My oddball idea... Exploiting a market.

[TRF]

The population of India is just over 1.2 billion (with a B). The national sports are Field Hockey and Cricket. Cricket could be considered a cousin of baseball, so there is some cultural almost familiarity to the game of baseball. yeah the games are different, but the muscle memory involved is probably somewhat similar.

1.2 billion people.

It would require a commitment, but setting up baseball academies there could yield a wealth of talent. Now the Reds COULD do this on their own, but it is in MLB's best interests to do this. Say 10-12 academies scattered over the sub continent.

In 2008, two kids entered a pitching contest in india and were eventually signed by Pittsburgh. Over 37,000 tried out, most probably having very little knowledge of baseball. Now while the results weren't ideal, it is still worth exploring.

It's an untapped market of 1.2 billion. There is money to be made and talent to be harvested. Eventually, and possibly within 100 years, MLB will have international teams. Why not start the global process by establishing roots now?

[sdwagers]

The entire continent of Africa would be a prime target as well.

[TRF]

The only problem with Africa is there are a few unstable regimes, where safety would be an issue. Northern Africa is in turmoil, parts of Central Africa are extremely unsafe. India just does not have the same issues. Someday, hopefully Africa won't either.

[Crumbley]

Didn't the Pirates have some initiative where they were were looking at teaching cricket players how to play baseball?

[RedEye]

Originally Posted by Crumbley

Didn't the Pirates have some initiative where they were were looking at teaching cricket players how to play baseball?

Yeah, he mentions that in his post, doesn't he?

[Raisor]

World peace through baseball.

[thatcoolguy_22]

Forgive the typos (cellphone) but Africa could be a huge boon. They already have soccer academies in the region that have produced on the international level. As soon as someone makes it, the dream takes root. These grass root investments cost next to nothing in the grand scheme to develop, but the rewards could be huge.

[Crumbley]

Originally Posted by RedEye

Yeah, he mentions that in his post, doesn't he?

You start expecting literacy out of me and this whole thing falls apart.

[Pony Boy]

Originally Posted by thatcoolguy_22

Forgive the typos (cellphone) but Africa could be a huge boon. They already have soccer academies in the region that have produced on the international level. As soon as someone makes it, the dream takes root. These grass root investments cost next to nothing in the grand scheme to develop, but the rewards could be huge.

Think that there is an epidemic of Latin players falsifying birth certificates in order to get big contracts? Wait until African's start playing baseball.

It's a big problem in soccer, where African countries dominate youth international soccer, but rarely make noise when those same players become adults. Because those players already were adults when they were competing in youth soccer.

[Vottomatic]

How many people does China have? Build an academy there too. LOL.

[REDREAD]

Interesting idea, but let's say you are MLB team and you have enough money to open one training site anywhere in the world.. It just doesn't seem practical to pick India. It's further away and the kids don't naturally play it. You could spend that money in practically any Latin American country and get a better return on investment (in terms of prospects signed).

Think about it if India started opening up Cricket academies here.. I just don't think the best US athletes would be attracted, even if hypothetically cricket stars made big money. It's just a big cultural gap to bridge.

[Tadasimha]

Originally Posted by Vottomatic

How many people does China have? Build an academy there too. LOL.

They already have - I think there are two or three open now.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/sports/...nt_9384357.htm

The mainland pro league didn't play at all this past season. There's a lot more enthusiasm for baseball in Taiwain than in mainland China.

Baseball is growing in the southern parts of Africa, starting to become more popular.

Cricket and baseball are lot more different than alike. It's going to take someone like Rinku Singh (the guy who won the contract with Pittsburgh) or perhaps an Indian American kid like Vickash Ramjit (Florida Gator senior) to really get the game noticed in India.

[Plus Plus]

Originally Posted by Tadasimha

Cricket and baseball are lot more different than alike. It's going to take someone like Rinku Singh (the guy who won the contract with Pittsburgh) or perhaps an Indian American kid like Vickash Ramjit (Florida Gator senior) to really get the game noticed in India.

This is very true. Cricket and baseball are alike in that they are ball-and-bat sports, but that's about it. Cricket pitchers use spin in a different way as they are required to bounce the ball before the batsman strikes it, inducing contact can be more desirable than "swing and misses," and the entire outs/innings system is completely different.

That being said, I think there is always room for exploiting a market. However, I would delve into less-focal South American markets such as Chile, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Uruguay, Paraguay, Panama, etc. before looking at India. Distances are much less prohibitive and the culture would likely be more receptive to it.

[cincinnati chili]

I think I'd like to propose the reverse of what is proposed above. I'd like to ship Miguel Olivo to India to play cricket.

[redsmetz]

I'm not sure if Africa is right at this time. Just too much instability at this time. Someone did mention there is some baseball in the south, which would likely be the stable South Africa.

That said, India is rife with possibilities, but may be a way off. China, as some noted, have a few academies and that's a huge market, to say the least. The fifth largest country in the world, Brazil, is also a growing economy and I'm personally glad that we have a connection there with Barry Larkin managing their World Classic team. Plus there are existing leagues elsewhere in Central & South America and the Caribbean region. The language difference isn't huge between Spanish and Portuguese; I've seen folks from Brazil make do with understanding Spanish and vice versa.