Up to this point, I have been learning about the development of professional baseball in the United States. We have looked at baseball’s origins and its invention from British games brought over during times of colonization, as well as its connection to issues of systemic racism during the 19th and 20th centuries.
It has become apparent to me how closely linked sport is to culture and societal values. That is why I would now like to turn my attention to baseball’s modern development across the globe. Although the game was first played in the United States, there are now professional baseball leagues in Canada, Mexico, Central America, South America, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and more. This year’s World Baseball Classic–an annual international tournament–featured twenty different countries with team Japan beating team U.SA. in the finals.
https://www.mlb.com/world-baseball-classic/2023-bracket-standings
In the following weeks, I hope to dig deeper into how the globalization of baseball has further developed the sport.