Together, the colors blue and white mean a lot more to Tal Erel than to the average student at Lynn.
The school's primary colors stopped Erel in his tracks when he was searching for somewhere to continue his baseball career and education. Lynn's colors reminded him of his home country, Israel, whose flag is blue and white.
"That kind of caught my eye at the beginning," Erel said. "Since day one, I've felt like there's a deeper connection than just the baseball team."
Erel brought that connection across the world to the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, where he's playing for Israel's baseball team, which will see its first action Thursday. Erel's presence on the roster — and his country's place in the six-team Olympic field — represent how his life in baseball has come full circle.
"To represent Israel in the Olympics, especially in baseball, it's something that's really hard to describe," he said, "but it's something that really represents who I am as a person."
Erel was born in Israel and moved to Miami with his family when he was 6 for his father's work. In America, he discovered and fell in love with baseball. Four years later, when his family was scheduled to move back to Israel, Erel didn't want to go. Baseball didn't "exist" in Israel, he told his parents, and he wasn't far off. The sport was just getting its roots planted internationally at that point.
"They can head on out, and I'll stay," Erel remembered thinking at the time.
Despite his intentions, Erel returned to Israel, where he's been part of the sport's growth. He got involved at an early age with the Israel Association of Baseball, which was founded in 1986 and aims to develop baseball in the country. He estimates there are now about 1,000 baseball players of all ages throughout Israel.
When he was 18, Erel began a three-year stint in the military — a requirement for all Israeli citizens. Even then, baseball was present. He was recognized as an "elite athlete" by the government, which meant he could spend his mornings serving his country and his afternoons playing for it on the diamond.
As his required service time neared a close, his future in baseball was tested during a tournament in the Netherlands. Erel slid into a base and broke his femur.
"It popped like Champagne," he said.
Tal Erel has competed for Israel's national team for several years. Before coming to the United States to play collegiately, he served three years in the Israeli military — a requirement for all citizens — and played in European tournaments. (Photo courtesy of Tal Erel)
Before that painful pop, Erel was trying to decide whether he should try to take his baseball talents to the collegiate ranks in the United States. When the injury occurred, everything came into question, even whether he wanted to play again.
"That was kind of a turning point in my career that I had to decide if I wanted to continue pursuing and move to the States to play collegiate ball or to call it a nice career," he said. "That was actually when I realized how much I love baseball and how much I want to continue that. I flew in a wheelchair and crutches just to come here."
Erel started his collegiate career in the community college ranks before transferring to Lynn. While the COVID-19 pandemic ended his first season at Lynn and shortened his second season, he said his entire time at Lynn — located in Boca Raton, Florida — has been a "growing process." This growth, he added, has helped him prepare for the Olympic stage.
"I think it's learning rather than playing," he said. "Going to Lynn, I've been exposed to tremendous players from all ages, all backgrounds to playing from all over the States."
Comparing his national team background to his Lynn experience, Erel said the depth of players at the collegiate level is one of the biggest differences. As a catcher, he's worked with more pitchers than he ever could have if he stayed in Israel. And he's learned a little bit from each of them, rounding out his skills and mind for the game as a result.
"I learn from every pitcher and just try to help him out and bring what I learn from the national team into Lynn and the other way around," he said. "There's a lot of drills that we do at Lynn, very targeted drills, that I try to bring to the national team. There are a lot of things I bring back and forth and just balance both out."
Erel is trying to balance the excitement of the once-in-a-lifetime Olympics opportunity while reflecting on how he and his country got here. He hopes baseball's presence in the Olympics can inspire more Israeli youth to try the sport. He also hopes it increases college baseball's interest in recruiting international talent and enhances the game's presence abroad.
"For kids to see international-stage baseball and see their country play against the greatest in the world is definitely mind-changing," he said. "They want to be part of it, so that's a big thing."
Given his experience so far, Erel is an advocate for international baseball players pursuing collegiate careers in the U.S. With two seasons of eligibility left, he's already finished his bachelor's degree in investment management, and he'll start a master's degree program in international business when he returns to Lynn in the fall.
For now, he's representing the blue and white in two ways at the Olympics.
"I've been getting some great feedback from all over, from the coaches and everyone in this community over here," Erel said of Lynn. "It's been great. I couldn't ask for a better support system leading up to where I am right now."
Despite the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on Tal Erel's time at Lynn, the Israeli native credited his time there for tremendous growth on and off the field. Erel has graduated with a degree in investment management and will begin pursuing a master's degree in international business when he returns to campus in the fall. (Photo courtesy of Lynn)
