Marvin & Betty Danto Health Care Center Heartland — Georgian Bloomfield Heartland —West Bloomfield Heartland — Oakland 800.800.CARE Cole Hendrickson and Louis Schwartz www.IChooseHeartland.com Steve Stein Contributing Writer L Heartland wow Npr Health Care Center RENAISSANCE MEDIA rve.SOLUTIONs NI Service Custom Publishing Ho use 1 How can we help you Flag Banners Publications Tapper's Diamond & Fine Jewelry Diamond Buying Guide Wall and Window Graphics Video Production Marketing Services Creative Services Editorial Services Pre-press Production Social Media Magazines Newspapers Corporate Identities Annual Reports Ad Campaigns Mail and postage Project Management Business Consulting Data Management Telemarketing Contact Kevin Browett or Debbie Schultz 29200 Northwestern Hwy. Suite 110 Southfield, MI 48034 248.354.6060 32 July 19 a 2012 ouis Schwartz loves playing baseball. But there was no doubt what the 12-year-old would be doing when his Dodgers team was playing for the Franklin Little League champion- ship. The game was scheduled for a Saturday afternoon. It was Shabbos. Louis missed the Dodgers' 10-3 win over the Orioles, but, thanks to teammate Cole Hendrickson, his season wasn't over. Louis, who will be a seventh-grader this fall at Akiva Hebrew Day School in Southfield, got to play in the league's Sunday all-star game one day after the championship game because Cole gave up his spot. "I couldn't stop smiling when I found out;' Louis said. "I appreciate what Cole did so much." Cole, also 12, modestly shrugged off his gesture. He attended the all-star game in uniform and watched from the dugout. "I would have given Louis my spot in the game even if we hadn't won the championship:' he said. "I've played in a lot of all-star games. He told me he'd never played in one. Everyone on the team understood why Louis didn't play on the Sabbath. We weren't mad at him." Dodgers manager Bill Kelly said he drafted Louis knowing he was going to miss Saturday games. "It didn't matter;' he said. "He's a good ballplayer, and an even better per- son. I knew having him around would be great for our team's chemistry" Kelly gave an emotional talk about Louis during the awards ceremony that followed the championship game. He praised him for recognizing his faith and commitment to observe the Sabbath, and assured the crowd that after Shabbos was over at 10:30 that night, the screams that were coming from his house would be from Louis celebrating the league championship with his teammates. It was at the party that Louis learned from Kelly that Cole had given him his spot in the all-star game. Cole had just left the party with his family. The Dodgers went 7-5 during the regular season in the eight-team league for players ages 10-12. They were the No. 3 seed in the double- elimination playoffs. After losing 7-3 to the No. 2 seed Orioles in their second playoff game, they won three in a row to stay alive and make it to the championship round. The first of the three wins was a thrilling 8-7 victory over the No. 1 seed Marlins in nine innings (games are normally six innings). Louis left the Friday evening game in the top of the ninth with the score tied 6-6. The Marlins scored once to go ahead 7-6, but the Dodgers rallied for two runs in the bottom of the ninth. "We didn't find out who won until Shabbos was over the next night:' said Howard Schwartz, Louis' father. Obviously inspired by the huge victo- ry, the Dodgers beat the Tigers 8-1 and Angels 14-7 in their next two games to get another shot at the Orioles, who were undefeated in the playoffs. They beat the Orioles 8-3 on Friday (June 16) to set up the winner-take-all game the next day that Louis missed. The Dodgers' win completed a 6-1 run through the playoffs. Louis has a twin sister, Samantha, and a brother Jacob, 19. His mother is Robin. The family lives in West Bloomfield and attends The Shul in West Bloomfield. "I can't say enough about the coach- es and players on our team:' Howard Schwartz said. "They were so support- ive of our family." Jews And Baseball A free showing of Jews and Baseball, a documentary film narrated by Dustin Hoffman, will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 25, in the Berman Center for the Performing Arts at the Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield. Dr. Robert Matthews will introduce the film and lead a tour of his new Jewish sports memorabilia collection on display at the JCC. For information, call Rachel Ruskin at (248) 432-5658. ❑ Send news to sports@thejewishnews.com .