The 21st Century has been the age of the introduction of new multimillion-dollar leagues in Asia. Whether it’s the cricketing Indian Premier League or the footballing Saudi Pro League, every sport has gotten a league in Asia that has taken the world by storm. Now, it seems to be the turn of Baseball to do the same in the form of Baseball United.
Vision
A brainchild of Kash Shaikh, President, CEO, and Co-Owner of the league aims to make it a crown-jewel professional tournament. It also has a goal to bring Baseball Diplomacy in one of the most fractured and fragmented parts of the world.
Bringing the core values of Passion, Humility, Integrity, Respect, and Unity, the tournament has a target to inspire one billion people and focus on the development of “Forgotten Nations of Baseball”. The league also aims to divert Cricket fans towards Baseball through its glamour.
Franchises
Four franchises with the name of Karachi Monarchs, Mumbai Cobras, Dubai Wolves, and Abu Dhabi Falcons will set the inaugural stage in the U.A.E from 10-12 November 2023.
Mumbai Cobras was the first team to be unveiled on 15th May 2023. Purple Snakes are the first Indian franchise of Baseball which will be managed by 3-time All-Star player Chris Sabo. Barry Larkin will be the honorary General Manager of the team.
Getting announced on May 30th, 2023, the sea city of Pakistan got named the second franchise of the league. Karachi Monarchs will be managed by two-time Silver Slugger award winner Miguel Tejada. A 5-time Golden Glove winner Adrian Beltre will be serving as the honorary General Manager of the Team.
Dubai Wolves and Abu Dhabi Falcons became the third and fourth franchises of the league on 3rd August 2023. Felix Hernandez has been named the Honorary General Manager of Dubai Wolves.
Potential
The potential of the league can be identified by the stats shared by Kash on the Abu Dhabi and Dubai Franchise Launch, according to whom the following are the estimated numbers of avid baseball fans in particular countries.
| Country | Avid Baseball Fans |
| India | 53,000,000 |
| Pakistan | 12,500,000 |
| Saudi Arabia | 1,500,000 |
| U.A.E | 800,000 |
Dubai Showcase
Draft for the first glance of the tournament will happen on 19th September 2023 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. Every team is potentially going to have at least 7 Major League Baseball-level players. There will be 20 spots in every team of whom 13 will be position players and 7 pitchers. Out of 20 players, 16 will be professional players while 4 will be known as prospects, giving all prospects a common name “The Super 16”. The event will happen at the Dubai Cricket Stadium, Dubai.
The tentative schedule for the tournament will be as follows:
| November 10, 2023 | Friday | Mumbai Cobras vs Karachi Monarchs |
|---|---|---|
| November 11, 2023 | Saturday | Abu Dhabi Falcons vs Karachi Monarchs |
| November 11, 2023 | Saturday | Mumbai Cobras vs Dubai Wolves |
| November 12, 2023 | Sunday | Dubai Wolves vs Abu Dhabi Falcons |
Future of Baseball United
After the Dubai Showcase, the league plans to introduce 4 more franchises. In 2024, with 65 matches out of which 9 will be play-off games, the avid fans of Baseball United will be able to witness its first-ever season being conducted in the cities of Doha, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai. There are also plans to move some games to Saudi Arabia by the year 2025.
Conclusion
There’s a famous saying “Numbers don’t lie”, and let’s hope that Kash and his team can keep that statement true and pull the avid fans of the Middle East and South Asia towards the revolution of Baseball. The amount of recent success other sports have had in the region, there’s no denying that Baseball United can be the next big thing in Asia.
