Although it will be several years before either of the Chinese players they signed last week make it to the majors, the Yankees will have some Far Eastern influence at Yankee Stadium in the near future. They inked a sponsorship deal with Yili Group, China's largest dairy products company, and the company will have advertisements in the stadium and in game programs. Just as last week's signings were the first for a major league team, this deal marks the first agreement with a Chinese company.
"This agreement with Yili is yet another example of how far-reaching the Yankees brand has become and how dedicated we are to growing baseball, and the business of baseball, in China,'' team President Randy Levine said in a statement.
When the Yankees signed Hideki Matsui it wasn't long before they helped pay for the deal by selling advertising space to Japanese companies on the outfield fence. The players they signed don't command any significant money so these advertising deals are the real reason for Yankee interest in players from that side of the Great Wall. The only people who need to be concerned about the Reddening of Yankee Stadium are the proprietors of the ice cream concessions along River Avenue. Yili Group has had the best-selling ice cream in China for the last 11 years, it's only a matter of time before they look to bring their products to our shores. Consider yourselves warned Dippin Dots and make sure you've got a deal for the new Stadium with some ironclad language.
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