The Emergence of Baseball in China: Part I

There is also the short-term problem with developing baseball in China—the bat-drain, if you will, or the Yao Ming syndrome.

Talented athletes will be pursued by major league teams in the U.S., leaving the developing Chinese league with its own leftovers. The Yankees have already signed an agreement with the CBL to help develop baseball in China, which includes setting up baseball academies across China and sending trainers and coaches to work with the Chinese athletes.

Sixth months after signing this deal, the Yankees inked two 19-year-old Chinese prospects to minor league contracts. It's pretty clear, especially with a Taiwanese star already on their mound, that the Yankees want to be the first to develop and scoop up Chinese talent. They have also paved the way for other MLB teams to explore the Chinese market.

The next possible Chinese star, Wang Wei, has already been drafted by the Seattle Mariners. Wei is a catcher who drove in four of China’s six runs in the WBC. A Chinese baseball league without the likes of Wang Wei is a less impressive league, to say the least.

Too many men on the field

I remember vividly a cab ride I took in Nanjing during the 2006 World Cup. The driver was listening to a game on the radio, and I asked him if he was disappointed that China didn’t have a soccer team in ’06. He laughed at me and said, “We Chinese are terrible at team sports.”

“What about basketball?” I replied.

“Well,” he laughed again, “there are only five guys on the court in a basketball game—and we can barely handle that.”

I started to get his drift.

“We are great at ping-pong and badminton because there are two on a team at most. But soccer,” he exclaimed, “Forget it! With that many people on the field at once, we’ll never be able to compete with the other countries.”

Maybe baseball, with its poetic combination of individual attention and strategic teamwork and communication, will be the perfect sport for China to excel in.

We can at least be excited now for the MLB’s debut in China and for the CBL to continue to grow and produce talented young ball players. Only time will tell if the Yao syndrome takes root in the world of baseball. The first thing we can do is see how Beijing takes to a NL West rivalry. I'm heading north in two weeks to find out.

Stay tuned March 15 for the next installment, after game one of the China Series between the Padres and Dodgers.

Check out Part II of Jeff's Baseball in China series 

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