Since almost every country has baseball, why don't we have a real World Series?

[Rabrrrrrr]

I think that would be pretty awesome.

Do it like the Open Cup or whatever the fuck it's called in soccer.

I don't know how other countries would choose their team to send, but clearly in the US it would be whoever won what we call now the World Series.

And they should play the new World Series on a modified cargo ship out in international waters.

Ok, maybe not that, but a real world series would be pretty cool.

[jmowreader]

1. How about they do it once every four years?

What would be cool: do the Winter Olympics in year 1, the soccer World Cup in year 2, the Summer Olympics in year 3 and the baseball Universal Series in year 4...and the next year is the next Winter Olympics.

[Rabrrrrrr]

2. I like that idea!

:thumbsup:

Do you know anything about baseball in other countries? Do they play it the same as we do, or do they have distinctive rules that would make playing each other difficult?

[jmowreader]

10. I don't, no...

I would imagine, though, that if the world wanted to have a "Real World Series" they could do like the soccer (okay, football) people did and create an organization to hash out a common set of rules.

[Iggo]

3. Drug testing.

Either that, or something else.

[Recovered Repug]

4. They do have the World Baseball Classic.

[meow2u3]

28. They should hold the World Baseball Classic in November

instead of March, when most of the MLB players are in spring training--and in other countries besides the US. There should be bids like the soccer World Cup.

For instance, I'd like to see the WBC held in countries like the Dominican Republic, Japan, the Netherlands (Aruba and Curacao), or Italy--even countries which don't traditionally play baseball, just for a change.

[tigereye]

5. good question- that's what they do with LIttle League.

[old mark]

18. Because in little league we mostly lose...they don't want US teams to lose to Japan

or Korea or someone like that (evil foreigners) the RWers would go insane.


mark

[kentauros]

24. The RWers would GO insane?

You mean more insane than they already are? :P

[old mark]

25. Yeah, I guess it wouldn't be much of a trip, huh?....nt

[Initech]

6. That would be awesome. Then certain teams couldn't buy their way in every year.

*COUGH* Red Sox Yankees *COUGH* *COUGH*

[liberaltrucker]

7. Do you honestly think that MLB wants to compete with Cuba and Japan?

We Murkins would get our asses handed to us on
a silver platter. The moneyed honchos in the MLB
Ivory Tower would NEVER allow that to happen.

[david13]

8. Baseball is a thing in usa only. For the rest of the world it is

World Cup.
Believe me, if a real world baseball thing could make 10 cents, they would be doing it.
World Cup is the thing that the world has, every country in the world participates.
dc

[Rabrrrrrr]

9. No, quite a few countries also have baseball - Cuba, Japan, Dominican Republic, just to name three.

Sure, the rest of the world is more interested in soccer; but baseball is all over the fucking place, too.

[jmowreader]

12. There is a reason for baseball in other countries...

It's a sport you watch when you want to see the teams score points.

There are two reasons why soccer is not HUGE! GALACTIC! THE GREATEST SPORT! in the US: the "penalty kick shootout" that decides WAAAAAAAAY too many games that were 0-0 in regulation; and when you have hockey you don't really need soccer.

[david13]

14. Eh. How are things in Canada? You Canadian. dc

[jmowreader]

19. We have hockey in the US too...

And look, you hoser, the last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup was 1993. Since then, a team in Texas, one in North Carolina, one in California and one in Florida have all won the Cup, in addition to the usual suspects from Chicago and other cold places.

[Orrex]

11. Could we cut the World Series down to one game?

Why do we have to bore the entire globe with five minutes of action spread over (potentially) 63 innings or more?

[XemaSab]

13. I've wondered for a while why there aren't teams in other countries

We have the Toronto Blue Jays, why not the Caracas Caracaras?

[GoCubsGo]

15. Because those who might play for the Caracas Caracaras...

...are currently playing for the Toronto Blue Jays, Florida Marlins, Chicago Cubs, Seattle Mariners...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Major_League_Baseball_players_from_Venezuela


And, odds are, they're getting paid much better than they would if they were playing for the Caracas team.

[GoCubsGo]

16. Technically, we already do.

They all just play on the same teams (as opposed to being divided by country). :-) I like it better this way.

[Parche]

17. nobody has the balls to start it...

:rofl::hi:

[Xithras]

20. Because the MLB won't allow it. Same reason it just got dropped from the Olympics.

MLB controls the trademarks for the various teams and doesn't want them used internationally. They also steadfastly refuse to alter the timing of the American season to match the play seasons in other parts of the world, making it virtually impossible to schedule games internationally.

The Olympic Committee recently voted to eliminate baseball and softball from the Olympics. Why? Because they asked the MLB to schedule a break in the 2012 season to permit athletes from America and other nations to compete on the world stage, for their home countries. The MLB flat out REFUSED, and the athletes made it clear that they couldn't put their careers at risk just to compete for a medal. So baseball was dropped. Forever.

Dumbass capitalist greedy MBA mofos :mad: :argh:

[Rabrrrrrr]

22. Wow - thanks for the info. But it makes sense -who wants a fucking medal versus $20 million?

I sure wouldn't. The money is way more important to the future of my family than some fucking medal or award.

[ohiosmith]

21. Why do you hate America?

[keroro gunsou]

23. because then the yankees

won't win every other fucking year.

[TZ]

26. Hockey is played internationally as well. So is basketball.

Both these sports have "world championships" as well. The thing is, most of the best players in the world come HERE to play because the best facilities and training and SALARIES are here. Hello, A-Rod probably makes more than the GNP of several Carribean Islands.
The fact is, that most other countries don't have the wealth or the interest to drive these sports at a high level that the US does.
However, almost all these sports now do something to try to attract international interest..MLB, has a pretty interesting tournament called the World Baseball Classic. The NHL has tried to do its all star game as international vs US players. Only the NBA hasn't really made an effort to include some sort of international play, IIRC.

[NewJeffCT]

27. I don't think there are enough competitive countries out there

Japan, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and... who else? A few other Latin American countries maybe.

Anybody in Europe? Africa? Anybody in Asia outside of Japan - maybe Taiwan?

[meegbear]

29. Because the pussies at MLB couldn't handle losing to Equador ...

QED

[LynneSin]

30. We do, it's called The Olympics

:eyes: