Opening Day

Lots of people know that Thailand is famous for its elephants. Tourists often take in a show or a ride at some point during their stay in the land of smiles. Some visitors even schedule their visits around the various elephant festivals throughout the country, in order to watch elephants dance or race or play tug-of-war.

What’s not widely understood is how important baseball has become in elephant circles here. On Opening Day yesterday, the first-ever nine-inning game played only by elephants took place at a specially designed field outside of Chiang Mai.

Event organizers said that baseball was simply the next logical step in a sports evolution that began with polo-playing pachyderms. “We figured that if they could get good at swinging a mallet, there was no reason they couldn’t swing a bat as well. The ones with the sharpest eyes can even hit a curve ball,” noted Proboscidea Loxodanta, spokesperson for the group.

The baseball exhibition was part of a special once-a-year rollout of elephant talents. Alongside the display of pitching and catching, elephants were seen cooking pad thai, weaving silk pashminas, and demonstrating insight meditation. Plans for future years include elephant massage.