The on-again, off-again relationship between the Olympics and baseball is heading toward another reconciliation in 2028.
That leads to the inevitable discussion of what the rosters could look like.
Commissioner Rob Manfred said last month he was open to the possibility of major leaguers participating, but recent history suggests some obstacles. Baseball was dropped after the 2008 Games, returned in 2021 in Japan, then was left out this year in Paris.
The sport returns for the Los Angeles Games four years from now. At the Tokyo Olympics, Major League Baseball only allowed players not on 40-man rosters to play — and teams additionally blocked many eligible prospects. The potential health risk is real, a point only further driven home by Edwin Díaz’s season-ending injury at the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
So the 2021 U.S. team was led by a few familiar names, such as Todd Frazier and Edwin Jackson, with a couple of intriguing youngsters in Tristan Casas and Shane Baz. The mix created little buzz.