Ohtani and Jersey are all out? LA Olympics, military service benefits won't be easy...The MLB Secretariat is moving for the first time ever
Jul 16, 2025
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U.S. media, including MLB.com , reported on the 16th (Korean time) 'MLB secretariat and the players' union discussed ways for athletes to participate in the Olympics by increasing the All-Star break.
That's good news for Korea. This is because existing national team main players such as Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco Giants), Kim Hye-sung (LA Dodgers), and Kim Ha-sung (Tampa Bay Rays) can also be used at the Olympics. If the center line is established with center fielder Lee Jung-hoo and Kim Hye-sung and Kim Ha-sung's Keystone combination, a very strong power can be built.
Korean baseball performed well in the Olympics, including the 2000 Sydney bronze medal and the 2008 Beijing gold medal, finishing fourth in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Expectations for the defending champion were high as Olympic baseball revived for the first time in 13 years after the Beijing gold medal, and the shock was great as it ranked fourth among the six participating countries.
The addition of Lee Jung-hoo, Kim Hye-sung, and Kim Ha-sung to South Korea, which is seeking to recover its pride at the LA Olympics, is expected to be a great boost.
However, not only Korea but also other major leaguers from other participating countries will participate together, so the difficulty of the tournament is expected to increase as much as WBC. Military service benefits are possible only when the bronze medal or higher is harvested, raising questions about whether South Korea will be able to perform well against the Dream teams, where all the big leaguers are out.
Although the participating countries have not yet been confirmed, it is dizzying to simply think that major leaguers will join Japan and the United States. Imagine Japan, where Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Dodgers) play, and the United States, where Aaron Judge (New York Yankees), Tarik Skubal (Detroit Tigers), and Paul Skins (Pittsburgh Pirates) play. Ohtani and Judge are monsters that no longer need explanation, while Yamamoto, Skubal and Skins are among the top pitchers mentioned as candidates for this year's Cy Young Award.
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Major leaguers must leave the team for about two weeks, including the training period, in order to participate in the Olympics.
The MLB Secretariat expects that there will be no disruption to the league schedule because the All-Star break and this period overlap significantly. It is argued that if the All-Star break is extended, players can participate in the Olympics without reducing the regular season schedule.
MLB has not allowed big leaguers to participate in international competitions except for the WBC hosted by the MLB Secretariat. He cited the league's success, profit problems, and exposure to player injuries.
The Olympics were no exception, but the 2028 Olympic venue was selected as the United States, bringing a wind of change to MLB.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in an interview with the American Baseball Journalists Association (BBWAA) that `Even if the All-Star break period is extended, all 162 games can be played without problems until mid-November. There needs to be considerable adjustment, but it's possible enough."
Tony Clark, secretary-general of MLB's players' union, also said "Players are showing interest in participating in the Olympics. We still have a lot of work to solve, but we hope to solve these problems."
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
