Joshua Alexander Zeid ( ; ; born March 24, 1987) is an

American-Israeli Israeli Americans () are Americans who are of full or partial Israeli descent. The Israeli-American community, while predominantly Jewish, also includes various ethnic and religious minorities reflective of Israel's diverse demographics. This c ...

former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

and current coach. He plays for Team Israel. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

. Zeid played for the gold-medal-winning Team USA Youth National Team in 2003. In his senior year in high school he was named Gatorade Connecticut High School Player of the Year, and ''

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' (BA) is a sports publication company that covers baseball at every level, including Major League Baseball (MLB), with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) college, high school, and inte ...

'' ranked him the nation's 27th-best prospect. He was drafted in the 10th round of the

2009 Major League Baseball Draft The 2009 Major League Baseball draft was held June 9 to June 11 at the MLB Network Studios in Secaucus, New Jersey. The drafting order is as follows: First-round selections Key Supplemental first-round selections From Baseball Americ ...

, and in 2010 he was named a

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its h ...

midseason All-Star, and won the MiLB Best Reliever (Class A–Full Season) Award. He debuted in the major leagues with the Houston Astros in 2013. He pitched for Team Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic, and was named to the 2017 All-World Baseball Classic team. His

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch (baseball), pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. Its distinctive feature is its high speed. "Power pitchers," such as former major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, relied on the ...

reached 97 mph. After retiring from major league baseball, Zeid joined the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

front office as a pitching analyst. In November 2019, he obtained

Israeli citizenship Israel has two primary pieces of legislation governing the requirements for citizenship, the 1950 Law of Return and 1952 Citizenship Law. Every Jew has the unrestricted right to immigrate to Israel and become an Israeli citizen. Individuals ...

so that he could play for Team Israel in

baseball at the 2020 Summer Olympics Baseball was featured at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in Tokyo, for the first time since the 2008 Summer Olympics. Six national teams competed in the tournament: Israel, Japan (host), Mexico, South Korea, the United States, and the Dominican Republ ...

. He pitched for Team Israel at the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

in Tokyo in the summer of 2021.

Personal

Zeid was born to Ira (a dentist) and Karen Zeid (who works at a

senior center A senior center (or senior centre or older adult center) is a type of community center where older adults congregate for fellowship with others to fulfill many of their social, physical, emotional, and intellectual needs. A regular part of senio ...

) in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

, grew up in

Woodbridge, Connecticut Woodbridge is a New England town, town in New Haven County, Connecticut, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut, South Central Connecticut Planning Region. The ...

, and is Jewish. As a child he had a

bar mitzvah A ''bar mitzvah'' () or ''bat mitzvah'' () is a coming of age ritual in Judaism. According to Halakha, Jewish law, before children reach a certain age, the parents are responsible for their child's actions. Once Jewish children reach that age ...

, went to

Hebrew school Hebrew school is Jewish education focusing on topics of Jewish history, learning the Hebrew language, and finally learning one's Torah Portion, in preparation for the ceremony in Judaism of entering adulthood, known as a Bar or Bat Mitzvah. Heb ...

three days a week, and attended Congregation B'nai Jacob.Max Wildstein (December 30, 2016)
"Exclusive: Josh Zeid Talks About Pitching For Team Israel," Hardball Scoop,
''Scout'', December 30, 2016 He always wears a

Star of David The Star of David (, , ) is a symbol generally recognized as representing both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles. A derivation of the Seal of Solomon was used for decora ...

around his neck and a chai, and as to being Jewish, he said: “If you become a successful athlete, you should let people know where you’re from.” In January 2013 he married the former Stephanie Tiedemann, a doctor of

neuropsychology Neuropsychology is a branch of psychology concerned with how a person's cognition and behavior are related to the brain and the rest of the nervous system. Professionals in this branch of psychology focus on how injuries or illnesses of the brai ...

at The University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, and a former Vanderbilt (2007) and

Florida Institute of Technology Florida Institute of Technology (Florida Tech or FIT) is a private research university in Melbourne, Florida. The university comprises four academic colleges: Engineering & Science, Aeronautics, Psychology & Liberal Arts, and Business. Approxim ...

(Masters/Doctor of Psychology) student. They have two sons, Parker and Barrett.

High school and college

Zeid was a pitcher for the Hornets at

Hamden Hall Country Day School Hamden Hall Country Day School is a coeducational Private school, private day school in Hamden, Connecticut, educating students in preschool through grade 12. Hamden Hall was founded in 1912 as a Country Day School movement, country day school ...

(2005), where he had 400 strikeouts, a school record. In addition to pitching, he played first base, shortstop, and center field. He played for the gold-medal-winning Team USA Youth National Team in 2003, and was an

AFLAC Aflac Incorporated (American Family Life Assurance Company) is an American insurance company and is the largest provider of supplemental insurance in the United States. It was founded in 1955 and is based in Columbus, Georgia. In the U.S., it ...

All American in 2004. In his junior and senior years he led his high school team to two straight New England Championships, and a record of 54–15. In his junior year in 2004, he struck out 68 batters in 42 innings and had a 1.66 ERA, while batting .412. In his senior year, he struck out 130 batters in 65.0 innings and batted .450, and was team captain. That year, he was the Gatorade Connecticut High School Player of the Year, ''

'' ranked him the country's 27th-best prospect, and he was a

Louisville Slugger Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

, National High School Baseball Coaches Association, ''

Collegiate Baseball ''Collegiate Baseball Newspaper'' (also known as ''Collegiate Baseball Magazine'' and ''Collegiate Baseball'') was an American publication based in Arizona that considered itself the "voice of amateur baseball" and was published for over 40 yea ...

'', and

Street & Smith Street & Smith or Street & Smith Publications, Inc., was a New York City publisher specializing in inexpensive paperbacks and magazines referred to as dime novels and pulp magazine, pulp fiction. They also published comic books and sporting year ...

All American. He played for the Long Island Titans in the summer of his senior year. They finished 43–5. He earned two varsity letters in basketball. He played college baseball, pitching for the Vanderbilt Commodores baseball team for two years, and then for

Tulane University The Tulane University of Louisiana (commonly referred to as Tulane University) is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by a cohort of medical doctors, it b ...

, where he pitched for the Green Wave baseball team and was an English major. He also pitched for the Torrington Twisters of the

New England Collegiate Baseball League The New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) is a 13-team collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league founded in 1993 and sanctioned by the NCAA and Major League Baseball. Each NECBL team plays an eight-week, 44-game schedule during June ...

in 2006, and for the

Harwich Mariners The Harwich Mariners are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Harwich, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's East Division. The Mariners play their home games at Whitehouse Fiel ...

of the Cape Cod Collegiate Baseball League in 2007. In the 2016-17 off-season, he took a class at Tulane, as he had just a few credits left in order to obtain his degree.Chris Knoblock (2017)
"Catching up with Josh Zeid"
New Britain Bees. He graduated in January 2019.

Playing career

Philadelphia Phillies

He was drafted out of Tulane by the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

in the 10th round of the

as a starter. Zeid received a $10,000

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 ...

."All-World Baseball Classic pitcher Josh Zeid of Team Israel discusses his success and how he wants to bring that to the St. Louis Cardinals,"
St. Louis - Scout. He pitched as a starter for the Single–A

Williamsport Crosscutters The Williamsport Crosscutters are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at Journey Bank Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field. From 1994 to 2020, they w ...

, and had an 8–5 record with a 2.94 ERA, holding batters to a .217 average. In 2010, he pitched for the

Lakewood BlueClaws The Jersey Shore BlueClaws (formerly Lakewood BlueClaws) are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Lakewood, New Jersey, and are named for their locat ...

and split his season between starting and relieving, finishing the season 8–4 with 8 saves, a 2.93 ERA, 111 strikeouts in 107.3 innings, and 27 walks. He was named a

midseason All-Star, won the MiLB Best Reliever (Single–A) award, and ''Baseball America'' named him the # 23 prospect in the Phillies organization and said he had the best slider of any pitcher in their minor league system. In the off-season he played for the

Mesa Solar Sox The Mesa Solar Sox are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games in Mesa, Arizona, at Sloan Park, which is also the spring training facility of the Chicago Cubs. The team was establi ...

of the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season baseball league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are filled ...

where he was named an AFL Rising Star, blogging about his experience for MLB.com. He played for Double-A Reading in 2011, starting the season in its starting rotation before moving to the bullpen.

Houston Astros

Zeid was traded on July 29, 2011, along with Jonathan Singleton, Jarred Cosart, and

Domingo Santana Domingo Alberto Santana (born August 5, 1992) is a Dominican professional baseball outfielder for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, M ...

to the

for All Star right fielder Hunter Pence. After the season, Zeid pitched for the

Salt River Rafters The Salt River Rafters are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in the Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community near Scottsdale, Arizona. ...

in the Arizona Fall League, where he was named an AFL Rising Star. Going into 2012, he was ranked #19 in the Astros system by baseball writer Jonathan Mayo, for his "plus

" and "nasty slider." In 2012, Zeid pitched as a reliever for an entire season for the first time, pitching in 47 games for the Double-A

Corpus Christi Hooks The Corpus Christi Hooks are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. They are located in Corpus Christi, Texas, and are named for the city's association with fishing. The team is owned b ...

, and striking out 66 batters in 56.1 innings. In March 2013, Zeid was looking to add a third pitch to his fastball and slider. In 2013, he threw a 95–97 mph fastball, and a hard slider. Only the top 15 percent of major league pitchers throw a 95 mph fastball. He pitched as the closer for the Triple–A

Oklahoma City RedHawks Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

in 2013, with a 4–1 record, 13 saves in 15 save opportunities (tied for the club lead), and 3.50 ERA over 43 games, as Zeid struck out 53 batters in 43.2 innings. Zeid was called up to the majors for the first time on July 29, 2013. In 25 relief appearances he stranded 15 of 17 inherited runners, and held lefties to a .178 batting average. He ended 2013 with a 0–1 record and a 3.90 ERA in innings pitched. He made 23 appearances in 2014, recording a 6.97 ERA before suffering from

sesamoiditis Sesamoiditis is inflammation of the sesamoid bones. Humans Sesamoiditis occurs on the bottom of the foot, just behind the big toe. There are normally two sesamoid bones on each foot; sometimes sesamoids can be bipartite, which means they each c ...

and being shut down in July for foot surgery known as sesamoidectomy. Zeid underwent the procedure to both feet, with the second foot surgery, to his left foot, taking place in October 2014. He was expected to recover three months following his surgery. Pitching for Houston, according to

Fangraphs FanGraphs.com is a website run by Fangraphs Inc., located in Arlington, Virginia, and created and owned by David Appelman that provides statistics for every player in Major League Baseball history. On September 18, 2009, Fangraphs Inc. launched ...

, Zeid threw about 60% fastballs with an average velocity of 94.3 mph, in addition to sliders and an occasional

changeup A changeup is a type of pitch in baseball and fastpitch softball. The changeup is a staple off-speed pitch often used in a pitcher's arsenal, usually thrown to look like a fastball, but arriving much more slowly to the plate. Its reduced spee ...

. In 2014, he again pitched for Oklahoma City, going 2-2 with 7 saves and a 2.45 ERA in 17 relief appearances, as in 18.1 innings Zeid gave up 2 walks and had 21 strikeouts.">"Josh Zeid Minor, Fall & Independent Leagues Statistics & History,"
Baseball-Reference.com.

Detroit Tigers

Zeid was claimed off waivers by the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

on November 20, 2014. Zeid had pitched for Tiger manager

Brad Ausmus Bradley David Ausmus (; born April 14, 1969) is an American former professional baseball player, manager and current coach. He is the bench coach for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). In his 18-year MLB playing career, Ausmus ...

on Team Israel in the 2013 World Baseball Classic qualifiers. On March 24, 2015, he was optioned to the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A baseball team nicknamed the ...

of the Triple–A

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major ...

, and pitching for the Mud Hens he went 4-3 with 2 saves and a 4.46 ERA in 42 games, 4 of which were starts.

New Britain Bees

On April 7, 2016, Zeid signed with the

New Britain Bees The New Britain Bees are an American collegiate summer baseball team based in New Britain, Connecticut. They are a member of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League (FCBL), a wood-bat league with teams in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connectic ...

of the

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, and the headquarters are l ...

. In 8 games (7 starts) 37.1 innings he struggled going 2-3 with a 5.06 ERA with 43 strikeouts and he threw 1 complete game.

New York Mets

On June 10, 2016, Zeid signed a minor league contract with the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

. He made his debut for their Double–A affiliate, the

Binghamton Mets The Binghamton Rumble Ponies are an American Minor League Baseball team based in Binghamton, New York. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the New York Mets major-league club. The Rumble Ponies play in Mi ...

. Zeid pitched innings while striking out six batters. He spent the remainder of the season pitching for Binghamton and the Triple–A Las Vegas 51s, going an aggregate 7-6 with a 4.61 ERA. Zeid elected free agency following the season on November 7.

St. Louis Cardinals

Zeid signed a minor league contract with the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

on March 21, 2017. He pitched for the

Memphis Redbirds The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbird ...

of the Triple–A

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

, going 9-4 (his 9 wins tied for 6th-most in the league) and striking out 95 batters in 102 innings as he pitched in 33 games, starting 12 of them. He elected free agency on November 6.

Coaching career

Zeid announced his retirement from professional baseball on April 5, 2018, at 31 years of age, saying "You have to throw in the mid-to-high-90s, consistently, or there’s someone 10 years younger than you who will." In January 2019 through January 2023, Zeid was a rehab pitching coordinator and player development pitching analyst for the

. He also ran the Pitch Lab in Arizona for the team. Zeid joined the Texas Rangers organization as the pitching coach of the

Frisco RoughRiders The Frisco RoughRiders (often shortened to 'Riders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers. Based in Frisco, Texas, the team is named aft ...

of the Double-A

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

prior to the 2023 season. As of July 2023, Zeid was entering his first season (2023-24) as the Pitching Coach and Pitching Analyst at

San Jacinto College San Jacinto College () is a public community college in the Greater Houston area, with its campuses in Pasadena and Houston, Texas. Established in 1961, San Jacinto College originally consisted of the independent school districts (ISD) of Chan ...

in Houston, Texas.

International career; Team Israel

Zeid played for the Israeli national baseball team in the 2013 World Baseball Classic qualifier in September 2012, under manager

. He pitched in all 3 games, earning a save in Israel’s victory over Spain. His mother said: "As we watched the games ... we loved ... the nachas and kvelling that goes deep into our hearts." During the opening game, against South Africa, Zeid pitched 1.2 innings, giving up a walk on three strike outs, and was credited with a hold. During the second game, against Spain, Zeid gave up a hit and an earned run while recording a save. During the third and final game, the qualifying game, once again against Spain, he gave up a hit and two earned runs, while walking one and striking out two, in a game that Zeid was credited with the loss. Zeid pitched for

Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic Team Israel has competed in the World Baseball Classic since the 2013 World Baseball Classic qualifier round. In 2017 Israel competed at a World Baseball Classic qualifier for the second time, and for the first time qualified for the main tourname ...

qualifier, and had a 1.35 ERA in innings. In the first game of the series Zeid threw 48 pitches over 3.2 innings, giving up 2 hits and an earned run while striking out 2. Under

World Baseball Classic The World Baseball Classic (WBC), also referred to as the Classic, is an international baseball tournament sanctioned by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC), the sport's global governing body, and organized in World Baseball Clas ...

rules any pitcher who throws over 50 pitches cannot pitch again for four days, therefore by pulling Zeid before reaching this limit, it enabled Israel to utilize Zeid again in the tournament. During the third and final game of the tournament, Zeid was the winning pitcher, after throwing 37 pitches over 3 innings of no hit ball, while giving up a walk and recording 3 strikeouts. Zeid again pitched for Israel, at the 2017 World Baseball Classic main tournament, in March 2017. In the first game of round one, he was the winning pitcher as # 41-ranked Israel defeated # 3-ranked South Korea, with Zeid striking out four batters in three innings. Zeid said the win was the pinnacle of his career: "This has to be it. This has to be the top, top win as a team, I think in my career. I’ve been lucky enough to be part of a couple of championships in the lower levels in the minor leagues and in high school, but nothing compares to this stage." Overall, he was 1-0 with 2 saves and pitched 10 shutout innings giving up 5 hits, including 4 scoreless innings as a starting pitcher against world # 1 Team Japan, as his fastball hit 96 mph. Following the conclusion of the tournament, pitcher Josh Zeid was named to the 2017 All-World Baseball Classic team. In November 2019, he obtained

so that he could play for Team Israel in

in Tokyo. His fastball in 2021 was approximately 92 mph. He pitched for Team Israel at the

in Tokyo in the summer of 2021. He was 0-0 with an ERA of 3.12, as in three games (starts against Mexico and the Dominican Republic, and a relief appearance against South Korea) he pitched 8.2 innings and held batters to a .214 batting average. Zeid pitched for Team Israel in the

2023 European Baseball Championship The 2023 European Baseball Championship was an international baseball tournament organized by the Confederation of European Baseball. It was held in five cities in the Czech Republic, from September 24 to October 1, 2023. The championship marked t ...

in September 2023 in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

References

External links

*
Tulane Green Wave bio

*Joshua Halickman (July 11, 2021)
"“Being Jewish has always been something that I have been so proud of”; Josh Zeid talks ball ahead of Olympics,"
''Holyland Hoops''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Zeid, Josh 1987 births Living people Baseball players from New Haven, Connecticut European Baseball Championship players Israeli baseball players Baseball coaches from Connecticut Baseball players from Connecticut Baseball players at the 2020 Summer Olympics Binghamton Mets players Corpus Christi Hooks players Houston Astros players Jewish American baseball players Las Vegas 51s players Lakewood BlueClaws players Major League Baseball pitchers Memphis Redbirds players Mesa Solar Sox players New Britain Bees players Oklahoma City RedHawks players Reading Phillies players Salt River Rafters players Toledo Mud Hens players Tulane Green Wave baseball players Vanderbilt Commodores baseball players Williamsport Crosscutters players Chicago Cubs personnel Harwich Mariners players Hamden Hall Country Day School alumni Olympic baseball players for Israel Minor league baseball coaches Jews from Connecticut 21st-century Israeli Jews