Report: MLB could play a series of games in London as early as 2017

In recent years, Major League Baseball has attempted to increase international interest in its product. Games have been played in Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Australia. Now, it's starting to look like Europe might be next.

According to Ben Rumsby of The Telegraph, MLB has explored the idea of playing a series of games in London as early as 2017. MLB did not respond for comment when asked about the situation.

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If that happens, those games would likely take place in Olympic Stadium. MLB has reportedly eyed the venue as a potential spot to host games since 2012, but there were some concerns over construction and sight lines.

Some of those issues are supposed to be fixed soon. The stadium has undergone expensive construction in recent years, and is expected to reopen and host the West Ham United Football Club in 2016.

It's not mentioned in the article, but it's unclear whether MLB would consider this for regular season games or as part of the World Baseball Classic. The tournament is expected to take place in 2017, and London could be a great location for games. MLB could be considering both options, though we don't actually know.

Bringing their product to Europe seems like an easy decision for MLB. Both the NFL and NBA have already experimented with games in Europe, and both leagues have experience success in that endeavor.

That, of course, makes us wonder what took so long? Other sports leagues have already expanded to Europe for games, leaving MLB in the dust. These games seem like a solid source of revenue and a way to increase interest in the league's product, so playing baseball games in Europe seems like something that should have happened a long time ago.

Major League Baseball has pushed in recent seasons to make their game more appealing to an international audience, so expanding to Europe for a few games seems like a logical next step.

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Once the stadium reopens and proves it can handle sporting events, this scenario will become a much bigger reality. There's still a lot of work to be done, but MLB's expansion to Europe, if only for a few games, seems inevitable.

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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik