2. Sandy Koufax’s Rookie Jersey
Among the documents, photographs and historical ephemera in the Center’s collection there are also many pieces of sports memorabilia including the 1955 rookie jersey of Brooklyn Dodger’s pitcher Sandy Koufax. Raised in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, Koufax signed with the Dodgers in 1954. He stuck with the team when they moved to Los Angeles in 1958 and spent his entire career in a Dodgers uniform. Over the course of eleven years, Koufax would win three Cy Young Awards, two World Series and set a major league record for strikeouts. At Game 1 of the 1965 World Series Koufax refused to pitch because it was Yom Kippur, a show of dedication to his faith that garnered him admiration from the Jewish community. Koufax was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.
