ARTS AND CULTURE

Dean Kremer

Athlete

In 2015, Dean Kremer became the first Israeli to be drafted by a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Then just 19, the starting pitcher began his professional career with the San Diego Padres organization. In July 2018, Kremer was traded to the Baltimore Orioles organization. Kremer has also represented Israel at the national level, most famously as starting pitcher in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. Despite being ranked by ESPN as the tournament's biggest underdog, Israel finished in third place – and Kremer remains determined to boost the sport's popularity in the Jewish state. "What I'd love to get out of the game is be a role model for kids in Israel along with kids in the Jewish community here," Kremer says. (Photo: Robbie Bullough / Ogden Raptors.)