China's Baseball Team Is a Work in Progress

International Pastime looks at baseball's influence outside the U.S.

While baseball may be extremely popular in Japan and South Korea, it hasn't made much in-roads throughout the rest of the Far East. In fact, according to the New York Times, the sport was actually banned in China by Mao Zedong during the 1960's for being too Western. The sport is now "legal," but despite tens of millions of dollars invested by Major League Baseball to promote the sport (and MLB sending four teams to China to start their season this spring), interest is still low.

That said, with the Olympics being hosted in Beijing, China will in fact field a team. The squad did make its way to American soil to train with would-be big leaguers during the Arizona Fall League this past year, but most of the players are still extremely short on experience. They have an American manager in former big leaguer Jim Lefebvre, but it's been difficult for him to close the cultural gap. From the Times:

When he first addressed his players five years ago, they would not even make eye contact. Most of them came to baseball in their teens after failing to advance in two or three other sports, he said.

Lefebvre, 66, gave an impassioned speech this spring: "We're here to get ready for the Olympics and strength is part of that. You don't order room service and say, 'Hey, send me up some strength.' You have to go and get it yourself. So how many of you want to go lift weights?"

Only one player raised his hand.

Even with a translator, it's easy for things to get lost in the translation:

Yu Lei, a pitcher, giggled and said in Mandarin: "The coach has got a good sense of humor. We all like his gestures. But, no, I can't say we understand him most of the time."

Unfortunately, China's national team will likely be short-lived -- the International Olympic Committe has dropped baseball as a sport beyond this year. Even so, Major League Baseball is committed to developing the sport at the grassroots level, though I doubt they'll be able to cultivate widespread interest until they find an international superstar who can be marketed like the NBA's Yao Ming.

(via JCN)