MLB looks to future after successful China Series
After the final out of the historic Major League Baseball China Series on Sunday, MLB officials took a look around Wukesong Baseball Field and quietly congratulated themselves.
"This is a beginning and it is a first step in a long journey," said Jim Small, vice president of MLB Asia, after the San Diego Padres wrapped up their two-game exhibition series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
"We think there are plenty of opportunities to build on this and use it as a platform to build the rest of our strategy in China."
MLB Commissioner Bud Selig and other officials were encouraged by the outpouring of support from local fans as both games attracted close to a full house of spectators at the 12,000-capacity venue.
"I feel we're making inroads," Selig told a group of reporters after Sunday's game. "I feel so good about it. I have no doubt in my mind that in a decade baseball will be big in China."
Overall, the crowd was responsive and cheered "at all the right times", Padres pitcher Trevor Hoffman said Saturday. Fans even booed after learning that Saturday's 3-3 tie would not go to extra innings. (The Padres rallied in Sunday's game to win 6-3.)
For many Beijing locals, it was the first chance to experience baseball culture first hand.
"This is the first time I've seen so many people watching a baseball game in China," said Beijing resident Bi Mingchao. Bi, a longtime baseball fan, attended both games with his girlfriend Chen Xi.
Fans like Bi and Chen are crucial if MLB is to thrive in a country of 1.3 billion where only between 100,000 and 150,000 people play the game.
Small described this as the second year of MLB's 10-year plan to bring baseball to China. So far, so good, he said.
"The number one thing this year was to play MLB games in China and we accomplished that. We've had a good start to year two," he said.
"We wanted to have a full stadium and wanted China and the world to see it on television. We met these goals. We hit all these expectations."
Last weekend's games were not broadcast on Chinese television, though they were available live on the Internet with a paid subscription to mlb.com. Wider television coverage is the next step in MLB's Chinese business plan.
"We are going to use this as a platform to expand our television business," Small said. "We are going to grow our licensing program and our sponsorship program and we're going to start our academy program soon. We are going to stay the course."
The MLB season will open in Tokyo on March 25 in a game between the World Series champion Boston Red Sox and the Oakland Athletics. It will be the third time MLB has opened its season in Tokyo.
(China Daily 03/19/2008 page23)
