Remember when comedian Dennis Leary made everyone uncomfortable on TV a few years back because he assumed that Kevin Youkilis was Greek and then, when told he was Jewish, went on and on -- maybe on a bit too much -- about how awesome it was that the Red Sox’ first baseman was Jewish?
Well, Richard Sandomir of the New York Times has a story up about Youkilis’ family history, and it explains why, exactly, he has that Greek-sounding name. The short answer: it was supposed to be a Greek-sounding name for purposes of security and deception.
Read the story, but know this much: if it wasn’t for that unique family history, Sox fans would have shouted “Weeeeeiiiiineeerrr” when he came up to bat these past few years.
Our loss.
