In the early 21st century, baseball in mainland China was “on the fringes.” Fewer than a thousand baseball players were registered nationwide, there were only three professional ballparks, and mainstream media rarely reported on the sport. Most people saw it as a “niche foreign sport.” Meanwhile, Major League Baseball (MLB) was facing a saturated domestic market and turning its attention to China's vast population, planning to open up a new market by promoting games and supporting youth training.
