President Barack Obama said during his campaign that he would work to improve diplomatic relations with Cuba when in office. He's kept that promise. He's initiated efforts to relax or amend some of the strict regulations that govern interaction between the nations and their residents. Still, progress remains slow. There's hope, however, that a new form of diplomacy, can increase the pace.

It's called "baseball diplomacy" and as strange as the phrase sounds, it has merit. Though Americans and Cubans are separated by political ideology and a host of other issues, they do share a love of baseball. It is that mutual affection for the sport that some believe could provide the common ground necessary to unite the two nations in more common purpose or to create greater understanding of one another.

And why not? Stranger things have happened.

"Pingpong diplomacy" was useful in improving the U.S.-China relationship during the Nixon administration more than three decades ago. There's no reason a similar effort can't be employed usefully now. The scenario, in fact, is much the same. The Cold War made any relationship between China and the United States almost impossible then , just as long-standing enmity currently clouds the U.S.-Cuba relationship. Sport proved a way to break down barriers then; it could so again.

Pingpong -- or table tennis -- is a popular sport in China. A 1971 visit to that country by the U.S. table tennis team was an icebreaker. The warm reception given the team by the Chinese, prompted an invitation to the Chinese team to visit the White House in 1972. Those visits proved to be the catalyst for talks and other diplomatic exchanges the ultimately built a generally positive relationship that continues to this day.

There's no certainty, of course, that a similar exchange of baseball teams would prompt a similar response now. One owner of a major league team thinks it is worth the effort, though. Peter Angelos, who owns the Baltimore Orioles and who staged exhibition games in both countries during the Clinton administration, wants to do the same next spring. He can't, though, without prior approval by the Treasury Department.

Mr. Angelos hopes the thaw in U.S.-Cuba relations initiated by Mr. Obama will extend to baseball. Relaxation of financial and travel restrictions on Americans with relatives on Cuba and talk of resuming direct mail service between the countries gives the team owner that his request might meet with approval. The U.S. government has little to lose and a lot to gain by granting permission.

There's precedent for doing so. A group of 11- and 12-year-old baseball players from Vermont and New Hampshire visited Cuba last year. The result was positive. Kids from both countries forged bonds that would have been impossible without their shared love of baseball. Ghe phenomenon could be replicated by additional person-to-person meetings between Cubans and Americans.

Sports could be a useful adjunct in the campaign to improve relations between the two countries. If that's the case, Mr. Angelo's team, and others, should be allowed to play in Cuba and to create reciprocal agreements that will bring Cuban teams to the United States.

"Baseball diplomacy" is unlikely to bring instant resolution of the myriad issues that continue to separate the United States and Cuba. It does, however, have traction that could provide an opening for higher-level talks on substantive issues -- including an end to the unnecessary economic embargo that unfairly punishes Cubans and that harms the United States' standing in the eyes of the world.