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JON MARKS | SPECIAL TO THE JE
A stute Phillies fans will prob-
ably recognize his face. Some
might even know his name.

But chances are that none of you
have a clue that Diego Ettedgui, the
Phillies’ Spanish language interpreter,
who does much more than translate
what the team’s Hispanic players are
saying from Spanish to English, comes
from a family with a rich Jewish tradi-
tion dating back more than 500 years.

Th e story of how the 35-year-old
Ettedgui, who grew up in Caracas,
Venezuela, then came to the United
States to study, despite not knowing
English, is fascinating in itself. But
the saga of the Ettedgui family, who
started in Spain, then chose to leave
rather than be forced to convert to
Catholicism, is legendary.

“My family’s name goes back
to a long time ago in Spain,” said
Ettedgui, sitting in the Phillies’ dug-
out before Game 4 of the National
League Championship Series, a day
before the team punched its ticket to
the World Series. “Back then (in the
1492 Alhambra Decree), the Queen
(Isabella) wanted everyone in Spain to
become Catholic and said to people of
other religions, ‘You either convert or
you’re out of here.’
“My family was one of those who
said, ‘No, we’re not going to become
Catholic. We’re Jewish.’ And they
moved from Spain to the North side of
Morocco in a city called Tétouan.”
Ettedgui’s not quite sure how long
they remained in Morocco, but some of
the family eventually decided to cross
the Atlantic Ocean.

“Somewhere around 1860-‘70,
my family moved from Morocco to
Venezuela,” said Ettedgui, who joined
the Phillies in 2016 at a time when
Major League Baseball began requir-
ing teams to have interpreters for its
Hispanic players. “Th ey were mer-
chants, selling shoes, soap and other
things.” Apparently, those who stayed behind
made enough of an impact in the com-
10 Diego Ettedgui
munity that a synagogue was built in
their name. Th e Ettedgui Synagogue
was built in 1920 in Casablanca.

It didn’t last long, destroyed during
World War II by accident during an
Allied bombardment of the city. King
Mohammed VI of Morocco rededi-
cated the synagogue.

Th at’s the story young Diego was
told growing up in Caracas, where his
great-grandfather, Herman, got him
interested in sports.

“He was my role model,” said
Ettedgui, who was 19 when his fam-
ily sent him off to school in Boston
at Bunker Hill Community College
before he went on to graduate in
health management at Northeastern
University. “From the day I was born,
he pretty much injected sports in our
veins (he and his younger sister Ana).

He did a lot of things for Venezuela
and played soccer, baseball and track
and fi eld. He lived ‘til almost 95, and he
loved the Yankees, but you’d hope he’d
root for the Phillies now.”
Speaking of Bryce Harper, Rhys
Hoskins, Kyle Schwarber, Zach
Wheeler and company, just how did
Ettedgui fi nd his way here to serve as
an interpreter?
NOVEMBER 3, 2022 | JEWISHEXPONENT.COM
A plaque at the rebuilt Synagogue
Ettedgui in Casablanca, Morocco
Courtesy of Diego Ettedgui
Going back about a decade, Ettedgui
realized health management wasn’t for
him and began looking for an alterna-
tive. Aft er taking a communications
course in Spanish with Colombian
radio broadcaster Carlos Cabello,
Cabello off ered him a chance to do
a sports segment on his radio show,
then followed up by helping him get a
job with El Mundo Boston, the city’s
Spanish newspaper.

It wasn’t long before Ettedgui became
the paper’s sports editor, covering not
only the Red Sox but the Celtics and the
Revolution soccer team. Th at whet his
appetite for something more and, in 2016
when baseball mandated interpreters for
its Spanish players, Ettedgui went for it.

Naturally, he fi rst went to the Red
Sox and was in contention for a job
when the Phillies called. Th e team fl ew
him to spring training in Clearwater,
and he impressed them enough to off er
him the job. With the Red Sox still
undecided, he jumped at their off er and
moved to Philadelphia.

Seven seasons later, Jorge Alfaro,
Andres Blanco, Odubel Herrera and
Freddie Galvis, the Spanish-speaking
players who were there when he
arrived, are gone. Th e current group
consists of pitchers Ranger Suarez and
Jose Alvarado and utility infi elder
Edmundo Sosa.

While his main duty is translating
for the players during interviews and
sitting in on pregame strategy meetings
with the hitting and pitching coaches
to help them understand how to pitch
certain hitters or position themselves
on defense, there’s a lot more to the job.

“I help out during batting practice,”
said Ettedgui, who played baseball and
soccer growing up in Caracas, where
his school’s biggest rival was Collegio
Hebraica. “I catch throws in the out-
fi eld and throw with the pitchers, and
I’m Seranthony Dominguez’s catching
partner. “During the game, I’m in charge
of the pitch coms (the device where
the catcher signals the pitches to the
pitcher). I give (Manager) Rob Th omson
the com when a new pitcher comes in."
He’s even busy outside the lines:
helping players understand contracts,
taking them to doctor’s appointments,
the bank, car dealerships and public
appearances. And there are times he goes with the
Phillie Phanatic to schools.

“Th ey’ve started a Phanatic Reading
program in the schools,” said Ettedgui,
who became a Spanish citizen last year
due to his family’s Sephardic Jewish
connection. “When we go to schools
where there are Latino kids, sometimes
the parents don’t speak English. So
when we go to introduce the reading
program with the Phanatic, they need
that letter to be in Spanish.” JE
Jon Marks is a freelance writer.

Photo by Jon Marks
Phillies’ Interpreter Sports a
Longtime Jewish Heritage



LEGACY SOCIETY
REMEMBRANCE EVENT
The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia honored the past, celebrated the present and embraced the future at the
Legacy Society and Remembrance event on October 26. Taking place at the Hilton Philadelphia City Avenue, the evening
marked the annual event’s return to an in-person commemoration after last year’s virtual program.

Spanning the generations, 100 people attended the event. Co-chaired by Stefani, Adam and Caren Levin, the program
recognized the generous members of the community who have left or plan to leave a gift to the Jewish Federation in their
estate plans.

For more information about the Legacy Society and estate planning, contact Director of Planned Giving and
Endowments Jennifer Brier at jbrier@jewishphilly.org or 215.832.0528.

The event was co-chaired by (L to R) Caren, Stefani and
Adam Levin.

The night concluded with a presentation from keynote speaker
Barbara Greenspan Shaiman, M.Ed.

The event included an induction ceremony to welcome 12 new
Legacy Society members, including Roslyn and Don (of blessed
memory) Waldman. Roslyn is shown here with her family.

Rabbi Robyn Frisch led a memorial service to pay tribute to those
individuals who recently passed away and remembered the
Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia in their estate plans.

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