I don’t have a big comment on this, but this is how it goes down. Yahoo!’s Jeff Passan interviews Team USA GM Bob Watson as he gets phone calls about how all-world prospects like the Twins Denard Span don’t end up on Team USA.
Well,” Watson said two minutes later, “that was the Twins’ GM. We’re not getting Denard Span.”
Watson shrugged his shoulders. It was somewhat inevitable, Minnesota telling Watson that it planned on keeping the hot-hitting Span in the major leagues and thus rendering him ineligible to compete in Beijing. And yet it was painful.
To hear the IOC tell it, this is one of the reasons baseball will no longer be an Olympic sport. On this topic…they have a point.
Granted, it wasn’t the best team possible, which is a shame considering baseball may not have a future as an Olympic sport. While Japan takes the two best players from each of its dozen teams and Korea and Taiwan shut down their professional leagues to send only the best players, the United States – the birthplace of baseball – won’t even muster a team of its best minor leaguers.
Not that Watson or USA Baseball is at fault. A number of teams, including the three with the deepest farm systems in baseball – Tampa Bay, Boston and the Los Angeles Dodgers – went unrepresented on Team USA at the Futures Game, which the World won 3-0 Sunday afternoon.
Absent was David Price, the No. 1 pick in last year’s draft and among the game’s best pitching prospects. A year after letting Evan Longoria compete for Team USA in international competition, the Rays withheld Price, figuring he might help the team in August or September if need be.
4 responses so far ↓
1 Mike McStay // Jul 14, 2008 at 5:56 pm
I still can not believe that MLB does not get it. If they are serious about wanting baseball back as an Olympic Sport, then they will have to send their best players. This is a joke and if this is the best that Team USA will do then the Olympic committee was correct in getting rid of baseball.
What a joke this has become.
2 John Brooks // Jul 15, 2008 at 3:27 am
Watson shrugged his shoulders. It was somewhat inevitable, Minnesota telling Watson that it planned on keeping the hot-hitting Span in the major leagues and thus rendering him ineligible to compete in Beijing. And yet it was painful.
I understand the frustation, but why should Minnesota send Span one of their top prospects to the Olympics? Yes, I know that they want to field the best team, but what happens when one of their top prospects gets injured?
While Japan takes the two best players from each of its dozen teams and Korea and Taiwan shut down their professional leagues to send only the best players, the United States – the birthplace of baseball – won’t even muster a team of its best minor leaguers.
I also fail to understand why MLB should shut down its season down for a month? And push the World Series into November? From a TV standings standpoint MLB would be committing suicide going up against NFL.
Regarding NPB, I feel the same way that sending players to the Olympics dilutes the standings and hurts the pennant races by taking many of the top players away to play in the Olympics.
If they are serious about wanting baseball back as an Olympic Sport, then they will have to send their best players.
IMO, I could care less about baseball in the Olympics. I’m real disappointed in how political the IOC has come with awarding the Olympics to countries with human right violations and their lackluster excuse of no MLB players(when before it was just amateur players). They had no problem with amateurs before, so why all the bitching now?
With the passing time, the more I think that the elimination of baseball/softball was a political move because they weren’t European enough for the IOC and Jacques Rogge.
Also, after being a big doubter in the WBC, I feel it’s more the future since that’s where the big stars will be and doesn’t cut into any league’s season.
After seeing the excitement and great play I was convinced that the WBC is the future for international baseball along with the World Cup and other IBAF sponsored tournanments.
This is a joke and if this is the best that Team USA will do then the Olympic committee was correct in getting rid of baseball.
What? It’s not Team USA’s fault that MLB teams won’t allow their top prospects to play for the USA team. And why should they allow them to play and risk injury? Just because it might not happen, doesn’t mean it will. My hypothecial question to you, is say David Price plays for the USA team and injures himself playing for them while Tampa could possibly be in the playoff hunt? Then what?
All in all, I’m sick and tired of the joke the IOC has become. If the IBAF and the respective professional leagues around the world work close together, then no baseball in the Olympics won’t be a problem. I know I won’t miss the Olympics and Rogge’s excuses.
3 Shinsano // Jul 15, 2008 at 3:49 am
Thanks for the well-detailed comments, John. I agree with you on several points. First and foremost–who really gives a shit if baseball is in the Olympics? If the IOC thinks the olympics haven’t been co-opted and are some upstanding example of World Sport they’re crazy.
However, I will say, that living in Korea, and seeing how excited the country gets for international competitions, I do think it’s kind of a shame that America cannot be a part of it. This is an emotional reaction on my part.
The only way it can happen is if it’s turned into a financially attractive situation for MLB teams. The WBC is better equipped to make that happen.
4 Westbaystars // Jul 15, 2008 at 10:28 am
The issue is with control. MLB created the WBC so that they can have full control of the international event. They don’t want to share control with IBAF (International Baseball Federation) or anybody. The powers-that-be in MLB will not play second fiddle to anyone.
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