Despite the deep disappointment of Israel’s baseball team over losing to the Dominican Republic on Aug. 3 at the Tokyo Olympics, the competition showed how far Israeli baseball has come in recent years to become one of just six national teams competing in the games.

Until about 15 years ago, baseball in Israel was almost exclusively the sole purview of Jewish immigrants from the United States and Canada, playing on improvised diamonds, each wearing the cap of a favorite team back home. In the ensuing years, dozens of teams have been established, with most of their players native Israelis as familiar in baseball terminology as any born-and-bred Yankees fan.

Israel’s National Baseball Team was instrumental in this development. Five years ago, when it did not have a single international achievement to its name, it started recruiting Jewish players from professional American baseball leagues. The idea was the brainchild of Peter Kurz, chair of the Israel Association of Baseball, who took advantage of a clause in the rules of the world baseball championships allowing anyone eligible for citizenship of a certain country to play for that country. In Israel’s case, this meant that Jews, who by definition are eligible for Israeli citizenship by virtue of the Law of Return, are eligible to play for its national team.

Kurz scouted various American professional baseball leagues and turned to several well-known former American stars to offer them a place on the Israeli team. Three accepted the offer and formed the core of the future Israeli national team. Brad Ausmus, a former All-Star catcher for the Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers signed up as a player and coach. The others were Gabe Kapler, who played for the Tampa Bay Rays and other Major League teams, and Sean Green, who pitched for the Texas Rangers. Kapler had openly expressed his emotional attachment to his Jewish origins, tattooing a Star of David on his body and asking to add to his million-dollar contract the good luck sum of $18, signifying the word “life” in Jewish numerology.