A Grandson’s Pitch: Continuing a Legacy of Jewish Pride in Stamford
Rabbi Levi Feller is a popular young teacher who lives in Stamford, CT, who teaches at the Bi-Cultural Hebrew Academy, the local day school. The son of the Chabad rabbi in Minneapolis, MN, he absorbed the message of the Lubavitch movement from an early age: to spread Yiddishkeit wherever he can and make individuals feel proud to be Jewish.
“Rabbi Feller has an incredible ability to connect with our students,” says Rabbi Rosenfeld, Rosh Beit Sefer at the Bi-Cultural Hebrew Academy. “The relationships he builds with them are genuine, and it’s easy to see why he is so beloved by our students. They see his authenticity and are inspired.”
However, it should not be a surprise to anyone that Rabbi Feller promotes such positive feelings about being Jewish. You see, 61 years ago, his grandfather—Rabbi Moshe Feller (who was the Chabad rabbi in Minneapolis at the time)—was involved in a famous story involving Sandy Koufax, Yom Kippur, and a pair of tefillin.
The story of Rabbi Moshe Feller and Sandy Koufax has become one of the most memorable intersections of American sports and modern Jewish history. While Koufax’s refusal to pitch on Yom Kippur is well known, what happened the next day is less famous—but deeply meaningful.
On October 6, 1965, Game 1 of the World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Minnesota Twins fell on Yom Kippur. It was being played in Minnesota.
Sandy Koufax was not just another player—he was arguably the greatest pitcher in baseball and the Dodgers’ unquestioned ace. A couple of weeks beforehand, Koufax announced that he would not pitch on the holy day. His replacement, Don Drysdale, was hit hard by the Twins, and the Dodgers lost the first game of the World Series, 8–2. Koufax’s decision immediately became a source of enormous pride for Jews throughout America.
After Yom Kippur concluded, Rabbi Moshe Feller had an idea. He understood that Koufax’s public stand had already inspired countless Jews. He also knew that the Lubavitcher Rebbe encouraged his emissaries to reach out especially to Jews in the public eye, because their actions could influence so many others.
Rabbi Feller decided that Koufax deserved a personal expression of gratitude. On the morning after Yom Kippur, before Game 2, Rabbi Feller went to the St. Paul Hotel where the Dodgers were staying. Walking up to the front desk, he simply said, “I’m Rabbi Feller, and I’d like to see Mr. Koufax.” The hotel clerk likely assumed that if Koufax was Jewish, this must naturally be his rabbi, and he connected the call straight to Koufax’s room.
When Koufax answered, Rabbi Feller told him: “You have done more for Jewish pride yesterday than all the rabbis’ Yom Kippur sermons.”
Koufax invited him upstairs.
Rabbi Feller had brought Koufax a brand-new pair of tefillin. Because Koufax was a lefty, Rabbi Feller had specially ordered the tefillin to be prepared for placement on the right arm. When presenting them, he jokingly noted: “Considering what your left arm has accomplished, I decided to get you the kind that goes on your right arm.”
Koufax smiled, accepted the gift graciously, and thanked Rabbi Feller for coming.
Did Koufax put them on? This is where legend and fact diverge. Rabbi Feller later said he offered to help Koufax bind the tefillin, but Koufax politely declined, saying he still knew how. Whether he actually put them on that day or a future day has never been acknowledged publicly by Koufax, although he did confirm receiving them.
After the incident, Rabbi Feller immediately wrote to the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, describing the encounter. About two weeks later, during a Simchat Torah gathering, the Rebbe spoke about the episode (without mentioning either man by name). He praised the pitcher who had sacrificed playing in the World Series for Judaism and the young rabbi who had brought him the tefillin. The Rebbe observed that although the pitcher had not put on the tefillin immediately, the gift itself had lasting significance, expressing confidence that “in the end… he will merit to put them on.”
And here’s an ironic baseball twist that Rabbi Feller especially enjoyed telling: On the very day he visited Koufax, the Dodgers lost Game 2, despite Koufax pitching a strong game. They now trailed the Twins two games to none.
But then everything changed. Koufax dominated the remainder of the World Series, throwing complete-game shutouts in Games 5 and 7 on short rest. The Dodgers won four of the next five games to capture the World Series, and Koufax was named the World Series Most Valuable Player. Some folks fondly believe that Koufax put on the tefillin in the morning before those dominant games, although nobody has ever been able to confirm it.
This story still resonates today because it connects two powerful themes:
- Prioritizing Identity: Sandy Koufax demonstrated that Jewish identity could take precedence over professional success, even on baseball’s biggest stage.
- Recognizing Impact: Rabbi Moshe Feller recognized that this single public act had strengthened Jewish pride far beyond the baseball diamond and sought to anchor it with a mitzvah.
In a world where antisemitism has reared its ugly head, this story reminds us that the answer to hostility is not to bury our heads in the sand, but instead to take pride in who we are.
And 61 years after this famous World Series encounter, right here in a small Connecticut community, Rabbi Moshe Feller’s grandson, Rabbi Levi Feller, is demonstrating daily how his own visible acts of Jewish commitment can inspire the next generation.
