Baseball is one of the most beloved sports across the nation, from its creation in 1839 to now, nearly two centuries later; The sport has continued to flourish as one of the most popular major American sports. Baseball is now commonly known as “America’s pastime,” becoming a cultural staple of the United States. Subsequently, due to the sport's continuous growth and traction amongst major sports, baseball has grown to be a prevalent international sport amongst the top ten most popular sports around the world. While the sport grew globally, the Major League Baseball organization decided to spread the joy of baseball worldwide by creating the MLB World Tour in 1999 with its first overseas game between the Colorado Rockies and the Padres in Monterrey, Mexico. Since then, the MLB has hosted games in five countries outside of the U.S., consisting of Mexico, Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom, and now, most recently South Korea. Baseball has grown to become an international phenomenon fostered by events like the World Baseball Classic; now, over 100 countries have thriving baseball teams. 

The prevalence of baseball continues to grow worldwide, and with the MLB World Tour, the MLB hopes to keep the sport thriving and maintain international interest. This past March, the World Tour kicked off the regular season with the season opener in Gocheok Skydome in Seoul, South Korea, where the LA Dodgers faced off against the San Diego Padres in a two-game series dubbed “the Seoul Series.” This was quite a big deal for the host country as Korea has its own league called the Korean Baseball Organization, the most popular pro sport in South Korea and has become one of the highest-ranking baseball leagues in the world. During the Seoul Series, prior to the opening games, there were four exhibition matches where the KBO teams Kiwoom Heros, LG Twins, as well as the Korean National Team, were able to play the Dodgers and Padres. These games were not only the first games of the 2024 regular season but also the first regular season games held in South Korea. The Seoul series marks the 9th opening game hosted outside the 50 US states and Canada.

Due to baseball’s popularity in South Korea, the KBO was able to foster a unique sporting culture surrounding the game that made the league famous for its concert-like cheering; teams created unique fight songs, and each batter had personal fan chants that cheerleaders and cheer captains lead the audience in singing. However, the big difference between cheerleaders in the U.S. and Korea is how their teams perceive and utilize them. In America, cheerleaders are off to the side, only performing during halftime or other various breaks in the game. However, in Korea, they perform throughout the whole game, bouncing around a stage made above teams' dugouts and leading audiences through a series of chants and songs, keeping the energy in the crowds high and lively. These fan chants are often fun and catchy, as they are based on well-known pop songs with the lyrics consisting of the batter’s name chanted repeatedly with the occasional “hit it!” or “home run!” sprinkled in alongside accompanying arm movements or gestures. The atmosphere of these games is spectacular and exuberant, capturing audiences' attention whether they are baseball fans or not. The players often feed into the energy by interacting with the crowd, sometimes in ways that could be frowned upon in the MLB, such as theatrical bat-tossing. 

The Seoul Series was a wildly anticipated event in Korea. The games had high attendance, with K-pop idols, celebrity athletes, and government officials among those in attendance. Korea wanted to make a spectacle for audiences to bring more attention to the games and showcase the country to the world, and, to do this, multiple celebrities were invited to participate in the games in some way. For example, Park Chan-ho, who was the first South Korean-born player to play in the MLB and an ex-Dodger, came out to throw the ceremonial first pitch of the game. At the second game, male artist and member of popular K-pop group Exo, Byun Baekhyun, sang both the South Korean and U.S. national anthems, and K-pop girl groups (G)I-DLE and Aespa also performed during the series. These big-name celebrity events were streamed on television for the world to see, showcasing another aspect of Korean popular culture outside the baseball games. 

The MLB World Tour has allowed countries around the globe to embrace baseball in a way they could not before. The extensive talent in the MLB is known internationally, so bringing MLB teams overseas to these countries helps foster enthusiasm for the sport while giving international fans the opportunity to see the game’s biggest stars up close. This 2024 season, the World Tour is not just stopping in Korea but in three other countries as well. The MLB will visit Mexico, the United Kingdom, and the Dominican Republic for the Mexico City Series, where the Houston Astros will play the Colorado Rockies. The London Series, where the New York Mets will face off against the Philadelphia Phillies, and the Dominican Republic Series, where the Boston Red Sox will compete against the Tampa Bay Rays. After nearly two centuries of growth and prosperity, the sport of baseball continues to evolve and expand past the trope of “America’s Pastime,” turning into a global sensation.

Written by Lauren Carmona, Photography: Chioma Chukwuemeka, Social Media: Eliana Ho