Updated: May 11, 2005, 6:35 PM

Vote: The ultimate baseball tournament?


The World Series is about to have company.

While the growing international flavor of rosters in Major League Baseball lends some credence to the notion that each October's champion is truly the best team in the world, the game's rich history is sorely lacking in unequivocal international bragging rights. Enter the proposed World Baseball Classic. A World Cup-style tournament for 16 nations, the event would allow the world's best players to play for pride and country.

So will it work? Will players not used to playing for free be motivated to put it all on the line in the spring? And if so, who is the favorite? Will American depth win out, or will one of the star-studded lineups of Latin America emerge supreme?
  • 1) If the World Baseball Classic is held every four years, which quadrennial event would interest you most?
  • 2) Do you think players would take the event seriously, if played at the start of spring training?
  • 3) Will baseball ever be popular enough worldwide to warrant a soccer-style 32-team field?
  • 4) Which sport has the most intense international competition?
  • 5) Who do you think would win the World Baseball Classic?
  • 6) What would be the best matchup for the final?
  • 7) Which team would be the best sleeper pick?
  • 8) Which ace would you want on the mound for a title game?
  • 9) Who should Manny Ramirez play for?

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