[Giantsfan]

OK, i am English so i may be biased about the removal of baseball from our Olympics, but i wrote the 'article' below to try and just...well...i dont know, vent some feelings i guess! Its a small issue in terms of life and death (which we in Britain are obviously familiar with atm), but its a very disappointing decision none the less.



Major League mistakes have worldwide ramifications

Sunday 10th July, England – At 12.46pm on Wednesday afternoon, London, and the whole of Great Britain, was celebrating the magnificent achievement of winning the 2012 Olympic Games. Two days later, and one small part of that Olympic dream was shattered for the dedicated followers of baseball in the United Kingdom. The IOC’s decision to exclude baseball and softball from the Olympics is a disastrous blow to UK baseball and its followers, ending the hopes of a baseball venue in Regent’s Park, as well as the chance to grow the game on a national level. Baseball Softball UK executive John Boyd summed up the dismayed mood by describing the ‘shocked’ feeling as well as the ‘cruel’ decision to remove baseball from the list.
Of course, the simple fact is that for the majority of people around the globe, including those who love baseball, the sport seems to be intrinsically linked to Major League Baseball. MLB dominates the baseball landscape with its ever-growing world name and its huge prestige, but for all it has done to promote the game worldwide, it may have delivered the cruellest of blows. Without doubt, the International Olympic Committees decision was based around three important elements. One, that the best players in the world do not compete at the Olympics. Secondly, an anti-American bias that emanates throughout the world’s political structures, and finally the issues of doping.
Based on the IOC’s reasoning above, many other sports should be being discarded to the Olympic trashcan, the reason why they are not though is because baseball, unlike other sports, has all its attention focussed on one professional league, MLB. It is a mistake made by virtually everyone of us, automatically thinking of baseball as a Major League organisation, where the Commissioners Office can run everything to do with the game. This is a wild falsity. Even in the USA, the Minor Leagues represent a semi-independent form of professional baseball. The sport is hugely popular in South America, in the Caribbean, has a growing market in Europe, has a solid market in Australia and rules over much of the Far East. All are hurt by the IOC’s decision.
Players from far more countries from America play the game of baseball. America’s past time it may be, but the sport is now a worldwide game. The best MLB players may not attend the games, but what about stars from Cuba, or teams from the Netherlands, who strive for Olympic gold. Olympic soccer certainly does not have its best starts showing up, nor even all top tier countries competing, yet it survives as an Olympic sport. To remove baseball because some players do not want to come and play is illogical, biased and bordering on ridiculous. Did anyone see Shaq in Athens for team USA basketball, or did the world simply enjoy watching the players who were there giving it their all?
The issue of doping was also mentioned by IOC chief Jacques Rogge as a possible reason for the removal of the sports. Of course, you have to be living on the moon to realise that MLB has not had a big problem with performance enhancing drugs in recent years, but then professional soccer leagues in Europe have been found guilty of match fixing. Also, without wishing the make ill-educated statements, are you seriously trying to convince me that sports like ‘weightlifting’ have not been under the worldwide steroid cloud. In using doping as a reason to kick away baseball, the IOC has done a disservice to competitors from Japan, from Australia, from Italy, from virtually every baseball federation in the world. To look at the problems of one league, even if it is the premier one, and judge the worldwide sport on their actions, shows ignorance from IOC members.
Baseball and softball barely survived for the 2004 games in Greece, now Beijing could be their last appearance, at least until 2016, when it will be too late for Britain. The big losers in this poor decision are baseball players from over the breadth of the globe, including those in America, who miss the opportunity, too represent their country in the games. In addition, softball loses. Seemingly for no reason, softball was lumped in with baseball because they look like similar sports, despite the fact they are clearly separate entities. If softball was not played predominantly in America, or even had a different name, then I have little doubt it would have survived for London. The biggest loss though, is almost certainly for Great Britain. BSUK and the sports followers were perhaps more jubilant than most on Wednesday because of the unimaginable boost baseball would receive in the UK, now, we are resigned to the fact baseball will still go without a real venue, and any attention in the sporting market.