34 | AUGUST 10 • 2023 

SPORTS

T

he 28th season of the 
Inter-Congregational 
Men’s Club Summer 
Softball League is headed 
into the home stretch.
In addition to crowning 
playoff champions in the 
Greenberg and Koufax 
divisions later this month, 
that means the weekly league 
also has handed out its 
coveted awards, each named 
for a popular player who has 
passed away.
Managers were asked 
for a nomination from 
their team for the Jeff Fox 
Sportsmanship Award, and 
the winners were selected 
by league directors Michael 
Betman and Mitch Kline.
Betman and Kline picked 
Adam Eisenberg from 
Temple Israel No. 1 in 
the Greenberg Division, 
and Brook Morris from 

Congregation Shir Tikvah in 
the Koufax Division.
The Fox Award has 
been presented since 2012. 
It honors a Temple Shir 
Shalom player who died in 
2011.
Winners of the Michael 
Yendick Pure Heart Award 
are selected by the league’s 
umpires, also for their 
sportsmanship. 
The umpires picked 
Dan Krauss from Temple 
Shir Shalom No. 2 in the 
Greenberg Division and 
David Feld from Temple 
Israel No. 3 in the Koufax 
Division.
Presented originally in the 
B’nai B’rith Softball League 
starting in 2001, the Pure 
Heart Award moved to the 
Inter-Congregational League 
in 2017 after the B’nai B’rith 
League folded and several 

B’nai B’rith players joined 
the Inter-Congregational 
League.
The Steve LeVine Award 
was added to the list of 
Inter-Congregational League 
awards last year, honoring 
a league player who 
participated in several sports 
despite losing his dominant 
arm to cancer when he was 
14. He died in 2021 at age 
58.
Last year’s LeVine Award 
winners were longtime 
Inter-Congregational League 
players Bob Tarnow from 
Temple Shir Shalom No. 
1 and Jerry Beigler from 
Temple Beth El No. 1.
The award’s name and 
criteria were changed this 
year to the Steve LeVine 
Step Up to the Plate Award 
for contributions to helping 
the league function, Betman 

said, and the winners were 
head umpire Rob Landaw 
and Elon Friedman from 
Temple Israel No. 3.

While the award will 
continue to be named for 
LeVine, Betman said, the 
criteria could change each 
year.
Landaw said he was 
“totally shocked” when he 
was presented the award.
“A couple other umps 
knew about it, but they 
didn’t tell me,” he said. “It’s 
humbling to be honored 
by this league. This is my 
favorite league to umpire, 
and I really appreciate that 
the umpires are included in 
picking award winners.”
Landaw said seven 
umpires, including himself, 
handle most of the league’s 
games.
“We’ve pretty much had 

Here’s who received the Inter-Congregational Men’s Club 
Summer Softball League’s awards. 
And the Winners Are ...

STEVE STEIN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Elon Friedman and Michael Betman

PHOTOS COURTESY INTER-CONGREGATIONAL MEN’S CLUB SUMMER SOFTBALL 
LEAGUE

Rob Landaw and Michael Betman

