Eddie Feinberg

Edward Isadore Feinberg (Itzzy)

• Bats Both, Throws Right
• Height 5' 9", Weight 165 lb.

• Debut September 11, 1938
• Final Game May 23, 1939
• Born September 29, 1917 in Philadelphia, PA USA
• Died April 20, 1986 in Hollywood, FL USA

BR page

Biographical Information

The son of Ukrainian immigrants, Eddie Feinberg dropped out of high school to sign with his hometown Philadelphia Phillies in 1937. He was a utility man that year for the Centreville Colts and hit .334 (among the top 10 in the Eastern Shore League with 15 homers (5th in the league) and 80 RBI (third-best). He was assigned to the Montgomery Rebels the next year and hit .238 with 5 homers and 61 RBI. He was called up to the Phillies late that year. According to Feinberg's account, he went 0 for 8 playing on a doubleheader on Yom Kippur when fellow Jewish teammates Morrie Arnovich and Phil Weintraub sat out; Feinberg "regretted the decision for the rest of his life" according to the Big Book of Jewish Baseball. This is incorrect, as Yom Kippur in 1938 did not take place until October 4, after the season ended. It could not have referred to Rosh Hoshanah either as the Phillies were off that day as per research by Howard Megdal.

He was 7 for 38 in the majors. He spent most of the 1939 season in the Eastern League and also played for the St. Paul Saints and the Phillies. He hit .280 in the South Atlantic League in 1940. When the Phillies tried to sell him to another team, Feinberg retired and begun to play semi-pro baseball. In World War II he fought in the Battle of the Bulge. He later opened a restaurant in Philadelphia and retired in 1982. The father of three kids, he moved to Florida and died four years later.

Main source: "The Big Book of Jewish Baseball" by Peter Horvitz and Joachim Horvitz. Also see The Baseball Talmud by Howard Megdal.