As is the case once every four years, the Olympic Games have captured the attention of hundreds of millions around the world.
After two enthralling weeks, the final few events are starting to wrap up, including the highly-anticipated men's basketball gold medal game on Saturday.
Thanks to the spectacular heroics of Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry, who scored a team-high 24 points, Team USA was able to defeat host France by a final of 98-87, wrapping up the fifth-straight gold medal for the United States.
Team USA's performance resonated all over popular culture, including social media, in which the National Basketball Association played a large part. And according to one insider, Major League Baseball needs to follow suit in 2028.
Jeff Passan of ESPN took to social media on Saturday in the wake of Team USA's win to plead his case for MLB to get baseball in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. And though it has never happened in the past, Passan also implored MLB to let active big-leaguers play.
"The best athletes in the world performing at their apex is what the Olympics is all about. And it’s exactly why Major League Baseball needs to do all it can to get baseball back into the 2028 Games and allow big leaguers to participate," Passan said on X.
"The NBA showed the way. MLB must follow."
Passan's message has been echoed by several of MLB's biggest superstars in recent weeks. The Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani and Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper both stated during the All-Star break that they would like to participate in the Olympics in 2028.
Given the huge success of the 2023 World Baseball Classic, which featured Ohtani's Team Japan defeating Team USA in the finals, it's easy to see how there would be massive appeal for big-leaguers to play in the Olympics. But what makes 2028 different than past iterations?
Though numerous future MLB stars have taken part in the Olympics as amateurs, including current MLB stars Seiya Suzuki, Masataka Yoshida and Kodai Senga for Japan's gold medal team in 2021, big-leaguers have never participated, and there's a simple reason why.
By definition, the Summer Olympics take place right in the middle of MLB's season. It would require flexibility and compromise on the part of the commissioner's office and 230 clubs in order to enable the players to step away from the action.
Though 2028 is still far away, it may be time for the league to start considering what it may take to make this happen. Because as Passan demonstrates, there is clearly a demand for it.
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