The 2008 Baseball season has begun. Not for the Mets but for the Oakland Athletics and Boston Red Sox. As the business of baseball attempts to grow itself, once again America’s past time has opened up in the Far East, Tokyo to be exact.

The A’s and the Sox will play a home and home two game series in the Tokyo Dome although both teams are really far from home. It is not the first time baseball has done this. The New York Mets and the Chicago Cubs were the first teams to ever open the Major League Baseball season away from the United States. In 2000 the Mets and Cubs split the two games. New York was the home team in game 1 and road team in game 2.

Mike Hampton, whom the Mets acquired over the offseason started for the Mets. He faced John Leiber of the Cubs. The Cubs took an early lead scoring a run in the top of the first inning when Hampton walked Eric Young to lead off the game. Young then stole second before being driven home by Damon Buford. Not a great start for the much anticipated start for Hampton in a Mets uniform. The Mets tied it in the third when Daryl Hamilton hit a sac fly to score Rey Ordonez. Hampton gave the lead back on a bases loaded walk in the fifth. The Cubs scored 2 more in the 6th and 1 in the 7th and won game 1 of the 2000 season 5-3.  The Mets now faced the prospect of traveling all the way to Japan to lose two games.

Rick Read started game 2. Read pitched brilliantly giving up just 1 run on 4 hits through 8 innings. But a combination of Cubs pitchers did slightly better also only giving up 1 run on 3 hits. The game ultimately went into extra innings. In the top of the 11th with two out the Mets loaded the bases. Pinch hitter Benny Agbayani stroked a drive to deep center field that went over the fence for a grand slam home run. The Mets had their win and gladly returned to the United Stated with a 1-1 record. Of course the Mets in 2000 won their last National League pennant before falling victim to the Yankees in the World Series.

Speaking of the Yankees, they also played a season starting series in Tokyo. Against the Devil Rays (now just the Rays*), the Yankees split a two game set in 2004. Apparently this Japan series has become an every 4 year event.

Japan, like the US, loves baseball. They have two leagues, the Central and Pacific that compete in a 144 game schedule. There are some subtle differences but the game is basically the same as here. One major difference in the Japanese game is that contests can end in a tie after nine innings. There are no extra innings. Another huge difference is the fields and ballparks. Most parks are smaller and still have Astroturf. Many parks are under domes and some of the fields have a complete dirt infield and an artificial grass outfield. You really don’t find the cozy quirky fields like in the US. There are no Camden Yards in Japan. The stadiums are very sterile in appearance and remind me of the doughnut cookie cutter ballparks built here in the 60s and 70s.

I guess it’s a good thing that baseball is trying to grow the game internationally. But opening in Japan is a little like preaching to the choir. Would not playing an opening series in London or Beijing go further in expanding America’s past time? Instead of every 4 years opening in Japan, why not start a program that in every 4 years baseball will open in some different country. Select a country now to give that nation time to market the games and make plans similar to the Olympics. A four year time frame is enough time to generate excitement and anticipation. Countries might even fall all over each other in an attempt to land the series.

Next spring the World Baseball Classic will return. While it might not be thought of much in the US at the moment, the other participating countries are counting the days till it begins again. One thing is clear, while other sports, specifically football claim to be the most popular, baseball is growing in leaps and bounds here and abroad. The Major Leagues expect 81 million people to pass through turnstiles this year. That doesn’t include the minor leagues or leagues in other countries. We often hear about the golden years of baseball when teams never ventured further than St. Louis. Make no mistake that these are the golden years of baseball.

*Is Tampa Bay now hinting that Rays refers to Sun Rays instead of Devil Rays? If you go to their web site, the logo sits on top of what looks like sun beams behind it.