Feb. 15 (Bloomberg) -- The New York Yankees want to play Major League Baseball's first game in China, team president Randy Levine said.
Levine and General Manager Brian Cashman were among Yankees officials who visited China last month to form a partnership with the Chinese Baseball Association that will help coaches and players learn about the sport.
The earliest a game might be played in the most populous country is 2009, because the stadium to be used won't be available until after the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, Levine said in a telephone interview yesterday. He said the Yankees want to play a regular-season game there, with a season-opener a possibility.
``We are open to going over and playing in China, whether it's opening or not,'' said Levine, who added he has informed MLB and the Chinese Baseball Association about the club's interest.
Paul Archey, baseball's senior vice president for international business operations, didn't immediately return a call for comment. Baseball spokesman Pat Courtney didn't immediately return a message on his mobile phone.
Baseball, which opened preseason training camps this week, has started its season overseas four times, twice in Japan and once each in Mexico and Puerto Rico.
U.S. sports are trying to capture the attention of the more than 1.3 billion people living in China, where soccer is the most popular game.
The National Basketball Association has played preseason games in China and the National Football League will stage a preseason game there in August. Baseball opened a Beijing office in January.
Olympics Preparations
Levine toured the baseball stadium under construction for the Olympics and said it's important the ballpark be maintained after the Games.
``Major League Baseball and all of the clubs have an obligation to make sure that the stadium stays,'' he said. ``You need a venue to play games.''
Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig said at last month's owners meetings he's ``anxious'' to open a season in Europe, though baseball hasn't been able to find a proper venue. Selig said the sport would be ``very aggressive'' in China and that talks are taking place about playing games there.
The Yankees played the 2004 season opener in Tokyo against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and New York would rather not go back to Japan, Levine said.
``I'd leave that to baseball,'' he said. ``They probably prefer having teams that haven't been there go, and that is what I think should probably happen, too.''
