Untitled Document

Ripken in China Growing Baseball Worldwide
2007-11-1

Ripken in China dreams of 'true' World Series
By Nick Mulvenney
BEIJING, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. dreams of the day when Major League Baseball's World Series becomes a genuinely global affair.
Ripken, in the Chinese capital in his new role as a U.S. goodwill ambassador, acknowledged however that it would be many years before countries such as China could provide teams to compete in the Fall Classic.
"It's really hard to project but ideally you'd like to create a true World Series," he told Reuters in an interview on Thursday.
"We call it the World Series and we do have representatives from around the world playing, but you'd almost like to see divisions from all around the world coming together in a World Cup fashion.
"I think it would be really cool, if you want to dream for a minute -- because I know there's a lot of work to get there -- but ultimately I'd like to see that happen."
Although he retired in 2001, Ripken still cares deeply about his sport and admitted the Mitchell probe into the use of performance-enhancing substances in baseball -- which is likely to report before the end of the year -- was "not a good story".
"I think baseball will get through this period, it's going to be negative, it's going to be nasty and it will reflect poorly in some ways," said the 47-year-old, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in January.
"But I think the game is a really strong game and I think by getting past these things the game will still flourish.
"It identifies a problem and you're forced to fix it."
Ripken said he was disappointed that next year's Olympics was likely to be the last for baseball after it was removed from the programme for the 2012 London Games.
"I love baseball and I love to see baseball as part of the Olympics," he said.
"It's kind of sad, it's something you've grown up watching, has a code and a spirit of its own and you want baseball to be a part of that."
If Beijing is to be baseball's final Olympic fling, it will at least take place at a good venue at the Wukesong baseball field, which Ripken described as a "a big league kind of place".
"I had the urge to kind of test it out in a game situation," he said.
"Are the sight-lines good looking at the game from short-stop? Can you pick out the ball from the pitcher alright?"
"IRON MAN"
Ripken, nicknamed "Iron Man", is best known for playing a record 2,632 games in a row during his 21-year career at the Baltimore Orioles.
He has conducted three baseball clinics with schoolchildren in Beijing this week, an experience he described as "uplifting".
"You travel all around the world and you find out that kids are kids and they love to play and they love to have fun," he said.
Ripken said he had an uncomplicated view of his ambassadorial role, which he was given by the U.S. State Department in August.
"I look at it that we're doing what we do at home, you're making friends, you're teaching baseball," he said.
"It seems people do relate to sports without putting up a wall. Baseball being an American pastime, there are certain structures, values and principles that come out of that game that when taught, gives an impression of American life."
Untitled Document

QUICK NEWS

 

 
16W Marketing, LLC
75 Union Avenue, 2nd Floor
Rutherford, NJ 07070
201-635-8000