TOKYO (AP) The head of the International Baseball Federation says Major League Baseball doesn't have to shut down its season to enable the best players to take part in the Olympics.

IBAF president Harvey Schiller was in Tokyo on Thursday to enlist the help of Japanese baseball officials in getting the sport back on the program for the 2016 Olympics, for which the Japanese capital is bidding, against Chicago, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro.

Baseball was voted off the Olympic program by the International Olympic Committee in 2005 and will not be a part of the 2012 Olympics in London but is pushing to be reinstated in 2016. (MORE)

LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) Placido Polanco will not play for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic.

The Detroit Tigers second baseman confirmed his decision Wednesday, saying he told team officials in December he wouldn't participate.

He was on the Dominican provisional roster for the WBC, which runs from March 5-23. (MORE)

PORT CHARLOTTE, Florida (AP) Scott Kazmir will not pitch for the United States in next month's World Baseball Classic because the Tampa Bay Rays were concerned about the risk of injury to the All-Star left-hander.

The American League champions petitioned to have Kazmir removed from Team USA because the 25-year-old missed the opening month of last season with an elbow strain suffered during spring training and then pitched through October because of the playoffs and World Series.

"With health issues that he had last year, coupled with the fact he played an extra month, we felt the prudent thing to do would be to push him back a little bit in spring, as we're doing with some of our other pitchers as well," Rays executive vice president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said on Tuesday. (MORE)

FORT MYERS, Florida (AP) Francisco Liriano will not play for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic in March so he can focus on the upcoming major league season.

"I'm going to stay here," he said at the Minnesota Twins' training camp. "I just want to do the right thing."

Liriano said he hadn't told his Dominican teammates of his decision. (MORE)

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) St. Louis slugger Albert Pujols says he will not play for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic because of insurance issues.

Pujols, who hit .357 with 37 home runs and 116 RBIs for the Cardinals, says he regrets not being able to represent his native country in this year's WBC. He played for the Dominican team in 2006.

Pujols says he is 100 percent physically "but the insurance does not want to cover" him to play, leaving the Dominican Republic without one of its biggest stars. He made the comments Monday during a conference call with Dominican baseball officials. (MORE)

MIYAZAKI, Japan (AP) Japan's national team began official training on Monday for the World Baseball Classic.

Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners and Boston's Daisuke Matsuzaka are among 33 players taking part in the weeklong training camp.

A crowd of 37,000 people packed into Sun Marine Stadium to watch the first official day of practice. Japan will begin defense of the title it won at the inaugural WBC in 2006 on March 5 at Tokyo Dome. (MORE)

MIYAZAKI, Japan (AP) Japan's national team began official training on Monday for the World Baseball Classic.

Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners and Boston's Daisuke Matsuzaka are among 33 players taking part in the weeklong training camp.

A crowd of 37,000 people packed into Sun Marine Stadium to watch the first official day of practice. Japan will begin defense of the title it won at the inaugural WBC in 2006 on March 5 at Tokyo Dome. (MORE)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) New York Mets ace Johan Santana will not pitch for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic next month.

The two-time Major League Baseball pitcher of the year will miss the tournament, the Venezuelan Baseball Federation announced on Friday.

Federation president Edwin Zerpa said organizers of the tournament, World Baseball Classic Inc., were not willing to pay the high insurance premium required for the Mets to clear Santana after he underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee. (MORE)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) President Hugo Chavez urged Major League Baseball teams on Thursday to allow Venezuelan players to represent their country in next month's World Baseball Classic.

"They take away the athlete's right and duty ... to represent Venezuela," said Chavez, speaking during a ceremony to honor Venezuela's Under-20 football team. "It's constructive criticism of professional sports."

Chavez said MLB should follow the example of professional football clubs in Europe and the United States, which are forced under FIFA regulations to clear players when they want to join their national teams in international competitions. (MORE)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) President Hugo Chavez urged major league baseball teams on Thursday to allow Venezuelan players to represent their country in next month's World Baseball Classic.

"They take away the athlete's right and duty ... to represent Venezuela," said Chavez, speaking during a ceremony to honor Venezuela's under-20 soccer team. "It's constructive criticism of professional sports."

Chavez said baseball should follow the example of professional soccer teams in Europe and the United States, which are forced under FIFA regulations to clear players when they want to join their national teams in international competitions. (MORE)