The World Series?
Ethnocentric Americans Rule the World
By Dario Bollacasa

An alien drops into say, Chicago,in the midst of a sport feeding frenzy known as The World Series of Baseball, shortened to The World Series. Here are two teams, one from Chicago and one from Houston, ready to do battle with the winner to be crowned world champion.

The alien might expect that the event is the outcome of a multi-year elimination event similar to that that occurs in his alien world when the World Cup (of Soccer) is played out. But noooo, this is a yearly event that involves only two teams from two professional baseball leagues who play the sport exclusively in the US (all right, there is a team from Canada).

No other team from the US or any other country is allowed to participate in this "world" event. Moreover, the exclusive collection of teams is ruled by the owners of the teams and there is no way, without the consent of said owners to expand or shrink the number of teams.

When it comes to self-agrandization and self-importance, nothing tops US baseball. It's not that other professional sports do not have similar grand delusions, but nothing comes close to baseball. Football took the name from a game invented in the UK and turned into a completely different sport. How much foot action is that really in US foot, helmets and all.

But returning to baseball, it's not that the sport is not practiced outside the US: the Japanese are crazy about it, there are countless teams in the Caribbean nations and Mexico, but none are allowed to participate in the World Series.

Remember when there were no teams West of the Mississippi competing for the title of world champions? It was only 50 years ago, take or leave a few, that the title could not be stowed to a team say from California, and when a team from New York City was transplanted to Los Angeles, a whole Latino neighborhood was displaced to make room for Dodger Stadium.

With so much power, including special legislation from the US Congress, it is no wonder that baseball has a World Series. If Napoleon I could take the crown from the Pope and crown himself Emperor, why should Baseball be less Imperial!

Aggrandize.