Bryce Harper would like MLB players to compete at Olympic Games

Bryce Harper (John Maxmena, Wikimedia Commons)

According to Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer on Sunday, Philadelphia Phillies star outfielder Bryce Harper of Las Vegas, Nevada would like to see Major League Baseball players have the chance to compete at the Olympic Games. He believes it is a “travesty” that Major League Baseball does not shut down its season to allow its players to compete for their own individual countries during the biggest sporting event in the world.

Harper would like Major League Baseball to follow the lead of the National Hockey League, which stopped its season for five consecutive Olympic Winter Games from 1998 to 2014. However, it should be pointed out that the NHL did not shut down its season for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. 

Baseball is making its return to the Olympic program in 2021 in Tokyo. This will be the first time since the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing that baseball is part of the Olympic Games. Unfortunately, baseball will not be part of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. 

At this time all players not in Major League Baseball are eligible to represent their nations either at the Olympic Games or the Olympic qualifying tournaments. This includes players in Triple A. There is scheduled to be an Olympic qualifying tournament in the Americas and a second chance Olympic qualifier in Taichung, Taiwan before the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

At this time four nations have already qualified for the Olympic Games. They are Japan (automatic bid because they are the host), Israel (Europe/Africa Olympic Qualification champion), and South Korea and Mexico (top two teams besides Japan from the 2019 World Baseball Softball Confederation Premier12 Event in Japan).

The champions from the Americas Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Arizona, and the Second Chance Olympic Qualifying Tournament will qualify for the Olympic Games. The eight nations scheduled to compete in the event were Canada, the United States, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, and Venezuela. Then at the second chance qualifier, the six teams scheduled to compete are Australia, the Netherlands, China, Taiwan, and the second and third place teams from the Americas Olympic Qualifying Tournament.