When Portuguese sailors bumped into an island 100 miles off the coast of China in the 1600s, they had but one word: 'Formosa," which in Portuguese means "beautiful." They've been playing baseball on this subtropical island called Taiwan since the late 1800s, and you can learn all about it, plus China baseball too, in World in a Ballpark: Baseball Goes Global,  which is available for purchase at the Buy Joe's Guides page. Taiwan has been a participant in the World Baseball Classic along with China, the 1 billion strong Land of Mao.

Taiwan – an island of 23 million people and slightly smaller in size than the U.S. states of Maryland and Delaware combined – is indeed a beautiful island. And it has many very passionate baseball fans. Taiwan has won 17 Little League World Series titles and a small handful of countrymen are now playing Minor League Baseball in North America, with more sure to follow.

In 1990, professional baseball debuted in Taiwan in the form of the Chinese Professional Baseball League. The league boasts four teams and has included some former Major League pitchers. Two players have gone in reverse - from Taiwan to Major League Baseball. They are Ben Weber, who won a 2002 World Series ring with the Angels, and Melvin Mora who was an All-Star for the Baltimore Orioles in 2003 and 2005. 

China: Land of Mao - And Yao has a six-team league. During the Cold War, communist leader Mao Zedong banned baseball from being played because it was deemed "too imperialist." If you want to view a sample of the guide and how easy the guide works, visit the MLB Ballpark Trips page.