MLB: How to save the future of US-China relations

MLB: How to save the future of US-China relations

From ping pong diplomacy to baseball

To highlight how baseball has the potential to positively impact US-China relations, let’s take a look at a time where a different sport brought the two nations together.

If you have ever seen Forrest Gump, you are probably familiar with the scene where Forrest goes to China to represent Team USA in a game of ping pong. In reality, this fun scene was a historical tidbit in reference to ping pong diplomacy, which was one of the most significant landmarks in the history of US-China diplomatic relations.

In the early 1970s, China’s international power was growing under Chairman Mao Zedong, which the United States perceived as a threat. However, the United States and China had a common enemy: the Soviet Union. Thus, after years of diplomatic silence, China invited the United States Table Tennis team to visit their country. While there, the 15-player team played ping pong against the Chinese, toured the country, and sparked a new wave of diplomacy between the two nations.

The US trip to China took the media by storm and left many wondering what was next for the two nations. What resulted was a ripple effect that reached all the way up to the nations’ highest forms of government. Secret communications opened up between the two governments, which laid the seed for President Richard Nixon to make his historic trip to China in 1972. He was the first US president to ever step foot on China’s mainland. He met with Premier Zhou Enlai and Chairman Mao as a part of the trip that changed the course of US-China relations forever.

During the meeting, both sides acknowledged that ping pong was the primary reason for improved relations. Mao even famously said, “The little ball moves the big ball,” according to Evan Andrews of History.com.

So, what does this have to do with baseball? Well, the success of ping pong diplomacy shows that sports have the power to serve as the spark plug for better diplomatic relations between rival countries. Baseball has the potential to be the next catalyst for US-China relations. In fact, baseball has acted as the “little ball” that moved the “big ball” in the past.