    are spectators allowed? it would be a nice outing for the whole family.

  • A Brooklyn Imma

    Hey Anash..
    At least they are not hanging out in front of 770 or on Kingston Ave staring at the women walking by or up to other inappropriate behavior.
    I am sure that the Rebbe is very proud! It is after all a huge mitzvah to stay healthy! and to keep ones body strong. Short of going to a gym which many frum families just can’t afford, this is a great way to observe that mitzvah! Good work guys! You need to start a league for the kids to keep them busy and give them something constructive to do! Not to mention something good for their self esteem!

  • a chasidisher yunger mon

    re: brooklyn ima
    these are people in their twenties. i would hope that the dont have this chalenge. it should be for teenagers more than for these peolple.

  • The French aka the foxes

    Avigdor,
    WOOHOO! You are greatest third baseman I’ve ever seen!!!

  • A LITTLE BIASED!!!!!!

    ZEVYS THE BEST COMMISIONER!!!!

    ABD OFCORSE!!!!!!THE BEST HUSBAND THE BEST FATHER!!!!!!!!!!!!!:))))))))))

  • outraged

    re:anash imma

    as for the “healthy” part of this, since when was it part of darkei hachasidus to make sure to be extra healthy? thats just an excuse to play!!! i hope mashpiim were asked about this. even if mashpiim were asked, why should this be posted as what lubavitch in crownheights does?? is this how the Rebbe wants us to be portrayed?!!?! the Rebbe always said in connection with writting chidushei torah, that one of the reasons for the “koch” is to show the misngdim that “lubavitch ken lernen”!!!

    i hope that whatever is right should be followed through right away so that we will be together with the Rebbe again bb”a

  • re: outraged

    you are 100% right.
    as a parent; what visions do you ahve of as a good parent?
    to be a dugma chaya to your sons that they should aspire to be soft ball palyers?
    get real!!!!!!!1
    is that what you want out of life?These are adults that are playing.Not 10-12 year olds

  • A jew

    Outraged,
    #1 its a kidush hashem, #2 not everyone that plays would be learning if they were not playing, better that they should be in a chasidish environment.

    The rebbe always spoke about finding ways to elevate the physical mundane into kedusha… is that not why we are here ? lassos dire lo yisbarech b’tachtonim.

    They play 2 nights a week, thats “extra healthy” what nareshkeit puleeez.

    The yetzer hara needs to be feed a bit before you klap him oifen kop, theres no itkafiya when it involves ithapcha davar gashmi l’kedusha.