The good folks at MLB are experiencing the true globalization of the sport of baseball as they stage exhibition games in Beijing, China.
This is from the Los Angeles Times:
DODGERS IN CHINA
Dodgers encounter unfinished business in China
They arrive to find a stadium still under construction and many empty seats. But it's all about the experience.
By Dylan Hernandez
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
March 15, 2008
BEIJING -- Regardless of what happened on the field, applause emanated from the stands of Wukesong Baseball Stadium today.
Every action, from a called ball to a pickoff throw, resulted in the slapping together of noise sticks throughout the ballpark.
The fans watching the Dodgers and San Diego Padres play the first major league game in China might have been overly generous in demonstrating their approval, by American standards. But at least they were cheering.
The teams played to a 3-3 draw. Dodgers outfielder George Lombard opened the scoring with a home run in the third inning. L.A. built a 3-1 lead with the help of a run-scoring single by Lucas May, but San Diego tied the score with RBI doubles by Craig Stansberry and Adrian Gonzalez in the eighth inning.
"It has to start somewhere," Commissioner Bud Selig said.
Most of the 12,000-seat stadium was filled -- Major League Baseball said it sold or distributed more than 11,000 tickets for the first of two exhibition games -- but the start to the day was slow. With tightened security at the gates resulting in a line that went halfway down the lengthy street bordering the stadium, the Dodgers took batting practice in front of stands that were mostly empty.
The only names that drew any noticeable reaction from the still-sparse audience during the pregame introductions were those of Manager Joe Torre and the three Asian players on the Dodgers' 30-man split squad -- starting pitcher Chan Ho Park, shortstop Chin-lung Hu and left-hander Hong-Chih Kuo.
Right-hander Eric Hull sensed that something like this could happen when he and other members of the team visited the Great Wall the previous day. The players drew a group of curious onlookers when they assembled for a team photograph.
"It was kind of weird when the Chinese people came up to us," Hull said. "They could read the red patches on our jerseys, but they didn't know who we were. One person called it tennis. Another called it basketball. I guess that's why we're here."
Like the audience, the ballpark was hastily assembled, the aluminum bleachers down the foul lines and in the outfield not put in place until the previous week. The stadium will disappear as quickly as it appeared, as there are plans to demolish it upon completion of the Olympic baseball competition this summer.
To sell baseball in the world's most populated country -- Torre likened to selling soccer in the United States -- almost half of the players in the Dodgers' camp in Vero Beach traveled 7,500 miles and had to turn their watches ahead 12 hours.
The idea of such an undertaking hit Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti more than two years ago when he was being interviewed for his job by owner Frank McCourt.
McCourt asked him what new frontier would be explored by the club under his leadership. Colletti told him the team had to go to China.
McCourt smiled.
"Why are you smiling?" McCourt recalled being asked by Colletti.
McCourt replied: "We have to do this."
And it won't stop here.
McCourt said Friday that the Dodgers would continue their partnerships with Chinese baseball, started in 1980 by then-owner Peter O'Malley. MLB would also be back, Selig said.
"We'll certainly play more games here," the commissioner said, adding that his office was also looking at possibilities in Europe.
dylan.hernandez@latimes.com
***
This is from the Associated Press:
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Blue skies, hot dogs greet MLB for first game in China
Associated Press
BEIJING -- China's red flag with its yellow stars blew in a stiff breeze in deep left field alongside the U.S. Stars and Stripes. Except for this, the first Major League Baseball game in China mostly looked like any afternoon at the ballpark in America.
The Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres played to a 3-3 tie on a near-perfect Saturday in Beijing, with clear blue skies replacing the city's usual smog, and 50-degree temperatures making it a glorious debut for baseball. The second game is set for Sunday. Both teams are using only a half dozen players who will be on the opening day 25-man roster.
The game at the new Olympic venue drew an announced crowd of 12,224 -- a near sellout -- and had many of the touches of home: vendors selling peanuts, hot dogs, beer, soft drinks or -- and this is China -- plastic bottles of tea. The concessions were cheaper than the U.S. -- about $1.50 for a soft drink or a beer, and $3 for a bag of peanuts.
However, vendors and concession stands kept running out of drinks, causing long lines to form before reinforcements arrived.
There was occasional staccato organ music to pump up the fans, and the music between inning ranged from Carmen to Latin rhythms to hip-hop.
Commissioner Bud Selig was on hand with an entourage of MLB officials.
"The thought that we are standing here today watching the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres in Beijing, China, sort of takes my breath away," Selig said. "We certainly want to play more games here, there's no doubt about it."
Let history record that the first hit in China went to the Dodgers' John Lindsey in the top of the second, a line shot to left field. Also of note -- Dodgers outfielder George Lombard swung at the first pitch of the game and grounded out. He also hit a home run to right field in the third inning with one out to give the Dodgers a 1-0 lead.
The Padres tied it in the fourth when Oscar Robles scored from third after Dodgers catcher Nick Hundley threw wildly back to the pitcher. The Dodgers went ahead in the sixth 2-1 when Lucas May singled to drive in Andruw Jones. The Dodgers added another run in the eighth. Starter Chan-ho Park went five innings and allowed one hit.
Craig Stansberry drove in a run with a double in the eighth to cut the lead to 3-2, and Adrian Gonzalez followed with a run-scoring double to make it for the Padres. After nine innings, the teams decided to call it quits, which is fairly common for spring training games.
In the seventh inning, of course, fans were led in a chorus of "Take me out to the ballgame." The only person singing, however, was the public address announcer. And there were cheerleaders dressed in red and silver with pom poms and bare stomachs.
Only at times was it clear this is China, where baseball is virtually unknown and MLB is trying to cash in on a growing middle class with money to spend.
In one inning, the scoreboard mysteriously gave the Dodgers an extra run. The error was fixed an inning later. And the park was blanketed with uniformed and plainclothes security officials, who did a sweep hours before the game and forced officials to reissue tickets and credentials for fans and reporters.
***
This from MLB.com:
Fans in Beijing show their passion
03/15/2008 6:37 AM ET
By Ken Gurnick / MLB.com
BEIJING -- An international incident nearly erupted as the Dodgers tried to leave Wukesong Stadium on Saturday, a clear illustration of why Major League Baseball came to this unlikely spot in the first place.
Chan Ho Park, working on a Minor League contract but a national hero in his native Korea, wanted to sign autographs for fans who traveled to see him allow only one hit and one unearned run in five innings, but stern Chinese security personnel wouldn't allow it. Dozens of uniformed security moved in to separate the crowd of fans from the team bus, voices were raised in anger and the scene was getting ugly.
Team officials quickly quelled the tension with a negotiated settlement for Park to sign at the stadium on Sunday. Park had to explain the decision to his fans in their native tongue.
Meanwhile, for the inadvertent benefit of a few reporters to witness, a bigger point was made. Asian countries do embrace baseball, sometimes fanatically, and there's no greater potential audience than China. That's why the Dodgers and Padres traveled here for the two-game goodwill series that started with Saturday's 3-3 tie and will conclude on Sunday.
Park, moving closer to winning a job in a remarkable comeback story, found himself torn between two emerging markets after his start. He was pleased to have participated in this showcase for China, but suggested that Major League Baseball remember from where he came.
"I'm really hoping Major League Baseball comes to Korea," said Park. "I know this is a big market, but there are a lot of fans in Korea too. I hope they open an academy, because since I came, teams in Korea have dropped a lot. Kids need to see Major League Baseball in Korea. I'm hoping they do it before I retire so I can pitch in Korea.
"Think about it -- if a Chinese Major League player came back here to play, that would be huge, fans would come to the stadium. If the Dodgers and Padres played in Korea, it would be unbelievable. That's my hope."
While Park was playing peacemaker with Korean fans in front of the team bus, Taiwanese fans near the back of the bus chanted the names of Hong-Chih Kuo, who pitched two scoreless innings in relief of Park, and shortstop Chin-lung Hu, described by manager Joe Torre as "a little jumpy in this environment" after he went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts and numerous defensive bobbles.
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Torre said he was "tickled" for Park, who was "great last time and even better this time." Park said he's been working on a changeup with a grip he learned from closer Trevor Hoffman when they were Padres teammates.
Torre also praised Kuo, who is out of options and bidding for a swingman job. Hu is making a bid at a utility infielder job with the injuries to Andy LaRoche and Tony Abreu.
Torre said the crowd of 12,224 "made more noise than I expected."
"I felt, and you could see, they tried to make it fun for the fans at the park," Torre said. "It felt more like a regular-season game than a Spring Training game."
The stadium was nearly empty 15 minutes before game time, but only pockets of empty seats remained once the game was underway.
"I was wondering what was going on, but it was like any other Dodgers game," said designated hitter Matt Kemp. "They didn't show up until the second inning. It's just like playing in Dodger Stadium. But I was a little worried."
Kemp said compared to fans back home, Chinese fans were neutral.
"They cheered for either team," he said. "They just wanted to watch the game."
George Lombard, who homered in the third inning, said the fans were respectful, while the players started the game "in slow motion," feeling the effects of jet lag and a hectic agenda since arriving.
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