Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Chinese National Olympic Baseball Team?
The Chinese National Team is comprised of players from around China who will represent their country in the 2008 Olympic Games. Most of the players are from the Beijing area. And most players participate in the Chinese Baseball League (CBL)

Is there Baseball in China?
Yes, but very limited. The CBL has six teams. These teams travel from town to town and participate in round-robin tournaments over a weekend. Compared to other sports in China, the CBL has a sparse following.

Why do so few people in China know about baseball?
Baseball was outlawed by Mao Tse Tung during the Cultural Revolution in China during the 1970's. It was not so much a cultural move as a financial one. Baseball can be expensive — fields, uniforms, gloves, bats and balls all add up. With money tight in China at that time, baseball was seen as a luxury that people could do without.

Has China had a baseball team in the Olympics before?
No. To compete in the Olympics, nations have their teams compete in qualifying tournaments. Because the Chinese have not fielded a good team in the past, their teams were always knocked out of competition before the Olympics.

Why is the Chinese baseball team allowed to play in the 2008 Games?
Because China is the host nation for the Beijing Olympics all its teams are allowed to participate, regardless of how good they are.

How did Major League Baseball become involved with the Chinese team?
Five years ago, representatives of the Chinese Baseball Association went to Major League Baseball to ask them for help. The Chinese wanted to make a good showing at America's game on their home turf in the Olympic Games, so they asked for the world's experts for help.

How was Jim Lefebrve chosen to manage the team?
Jim was working for Major League Baseball's International Division, which promotes baseball worldwide. Because Jim had such a strong background in baseball fundamentals as a coach, MLB officials believed he could give the Chinese players the foundation they needed to become winners.

How was Bruce Hurst chosen for the team?
Jim picked Bruce to be his pitching coach. Both men live in the Phoenix area, making it easy for them to meet and plan strategy.

Why did the Chinese team spend so much time in Phoenix?
The team visited Arizona twice a year for the past five years, usually for two months at a time. The baseball facilities in the Arizona area are much better than those in China, which allowed Jim and Bruce a chance to practice with the team on major league-style facilities.

What was the skill level of the Chinese team when Jim and Bruce started working with them?
The players had basic baseball skills — and some were better than others. Where the team was really lacking was having an understanding of the complexities of the game — how to use a cut-off man; where to hit with two-on and one-out; what to do in a suicide squeeze.

How did the players and managers communicate?
The American managers do not speak Chinese and nearly all of the players do not speak any English. Translators were used throughout the five years the team was together — even during game situations when Bruce would have to talk to his pitchers on the mound through translators.

Why did the team travel to so many countries to play?
Because the Chinese team is not known as being a great team and because travel to China is difficult, most international teams are not willing to travel to China to play the team. Jim and Bruce felt it was necessary to get the team experience playing against world class talent. As Jim said, "you either bring the competition to them, or you bring them to the competition."

For the film Out of Left Field, in what countries did the crew film?
United States, China, Japan and Italy.

How long did the film crew follow the Chinese team?
Four years — they picked them up about once every six months. They shot 90 hours of high-definition footage during the four years they covered the team.