This past June, baseball began in an odd and unusual place in the world — Israel.
Coming from the minds of Major League Baseball honchos, the Israel Baseball League (IBL) is another branch to expand the game to the world arena.
But one has to wonder, will it overshadow Major League Baseball's problems?
With the World Baseball Classic just over a year ago, Major League Baseball is desperately trying to expand its fan base and the game of baseball to many different countries. However, we've seen America's Pastime fall with scandals — steroids, illegal betting, etc, and the game tarnished leaving a bad taste in many mouths. Many aren't even excited to see Barry Bonds break Hank Aaron's 755 home run record, as they suspect he's not being truthful about stuff he's done in the past.
Bringing the game of baseball to Israel is a good idea, but was it created to distract some of Major League Baseball's problems or expand the game?
For many that don't know, baseball was first played in Israel on July 4, 1927 and the first baseball field was constructed in Kibbutz Gezer in 1979. In order for the IBL to be successful, the league is made up of 120 players and six teams which are: the Tel Aviv Lighting, Netanya Tigers, Bet Shemesh Blue Sox, Petach Tikva Pioneers, Modi'in Miracle, and Ra'anana Express. They play their games in three stadiums that are spread out through Israel. Three of the managers are Jewish and well-known to Major League Baseball: Ken Holtzman, who will manage Petach Tikva, Art Shamsky, the skipper of Madi'in Miracle, and Ron Blomberg managing Bet Shemesh.
To make it real interesting, the IBL's last player to be selected was Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax by the Modi'in Miracle. Shamsky said on Koufax's selection that, "his selection is a tribute to the esteem with which he is held by everyone associated with the league. It's been 41 years between starts for him. If he's rested and ready to take the mound again, we want him on our team." Koufax also showed dedication to his Jewish faith by not pitching Game 1 of the 1965 World Series so he can observe Yom Kippur.
No major network aired the first game except for PBS, which had an attendance of 3,112, and MLB.com will carry coverage of the league's games. Even though the games take about two hours to play, they are only seven innings and if there is a tie, a home run derby is used to decide the winner.
The names of many in baseball are behind this, with the most prominent being Bud Selig. Others are: Wendy Selig-Prieb (former Milwaukee Brewers owner), Marvin Goldklang (minority owner of the New York Yankees and four minor league teams), Randy Levine (Yankees president), Marty Appel (former PR director for the Yankees), and Dan Duquette (former GM of the Boston Red Sox and Montreal Expos).
While many question this league, Selig has ideas for expansion and maybe sending a political message to every other country that baseball can exist anywhere in the world. In a statement put out by the IBL, their purpose for this league is: "the IBL hopes to foster the sort of following and participation in a sport that is beautiful in symmetry and its grace. The IBL seeks to provide positive role models for Israeli children and Jewish children abroad that extend beyond the religious, military, or political models that dominate Israeli society today. It will take time, but in the end, we believe that baseball will cement even bonds that exist between America and Israel. Perhaps baseball will even create bonds and disparate peoples who, by learning a sport together, can find a common ground to co-exist and play."
Now that there's the IBL, maybe it can be the example for Major League Baseball and all of its problems. The question is not if it can survive, but what Major League Baseball can learn to right its mistakes.
On the IBL website, they have a quote from Nelson Mandela on sports and it is: "Sport has power to change the world. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does."
Now we need to unite American fans back and change some of MLB's issues once and for all.
August 3, 2007
Chumi:
I think that the IBL Is such an awesome additon to Israel. The games are terrific and everything this article says about baseball and its potential to enhance socitey is true.
August 4, 2007
Craig in St. Louis:
Excuse me, Mr. Boesch, but MLB had nothing to do with the formation of the IBL. The league was founded by Larry Baras, a Boston businessman; the MLB officials you mention serve only in an advisory role. To suggest that the league was concocted to distract from “scandals” is quite a stretch, considering the league would have never happened had it not been for Mr. Baras. You may want to do some research before writing another article.