Hank Greenberg

"You're just like everyone else," a teammate once said, surprised that Greenberg didn't have horns or any other physical marks of Judaism.

Except he wasn't like everyone else. Hammerin' Hank was a mammoth home run hitter, an absolute lock Hall of Famer whose career numbers put him in a class with better known superstars like Ruth, DiMaggio and McGwire.

He was also a very good Jew. Raised Orthodox, Greenberg discussed it with his rabbi before he agreed to play on the High Holy Days (he was in a pennant race and the Tigers needed him).

So why isn't he more well known? From a baseball standpoint, his best years were obscured by Ruth, Gehrig and, to a lesser extent Jimmy Foxx. Then he lost three years to the second World War. He came back to baseball still quite good, but was overshadowed by a whole new generation including DiMaggio and Ted Williams.

As a Jew, our generation knows Koufax — Greenberg was already retired when our parents were looking for a role model.

But semi-obscurity doesn't make him any less a baseball great. Just semi-obscure. And certainly nothing like anyone else.