Is Ralph Branca Jewish?

Yes the Brooklyn Dodger pitcher who achieved notoriety for throwing the home run pitch to Bobby Thomson in a 1951 playoff game against the New York Giants, Ralph Branca is a Jew - technically according to Jewish law - because his mother was born a Jew.

Wikipedia recalls that, "Branca entered the game in the ninth inning and surrendered a walk-off home run known as 'The Shot Heard 'Round the World' to Bobby Thomson, giving the Giants the National League pennant."

The Times reports that Branca was brought up Catholic and did not know his mother was a Jew until shown evidence recently by a writer. His mother Kati converted to Catholicism when she married Branca's father John.

Branca has added the fact of his Jewish roots to his new book, due to be released in September 2011.