‘Historic moment’ — India’s 6 best baseball players are finally going pro

DUBAI: Baseball United, the first professional baseball league focused on the Middle East and South Asia, has announced the signing of three Indian and three Indian-American players.

They will compete for the Mumbai Cobras, the first professional baseball franchise in the history of India. The franchise will take center stage against the Karachi Monarchs when Baseball United kicks off its inaugural season in Dubai on Nov. 14. It will mark the first time a professional baseball league has ever played in the Middle East or South Asia.

The milestone is even more significant due to the inclusion of six Indians, giving the nation’s athletes a global platform usually reserved for cricket. Among the players are three homegrown talents, all developed within India’s grassroots baseball community by local coaches and universities, as well as via Baseball United’s India Development Program.

“This is a historic moment for sport in India,” said Kash Shaikh, Baseball United CEO, chairman and co-founder. “We know that cricket is king in India. But we believe that baseball is the country’s young prince. The core elements of the game are the same — you hit, catch, throw and run. And there’s quite a bit of shared terminology.

“Once more Indians learn the game, I know they will start to love (it). And one of the best ways to help people fall in love with baseball is through the Indian stars who will take the field for the Mumbai Cobras. These young men — all with inspiring stories — will be some of the nation’s newest sports heroes.”

Although overshadowed by cricket, baseball’s popularity in India has grown steadily. It has been played across 26 states — from Kerala in the south to Punjab in the north — for more than 50 years, with a