Illinois – Chicago Educator Hits Home Run With Rabbinic Baseball Collection

Illinois – A Rogers Park high school principal has turned a passion for baseball into an educational tool, with a display of baseballs on his desk signed by major leaguers who excel not on the baseball diamond but in the bais medrash. R’ Aharon Lichtenstein, R’ Reuven Feinstein and R’ Tzvi Schechter share the spotlight with R’ Akiva Tatz, R’ Shmuel Fuerst, Rabbi Berel Wein, R’ Chaim Bressler and R’ Gedalia Schwartz on Daniel Harris’ desk at the Ida Crown Jewish Academy.

Harris, who was born and bred in Chicago, estimates that he began collecting signed baseballs when he was in his late teens to early twenties and his collection includes Joe Morgan, Willy Mays and many former members of the Chicago Cubs.

“It was an evolution of thought over time as I grew in my yiddishkeit and between my love of yiddishkeit and baseball, the idea of having baseballs signed by rabbonim just came to me,” Harris told VIN News. “One day after mincha in shul I went over to R’ Gedalia Schwartz and asked him to sign a baseball for me. He signed it for me in ballpoint pen and after a year or two the ink faded and I actually had the audacity to go over and ask him to sign it for me again.”

Harris’ second ball was signed by Rabbi Berel Wein who was visiting the modern orthodox school. Harris didn’t have any unsigned balls in his office so he quickly went home and got a blank baseball for the well known lecturer to autograph.

“He actually discussed baseball with me,” recalled Harris. “Rabbi Wein was a Cubs fan growing up. I believe R’ Nosson Tzvi Finkel was a Cubs fan as well.”

Harris admits that having one signed baseball on his desk didn’t attract much attention from students but as his collection grew, it became more of a presence in his office, giving him the opportunity to instill in his students an appreciation for the true heroes in our lives.

Harris keeps a collection of blank baseballs in his car and at home and gives them to former students who are leaving for a year of study in Israel in the hopes that they will be able to nab a few more autographs for his ever-expanding collection.

While Harris has been turned down by the Breslover Rebbe, he finds that many rabbonim are eager to sign with one Rov telling him he would happily sign “anything that brings people closer to Yiddishkeit.” According to Harris, the older generation of rabbonim, many of whom grew up as baseball fans themselves, are more than willing to offer their signatures.

One of Harris’ particular favorites bears the words, “Aharon Lichtenstion, who strives for stardom in another league.”