A contingent of executives from the New York Yankees will fly to China next week with the hope of concluding ongoing negotiations with the China Baseball Association. An agreement could lead to the Yankees dispatching coaches and trainers to work with players in China, and perhaps, in years to come, founding a baseball academy.

According to a major league executive briefed on the Yankees' intentions, the Yankees -- operating in consultation with Major League Baseball -- have been in negotiations for seven months on this deal. The Yankees' goal is to reach the world's most populated nation with their brand, and put themselves in position to scout talent, while working with members of the CBA to improve Chinese baseball.

Similarly, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays were the first teams to firmly establish themselves in the Dominican Republic, and reaped great benefits. Nothing prevents other Major League Baseball teams from attempting to reach the same strategic alliance that the Yankees hope to soon formalize.

If the agreement is finalized, the Yankees "intend to make an investment in baseball in China," said the executive. "They intend to assign the coaches and trainers there for extended periods of time." In addition, the Yankees will serve as host to representatives from the China Baseball Association in the U.S., allowing them to observe baseball operations there.

Yankees executives, including President Randy Levine, General Manager Brian Cashman, and assistant GM Jean Afterman, will also visit teams in Japan as part of their Far East tour.

(China Daily via ESPN January 26, 2007)