Baseball - Out of the Olympics

Baseball and softball have been eliminated as Olympic events. I guess it's not a great shock since nobody in Europe plays these sports, but yet they're quite popular in the US, Latin America and Asia. I've always thought the IOC had a bit of European bias, and this confirms my suspicions.

Reasons baseball was eliminated?

Cost - building baseball and softball stadiums were too costly and weren't utilized after games in host cities. Good point, although the article mentions that the IOC considered adding golf as a medal sport. Golf courses aren't costly to build? Not to mention, if you want to televise something more boring than baseball, then golf is a good choice.

Another reason cited was recent problems in MLB with steroids, and the lack of professional players in the Olympics. This seems contradictory, since if all the MLB players are using steroids, why would you want them in the Olympics? Most importantly, I thought the Olympics were an amateur event. I know pro basketball players go to the Olympics, as do pro tennis players and many other professionals in other sports. This is disappointing. Sure, it would be nice to see MLB players make it to the games, but the whole point of the Olympics is to give the amateurs a chance to shine.

Perhaps baseball and softball should be eliminated from the Olympics, but these aren't good reasons to knock them out. Did you know handball was an Olympic event?