Play ball! America's national pastime to make Olympic return in baseball-obsessed Tokyo.

Dates

July 28-Aug. 7

What to know

Since after the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, baseball has not been part of the Olympic program. With Japan, a baseball-crazed population, playing host for the Summer Games, the addition of the sport is not only met with expectation but excitement. 

Not long after the game was developed in mid-19th century America, baseball was introduced to Japan. The country now has one of the most competitive professional leagues in the world (Nippon Professional Baseball, “NPB”) and a high school baseball championship known as “Koshien,” which displays a similar passion found in college football, for example, to compare its popularity to sports in the United States. 

Along those lines, baseball’s atmosphere is different in Asia than the United States, with more universal chanting, singing and music playing among the fans in the crowd.

In the absence of Olympic competition, the World Baseball Classic (2006, 2009, 2013, 2017) helped maintain the tradition of playing international baseball on a visible stage. 

Additionally, with the best players in the world playing their professional seasons, the rosters from the six qualifying teams — particularly in the case of the United States — likely won't feature players at the top of their games.

How it works

Like in Major League Baseball, bases will be 90 feet apart with the pitcher’s rubber 60 feet, 6 inches away. All other rules are essentially the same. 

Path to gold

Like softball, six teams qualify for the Olympics. They are then split into two groups of three and those teams will all play each other for a total of six games (three per group). 

The double-elimination knockout stage comes next, with teams playing their counterparts from the other group (first place takes on first place, second place plays second place, so on) to start the round. Ten games will be played in this stage, including the gold- and bronze-medal contests. 

U.S. athlete to watch: Eddy Alvarez, INF

An infielder with the Miami Marlins organization, Alvarez has an Olympic past -- from the Winter Games. At Sochi 2014, the Miami-born Alvarez won a silver medal in the 5,000-meter speed skating relay. His baseball career picked up after that, and now he's looking for gold on the diamond.

International athlete to watch: Julio Rodriguez, OF, Dominican Republic 

A member of the Seattle Mariners organization, Rodriguez is a bright young prospect who could become a future All-Star in the major leagues. But would a star turn with the always-competitive Dominican Republic make him a household name even sooner?

Follow Chris Bumbaca on Twitter @BOOMbaca.