Now these many years later we live in a different world. There is no reason why worldwide divisions couldn’t be established, with those teams playing each other exclusively, with some exhibition games against American teams. We could all have our own “world series” playoff rounds in something similar to what we do now in MLB, but the difference would be that eventually the American winner would have to play teams from the other world divisions.
Can you imagine the excitement of whittling it all down to having a “true” world series, with say the St. Louis Cardinals playing the Yomiuri Giants (Japan) for the title? I think it would be an amazing cultural opportunity to bring the world closer together through the language of sports. Similar to the Olympics in its impact, I think it would be even more influential and have a greater impact if it were done annually.
I know this concept is probably a long way off, and perhaps the traditionalists will not even want to consider it, but I think the time for a true “world” series has come. The World Baseball Classic is proof that it can be exciting to watch different teams from countries from all over the world compete in America’s pastime. Wouldn’t it be nice to see baseball become the world’s pastime too?
Photo credit: World Baseball Classic
Article comments
1 - Dr Dreadful
American Major League Baseball is still by some distance the world's strongest league, which is why it attracts the best players from all over the world to play in it.
The World Baseball Classic is competitive because the teams all contain players who play the game professionally or at college level in the US and Canada. But currently, if you put any MLB team up against any top club team from Asia or Latin America (or indeed any of the national teams that contested the WBC), the MLB team would win easily. In that sense, it is appropriate to call the MLB championship contest the World Series, since the winners are indeed the best baseball team in the world.
The same goes for the other three major North American sports, because although all of them are played worldwide, they are played in North America to a standard not yet found anywhere else.
With the exception of American football, all that may change in the not too distant future.
2 - Stephen
then use the strongest lineup starting woth mike trout who didnt wanted to play in the classic !!!!!!