Nate Fish

Fish was born in New Hampshire and moved to Cleveland at age 12. He played baseball at Shaker Heights High School, graduating in 1998, and continued at the University of Cincinnati, where he was friends with future major leaguer Kevin Youkilis.[1]

Fish later played for the United States at the 2005 Maccabiah Games, winning a gold medal. Before moving to Israel, he was a minor-league player and also played baseball for Germany, Argentina, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic; the available reporting does not specify the dates or teams for those appearances.[1][2]

In 2007, Fish played for the Tel Aviv Lightning in the Israel Baseball League’s inaugural season. He batted .350 and won a Gold Glove. At age 27, he described himself as “thrilled to be a poster boy for Israeli baseball.” The league was described as the first professional baseball league in the Middle East.[1][2]

Fish coached Team Israel in the qualifying tournaments for the World Baseball Classic in 2012 and 2016. Israel lost the 2012 qualifying final to Spain in 10 innings. He made aliyah in 2013 to help strengthen Israeli baseball and became national director of the Israel Association of Baseball (IAB). After three years as the association’s inaugural executive director, he planned to return to the United States following the 2016 tournament while staying involved as its U.S. roving ambassador.[1][2]

Fish moved back to the United States in 2016 to develop a startup, but continued to travel to Israel and manage the national team. He and fellow head coach Ophir Katz were identified as responsible for developing Israeli-born players, while balancing opportunities for homegrown talent with the American Jewish players who could help Israel compete at major international tournaments.[3]

As IAB national director, Fish helped plan Baseball Lekulam (“Baseball for All”), a nine-month pilot organized with the nonprofit Play Global and supported financially by Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael–Jewish National Fund. The program brought Arab children from Ramle and Jewish children from the greater Modi’in area together for baseball sessions and overnight stays at Baptist Village, alongside family events in Ramle and Kibbutz Gezer. Activities took place in Hebrew, English, and Arabic.[2]

Fish said that participants initially mingled slowly but were spending time together on and off the field by the third session. The organizers secured commitments from 15 Arab children and 15 Jewish children, and 25 participants played in the December session. An October closing session had been postponed because parents were concerned about the security situation, although the children wanted to meet. Fish framed the project both as a way to bring two cultures together and to raise awareness of baseball in Israel. “I wish the need for such a program didn’t have to exist; that these connections between kids would just happen on their own. But we are happy to provide a platform for bringing two cultures together,” he said.[2]

During Fish’s early period as national director, the IAB reported that participation grew from 590 players at the end of 2013 to about 750 by the end of the 2014 season, an increase of nearly 30 percent. The association organized five leagues, ranging from children’s minor league to an adult premier league. Fish described baseball development as “a whole educational project,” encompassing opportunities to play college and professional baseball as well as youth leagues and the experience of playing.[4]

Growth was constrained by limited infrastructure and personnel. A 2014 report described one full-sized baseball field in Israel, at Baptist Village in Petah Tikva, with most teams playing on soccer fields; it also noted shortages of fields, coaches, umpires, and equipment. Fish said school introductions could excite children about the sport, but finding places for them to play was more difficult.[4]

The IAB launched its first baseball academy in October 2014. Fish said Major League Baseball recognized it as Israel’s elite youth training program. The academy built player profiles with statistics, photographs, and video to help coaches and scouts assess players. In its first year, it had 11 participants aged 14 to 21, who hoped to receive invitations to European elite programs or mini-camps.[4]

After Israel’s Olympic baseball debut at the Tokyo Games in 2021, Fish managed the national team at the European Baseball Championship in Torino, Italy, about a month later. Israel won its first five games, including a group-stage record of three wins, before losing 9–4 to the Netherlands in the final. The result gave Israel its first silver medal in the competition.[5][6]

Israel had only 17 players available, compared with 24 for each of the other teams. Some players were unavailable after the Olympics, while others were out because of injuries or professional commitments. Fish said the roster needed players capable of both pitching and playing field positions.[5]

He adjusted his tactics to the short roster. Joey Wagman remained in the batting order while contributing key hits, first baseman-pitcher Benny Wanger came in as a relief pitcher, and shortstop Ty Kelly pitched the final two innings against Italy. Wanger was named the tournament’s Outstanding Pitcher.[5]

Fish’s national-team work also included helping preserve the experience of Israel’s Olympic debut. He distributed six camcorders to players so they could film their time in the Olympic Village and at the Games. The footage was later used in the film Israel Swings for Gold. A report identified Fish as the Olympic team’s third-base coach, a member of Team Israel for three World Baseball Classics, and head coach of the national team.[7]

Fish helped launch the U.S.-based nonprofit Israel Baseball Americas and became its inaugural chief executive officer. The organization was established to expand Israeli baseball’s activities and fundraising in the United States, develop a pipeline of American Jewish players who might represent Israel, run U.S. clinics and camps, and provide human, financial, and institutional support to the IAB. Fish described its role as representing Israel Baseball abroad and supplying resources for the national team.[8]