Opening Day around the Major League Baseball world is an annual tradition. Some call it a national holiday. This was no different when the league’s 30 teams took to the field on Thursday.
Among those, there were some winners and losers. Though, the real winner here was MLB itself for the international flavor we saw on the diamond as the season opened.
According to the league itself, 251 internationally-born players took part in Opening Day. That represented the third-highest total in Major League Baseball history.
It’s been a continuing theme around the baseball world. From Francisco Lindor and Jose Altuve to Javier Baez, some of the game’s best players were born abroad.
This might be America’s Pastime, but the international feel is real. Opening Day 2019 represented that to a T.