The 2024 Paris Olympics are underway. While there will of course be a cornucopia of competitive events that should appeal to anyone of almost any sports persuasion, there will not be baseball or softball at the Paris Games.
Indeed, peruse the 45 sporting categories — and the many individual events within those categories — and no baseball/softball shall be found. In one sense, this isn’t surprising, as baseball has had an inconsistent Olympic presence over the years. In another way, however, it is a bit surprising, as Major League Baseball has worked harder than ever in recent years to promote the game on a global scale. All of this may leave you, the baseball watcher and enjoyer, with questions insofar as the sport’s non-presence in the upcoming Olympiad is concerned. We’re here to try to answer those questions right about now …
Why isn’t baseball part of the Paris Summer Olympics?
The glib answer is that it wasn’t selected to be one. The more detailed answer is that the host country, France in this instance, has a level of autonomy and power when it comes to determining Olympic programming outside of the fixture sports like track and field, gymnastics, wrestling, and so forth.
That “host’s prerogative” explains why baseball was part of the 2020 Olympics (actually held in 2021 because of COVID) in Japan, a country in which baseball is of course deeply popular. France, though, is not much of a baseball nation. France does field a national team, but it’s not a particularly strong or successful one. For instance, France did not participate in qualifying play for the first two World Baseball Classic tournaments. They did attempt to qualify for each of the last three WBCs but failed to do so. Organizers of the Paris Games said they prioritized sports that are “closely associated with youth and reward creativity and athletic performance.”
Presumably, baseball and softball in their estimation did not satisfy those criteria. This is to say nothing of the lack of suitable venues and baseball infrastructure in France. Meantime, Paris decision-makers used their specific event choices on surfing, skateboarding, sport climbing, and breakdancing, which is an Olympic sport for the first time ever.
A possibly related issue is MLB‘s reluctance to permit major-league players to participate in the Summer Games. This is the case because the Summer Olympics take place during the heart of the MLB regular season, and permitting scores of major leaguers to depart for the Olympics in late July would greatly compromise MLB’s already crowded calendar.
On another level, MLB cares far more about promoting its own WBC as the premier international baseball event, which at least theoretically puts them at cross purposes with Olympic organizers.
Finally, it should be noted that baseball is typically paired with softball in the Olympic setting for the praiseworthy goal of gender equity. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) aims for a 50-50 split between male and female athletes, and they’ve gradually worked their way toward finally achieving that figure in Paris. This complicates baseball’s viability as an Olympic sport because of roster-size differences compared to its companion sport of softball. Steve Drumwright of PitcherList.com explains:
“In Tokyo, the Olympic fields for baseball and softball were six countries each. That can be attributed to softball’s lack of international popularity, particularly in Europe. Five countries have won medals at the five Olympics softball has been included: U.S., Canada, Japan, China and Australia. Roster size for Olympic baseball and softball vary greatly, with baseball having 24 players and softball needing just 16. Even at six teams, that is a 48-player difference in the genders, a gap that has to be made up elsewhere.”
In the end, it’s not one singular reason that baseball was excluded from the Paris Games, but rather a confluence of considerations — all of them understandable.
When was the last time baseball was included in the Olympics?
As noted, it was part of the 2020/2021 Olympics in Tokyo. Baseball was an occasional presence in the Olympics starting in 1904, albeit as an unofficial, non-medal sport. Baseball at last became a medal sport at the 1992 Barcelona Games (Cuba won gold). Softball achieved the same status in 1996, and together the two sports were medal events through 2008. However, the two sports were left out of the London and Brazil Games in 2012 and 2016, respectively, before returning during the aforementioned Japan Games.
Will baseball and softball be Olympic sports in 2028?
They will indeed, as the Games will be in Los Angeles, which of course is a baseball hotbed with a vast array of suitable venues. Los Angeles organizers chose baseball/softball, flag football, lacrosse, squash, and cricket, and in October of last year those choices were formally approved. Baseball and softball also figure to have a reasonable shot at being part of the 2032 Games in Australia, which is an up-and-coming nation insofar as baseball is concerned.
Will MLB players take part in the 2028 Games in L.A.?
MLB players have never before participated in the Olympics, but there’s increasing momentum to change that when the Summer Games come to L.A. in 2028. During the recent All-Star week festivities, both commissioner Rob Manfred and MLBPA head Tony Clark indicated open-mindedness toward having major-league players double as Olympians in the summer of 2028. For his part, Manfred cited a fruitful conversation with L.A. Games CEO Casey Wasserman. Via Baseball America:
“(Wasserman) did a really nice job, and he was very persuasive,” Manfred said. “I sat with Casey last week. We’re talking about what can be done. What exactly would it look like, what are the compromises that we would have to make in terms of our season. I remain open minded on that topic.”
On the player side, no less a star than Bryce Harper gave his full-throated support for big-leaguer participation in the Olympics. Here’s what he said in June, when his Phillies were in London for their series against the Mets:
“There’s nothing more worldwide than the Olympics,” Harper told reporters in London. “I watch the most random sports in the Olympics because it’s the Olympics, and that’s really cool. I love hockey. It’s one of my favorite sports to watch. To see (the NHL) take that three-week break and let those guys go play, that’s another big goal that we should have as Major League Baseball.
“I’ve talked to numerous people with MLB about it. I would love to be a part of that. We have the WBC, but it’s not the same. It’s not. The Olympics is something that you dream about playing in.”
Harper even tried to get written into his Phillies contract that he could participate in the Olympics, but it never went through, he told Sports Illustrated.
Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani has also expressed interest in playing.
“Knowing the fact that there will be non-baseball fans watching the games as well, I think it would be really good for the baseball industry,” he told Sports Illustrated through his interpreter.
Presently, amateur ballplayers and minor-leaguers not on a 40-man roster are eligible to play in the Olympics, but with voices like Harper’s behind the idea of change, maybe it finally happens.
