Kuo Starts and Wins!

MINORS:
Well, after a few forgettable starts in Vegas, Kuo finally put together a nice outing where he started the game and went unscathed through 5 innings. Kuo gave up 5 hits, o runs, on 1 walk and 5 K's. Kuo won his second game of the season for Vegas. Box

In Jacksonville, Hu was 2-5 with 2 runs scored. He also committed his 9th error of the season. Box

Wisconsin lost 7-6. Lo was 1-5 with 2 RBI's, swiped his 11th SB, but also committed his 3rd error of the season. Box

The GCL Red Sox lost 4-3. Chiang was 1-4. Box

Sunday Rundown...

Not too much to report, but here it is:

Minors:
Hu was 1-4 as Jacksonville lost 4-1. Box

Lo was 1-4 with 2 SB's as Wisconsin lost 5-3. Box

Sat CPBL Recap:
Read more here.

Bronco Baseball:
Here's a good look at this year's Taiwanese representatives for the Bronco World Series. The first game for the team is this Thursday. Check out the schedule here.

Miscellaneous News....

Ok, so we won't get a chance to watch Taiwan in the Little League World Series this year. However, you can catch a replay of Taiwan's 1980 Little Leage World Series Championship Game win vs. Gary Sheffield and Derek Bell's Belmont Heights team on ESPN Classic - August 2nd at 11 AM Pacific. At 12 noon Pacific, the 1989 title loss versus Chris Drury's Trumbull, CT team will be shown as well.

As Maos stated earlier: in the CPBL, Chen cracked his league-leading 15th HR, E.Y. Lin and S.Y. Wu both picked up their 12th win of the season. Read more here.

No Williamsport.......

For the second year in a row, Taiwan's quest for Williamsport will end in controversial fashion. Last year, despite having the same record as Japan and in fact having beat the Asian Little League representatives, Taiwan did not qualify. This year a championship game was supposed to help avoid what happened last year. Taiwan was supposed to play Japan today for a chance to go to Williamsport. Unfortunately mother nature did not cooperate and heavy rains forced a cancellation of the championship game. Despite appeals to play a make-up game on Sunday, Little League representatives decided to award Japan the trip to Williamsport. Story 1/Story 2
Good luck to Japan in Williamsport.

Amateur News:
Well, Taiwan ended up with a 1-4 record after losing today to Japan 5-1. The Japanese team was composed of players from their Industrial League. Again as Cor mentioned earlier, Taiwan was missing one of it's better hitters in Chih-Yao Chan. However, despite some clutch hitting by CF Chen-Yu Chung (2-4 with 1 RBI), Taiwan's pitchers could not hold down Japan's offense. Sung-Wei Tseng made an appearance in the game, pitching 1 inning, giving up 2 hits and 2 runs, without any K's. Chia-Chun Tang continued his impressive pitching streak by throwing 3 scoreless innings on only 1 hit. Ultimately, starter Chen-Chang Lee took the loss. Box/Play-by-Play
After a 1-11 start in the US and Holland, Taiwan has to hope for a better showing in the FISU World University Baseball Championships.

Major League News:
It appears that Tsao's surgically repaired shoulder is finally starting to come around. After a successful bullpen stint on Thursday and Friday, Tsao is now scheduled to throw live batting practice on Tuesday. Let's keep our fingers crossed for Tsao. Story

Japan:
Lin was 1-1 with a pinch hit single in the 9th inning. Hanshin won 7-6. Box

Minors:
Despite the nice press on Lo lately, Lo is currently on the losing end tonight. Lo started the game for Modesto, lasting 3.1 innings, giving up 8 hits, 6 runs - 5 earned, with 4 walks and 4 K's. If the score remains the same, Lo will take his 4th loss of the year. Box/Game Log

I missed this last night, but Keng was demoted back to Lansing from Dunedin. Although neither Cheng or Keng pitched tonight, both pitched last night. Read more here.

In the GCL, the Sox won 4-3. Chiang and Huang both got in the game, but as DH and 1B respectively. Both players were 1-4, while Huang committed his 3rd error of the season - you can't really fault the guy, after all he's been at 3B for the entire season. Box

Win # 12 and the Return of the Dragon!

Chien-Ming Wang had the best performance of his young career, as he pitched a complete game shutout againt the Devil Rays Friday. Wang only needed 104 pitches to finish a game where he only gave up 2 hits, with 2 walks and 1 K. Despite K'ing only 1 hitter, Wang was still clocked at 96-99 mph on his heater while inducing 18 ground outs! Wang joins Mussina in the 12 win club (and only 1 win away from leading the Majors) and lowered his ERA to 3.77. Box/Recap
-All this one night after having his # retired with Staten Island.

Misc:
An informative read on the "rebirth" of Ching-Lung Lo's career.

No minor league recaps for Friday. Sorry, the family was in San Diego for the day.

Williamsport on the line Saturday.....

Taiwan won it's final preliminary game on Thursday vs. Thailand 10-0. The kids will get a day off Friday before playing Japan on Saturday. Japan will be playing on successive days, as their game with Korea was rescheduled for Friday because of rain in Hong Kong.

Japan:
Hanshin lost 5-1. Lin got another pinch hit AB, and flied out in his only appearance. Box

Minors:
Jacksonville won 2-0. Hu DNP.

Wisconsin won 3-2. Lo was 0-4. Box

Lin won his first game of the season for the GCL Red Sox. He pitched in relief, throwing 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up 2 hits, with 1 walk and 0 K's. Chiang and Huang DNP. Box

Miscellaneous:
Well as you know tonight was Chien-Ming Wang night in Staten Island. For those of you who went to the game tonight, I hope you were able to pick up a Wang bobblehead. His doll is already being hawked on Ebay for ~$150!!!

For those of you that live in Southern California, the National Sports Collectors Convention is going on in Anaheim this weekend until Sunday. From what I saw, there wasn't much of a selection regarding Taiwanese baseball collectibles out there. However, I did see Gary Engel set up a booth at the show - he had some Sadaharu Oh and Shosei Go stuff on display.

Breathing Easier....

In Little League news, Taiwan is one step closer to Williamsport after Hong Kong upset Korea 14-8. Taiwan beat China 10-2 today. As long as Taiwan wins their last game vs. Thailand, they will play in the championship game on Saturday vs. Japan. Here's a good look at the Taiwanese Little League representatives.

Amateur News:
Over in Holland, Taiwan lost a tough game to political arch-rival China 1-0. ARGHHH!!!! Hong-Wen Chen was the hard-luck loser as he pitched 8 innings, giving up 4 hits and 1 run. He K'd 8 and walked 1. Chen's counterpart on the mound, Lu shutout Taiwan in a complete game 3 hitter. The loss isn't as bad as it seems since China's team is it's current national team in training for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Taiwan essentially brought it's collegiate all-star team. Pics from the game - but mostly of the Chinese team. Taiwan's last game is on Friday versus Japan as it will try to end the tourney on a winning note.

Japan:
Chung-Shou Yang cracked his 8th HR of the year, a game winning shot as his team won 4-3 in 10 innings. Yang was 2-5 with 2 RBI's hitting out of the leadoff spot.

Minors:
Kuo started in Vegas again. Despite pitching better tonight, he will probably take his 3rd loss as well. Kuo started the first 4 innings, giving up 6 hits, 2 runs, on 2 walks and 4 K's. Box/Log

Jacksonville won 8-0. Hu was 1-4 with a run scored. Box
Scout.com's newest minor league baseball prospect rankings is up. Hu is ranked as the 17th best SS prospect in the minors.

Yung-Chi Chen DNP, but Scout.com has Chen ranked as the 4th best 2B prospect in the minors. What a difference one year makes!

Wisconsin lost 7-5, as Lo was 1-4 with a RBI and a run scored. He did also commit his first error (throwing) of the season. Box

Everett is winning 6-2. Wu is 1-4 with a run scored. Box/Log

In the GCL, the Sox won 5-3. Huang and Chiang got their bats going, driving in a combined 3 runs. Huang was 2-3 and cranked his 1st HR of the year! He also contributed a RBI, a run scored, and committed his 2nd error of the season. Chiang was 2-4 with a double and 2 RBI's. Box

It's All Hypothetical But....

There is a mathematical chance that if Taiwan wins out at the Little League Asian Regionals, it could still find itself out of the championship game should Korea beat Japan on Thursday
(assuming that all 3 teams finish with a 4-1 record). Taiwan won today against Hong Kong, but only by a 5-1 margin. Based on the Runs for - Runs against difference, Taiwan needs to start scoring and in a hurry. The also need to shut down their last 2 opponents - China and Thailand.
Last year, at the Asian regionals, all three powerhouses ended up beating each other. So it's possible that this scenario repeats itself this year. The only thing Taiwan can do is to win out and win big and hope that Japan beats Korea.

Amateur News:
The CT NT lost a close, close game to the Cuban NT 2-1 in Holland. Clutching on to a 1-0 lead heading into the 8th inning, Taiwan seemed poised to beat Cuba. In my lifetime, that is something I've never seen - a win over Cuba. However, Cuba rallied in the 8th and 9th innings, with some clutch hitting to waste a valiant effort by CT starting pitcher Chien-Fu Chen. Chen pitched 8 innings, giving up 7 hits, and only 1 run. Box/PlaybyPlay
CT's next game is tomorrow vs. nemesis China.

Japan:
In his first game after the NPB All-Star break, Lin struck out in a pinch hit appearance. Hanshin lost 7-2. Box

Minors:
Hu was 1-4, but his team lost 4-2. Box

Wisconsin won in extra innings, as Lo was 1-4 with a sac-fly RBI. Box

Lowell got shelled 13-1. Yeh gave up 3 of the runs in 1 IP. He also managed to record all of his outs via strikeouts. Box

Miscellanous:
Riding the roller coaster - Well, an update on Tsao from MLB.com - it seems as if Tsao's headed in the right direction with 2 good bullpen sessions recently. He threw another session today to determine his fate for the near future.

The bobblehead of Wang that Staten Island is giving away on Thursday gives me the creeps - The bobblehead will feature life-like jet black hair on the doll. But, I'm sure the limited edition item will fetch a pretty penny on Ebay. Check pics here and here.

On to Monterey!!!

Chinese Taipei will represent Asia in the 2006 Bronco World Series (11-12 year olds). The World Series will take place August 3rd through the 8th in beautiful Monterey, CA. Chinese Taipei will seek to avenge last year's loss to Puerto Rico in the championship game. In the Asian regional, Chinese Taipei was a perfect 4-0, as it steamrolled the competition: 17-3 vs. the Philippines, 13-2 vs. Taipei City, 15-1 vs. Hong Kong, and 15-0 vs. Japan. Taipei City finished as the runner up, losing only to Chinese Taipei. Keep an eye out for Chen-Long Chen, the star P/IF for the Chinese Taipei team.

In the Asian regional tourney for the Little League World Series, Chinese Taipei split it's two toughest games vs. Japan and South Korea. CT lost 7-0 to Japan and then beat South Korea 10-4. CT is currently holding down the #2 spot and if it can win it's remaining 3 games vs. Hong Kong, Thailand, and China, should secure a spot in the championship game on Saturday, pitting the #1 and #2 teams in the tourney.

MINORS:
Jacksonville lost 3-1. Hu was 1-4 and drove in the only run of the game for his team. Box

Dunedin lost 12-9. Keng pitched 1 inning, giving up 3 hits, 2 runs, with 0 K's and 1 walk. Box

Wisconsin lost 9-4. Lo managed to go 1-3, with 2 runs scored and a walk. Box

In the GCL, the Phillies won in extra innings, making Y.F. Lin a two-time winner. Lin pitched the last 3 innings, giving up 1 hit, 0 runs, on 2 walks and 3 K's. Box
In other GCL action, the Red Sox played a doubleheader. In the first game, Chiang DNP. Huang started at 3B and was 0-2 with a walk. Box In the second game, Huang DNP. Chiang was 0-3 with a run scored. Box

MAJORS:
Wang will start Friday vs. the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. He is set to pitch against Tim Corcoran (4-1, 3.09 ERA) Wang has already faced Tampa Bay twice this season and has only given up 3 earned runs in 15.1 IP. Let's hope the trend continues Friday.

Sunday Rundown...

Over in Holland, the Dutch NT beat Taiwan 4-1. Team ace, Sung-Wei Tseng started for Taiwan and kept the team in the game. He pitched 7 innings, gave up 5 hits, 1 run, and K'd 5 while walking 3. The starting pitcher for the Netherlands - Rob Cordemans, who went 6 2/3 innings, giving up 5 hits, 1 run, and K'ing 7, was equally impressive. Check out the box score here. Game photos here. Taiwan's next game is on Tuesday against tourney favorite Cuba.

MINORS:
C.L. Lo is starting for Modesto tonight in search of his 8th win of the season. He finds himself down 1-0 early in the game. Follow game here. Box

Lansing won 4-0. Cheng performed superbly and picked up his 8th win of the season. Cheng pitched 6 scoreless innings, giving up only 3 hits, with 8 K's and 1 walk. Box

Wisconsin lost in extra innings 2-1. Lo was 1-5 with the only extra base hit of the game for Wisconsin and drove in the only run as well. Lo also stole his 8th base of the season for Wisconsin. Box

ALASKA:
Chu was 1-3 as his team won 4-1. Box

MISCELLANEOUS:
Chien-Ming Wang's number 41 will be retired by the Staten Island Yankees on Thursday. Read more here.

The Asian regional to determine the qualifier for the Little League World Series begins today in Hong Kong. Taiwan will be competing against teams from Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Thailand, and China. The tourney will end on the 29th. Taiwan faces it's two toughest competitors right off the bat. Check the schedule here.

In the Asian qualifying regional for the Bronco Division of Pony Baseball, Chinese Taipei has taken control of the driver's seat with a 13-2 win vs. Taipei City and a 15-1 win over Hong Kong on Sunday. Chinese Taipei plays Japan tomorrow and if they win, will go on to represent Asia in the Bronco Baseball World Series.

TaipeiTimes coverage of yesterday's CPBL All-Star Game.
*added 7/23/06

Eleven and Counting....

Well, Chien-Ming Wang won his 11th game of the season to match Mike Mussina for the club lead in that department. However, Wang's victory was indebted to his offense and bullpen for coming from behind and then holding on to the lead to pull out the victory. Wang lasted 6 innings, giving up 10 hits, 4 runs - all earned, with 1 K and 1 walk; he didn't have his best stuff tonight. He was actually outpitched by Blue Jay starter Ted Lilly who also went 6 innings, but only gave up 4 hits, 3 runs, with 8 K's and 2 walks. After the 6th inning, Wang's night was over and he left the game with his team in a 4-3 deficit. In the top of the 7th, the Yankees offense came to life against the Toronto relievers, and scored 2 runs. The Yank's relievers then did a magnificent job of holding the lead for Wang to secure his eleventh win. Box/Wrap

MINORS:
Jacksonville lost 8-5. Hu was 1-4 with a double and a RBI. Box

DH'ing for Everett tonight, Wu is currently 1-2 in the 4th inning. Box/Game Log

ALASKA:
The Panners find themselves down 2-0 early. Follow how Chu is doing here.

In other ABL news, Po-Yu Lin and Cheng-Lung Luo have returned home to Taiwan following a short stint with the Anchorage Bucs. You can check out their final stats here.


CPBL:
The CPBL All-Star Game took place today. The North and South Squads played to a 2-2 nine inning tie. Game MVP honors went to Chin-Feng Chen's older brother - Lien-Hung Chen, who was 2-2 with a run scored.

Sortable Stats for a few of the players:
South Squad
Chin-Feng Chen was 1-3
Tai-Shan Chang was 1-3 with a RBI
Chih-Sheng Lin was 1-3
Wei-Lun Pan pitched 2 innings, gave up 4 hits, K'd 2 hitters, and allowed 2 runs
Chien-Fu Yang pitched 2 innings, allowed 1 hit, K'd 1, with 0 runs
North Squad
Chia-Hsien Hsieh was 2-4 with a RBI and a run scored
Chih-Yuan Chen was 0-2 with a run scored
En-Yu Lin pitched 2 innings, giving up 2 hits, with 3 K's, and 0 runs allowed

CT NT ROSTER...

Here is the lineup for the team playing in Holland right now. The same team will also represent Taiwan in the World University Championships - although 2 kids will get cut to reach the 22 man roster cutoff. This list varies slightly from the NT that played in the US a few weeks earlier.

PITCHERS:
1)Hung-Wen Chen 20
2)Chia-Wei Lin 19 (L)
3)Chien-Fu Chen 21 (L)
4)Ko-Chien Lin 20
5)Chia-Chun Tang 21 (L)
6)Ching-Ming Wang 20
7)Chia-Jen Lo 20
8)Sung-Wei Tseng 21
9)Chen-Chang Lee 19
10)Cheng-Yang Chen 21
11)Wei-Jen Cheng 20

CATCHERS:
1)Yi-Wei Lee 22
2)Kuan-Yi Yang 21
3)Hung-Yu Lin 20

INFIELDERS:
1)Fu-Jen Shen 22
2)Chih-Hsiang Lin 19 (L)
3)Han Lin 21
4)Sheng-Wei Wang 22
5)Hsien-Hsien Yang 18

OUTFIELDERS:
1)Chun-Yu Kuo 22
2)Chih-Yao Chan 23 (L)
3)Chen-Yu Chung 21
4)Chia-Hui Wu 22
5)Ken-Wei Lin 20

*(L) -Lefty

MISCELLANEOUS:
Good news on Yung-Chi Chen's shoulder injury; the injury was to his non-throwing shoulder (left) and has been diagnosed as a muscle strain only. He will be out 10 -14 days.

The Asian Regionals for the Bronco Division(11-12 year olds) of Pony Baseball is underway. Taiwan has two team representatives: Chinese Taipei and Taipei City. Both teams won their opening game: CT beat the Philippines 17-3, while Taipei City won vs. Hong Kong 24-0. The other team competing for the right to go to the US is Japan. The games will continue through Monday in a round-robin format with the winner declared by best record - or if in event of a tie - determined by runs scored-allowed differential.

Chen Out with Injury...

Thanks to Anonymous for the sweet banner!

MINORS:

During last night's game against Frisco, Chen partially dislocated his shoulder when he slid awkwardly into second during a steal attempt. Chen's injury is listed as day-to-day. He was not in the lineup for tonight's game.

Hong-Chih Kuo started again tonight for Vegas. Kuo pitched ok, lasting 2.2 innings. Despite only giving up 3 hits, Kuo was charged with 3 earned runs. In the third inning, after 2 runners reached base on a walk and a double sandwiched around 2 K's, Kuo was pulled. His reliever then gave up a double to plate both inherited runners on base. Final line: 2.2 IP, 3 hits, 3 runs, 3 K's, 1 BB. If the score holds up, Kuo is in line for the loss. Box/Log

Hu was 1-4 with a walk and a key RBI to tie the game in extra innings as Jacksonville won 3-2 in 13 innings. Box

Keng pitched one perfect scoreless inning in relief. His team won 1-0. Box

Lo was 1-5 with 3K's, a run scored, and his 7th SB as his team rallied to win 6-5. Box

The Red Sox lost to the Reds in the GCL; Chiang DNP, Huang was 0-3 while committing his first error of the season. Lin pitched 3 innings in relief, gave up 3 hits, 1 run, with 1 walk and 0 K's. Box

ALASKA:
Chu is in action tonight. Follow the game here.

AMATEUR NEWS:
Playing in the Honkbalweek Tournament, the Taiwanese NT composed strictly of college players, beat a US team composed of NWAACC All-Star players 4-1. Check here for box score and here for photos. The current NT roster will make up the team that will travel in early August to the World University Championships in Cuba. Taiwan's next game is Sunday versus the host country's NT.

Thursday Roundup...

AA
Hu was 0-4 in his team's 6-1 loss today. Box

Chen was 1-1, before leaving the game. Box

A
Lo was 0-4, as his team was on the losing end of a pitcher's duel. Box

Yeh pitched the 9th inning and gave up 2 hits and 1 run - it was unearned. Box

R
The Red Sox won in the GCL 3-2. However both Chiang and Huang were 0-3, while Chiang committed his 6th error of the season. Box

Alaska
Chu was 1-4 with 2 runs scored and a SB. Meanwhile Chia-Yi Mai won his second game of the season for the Panners as he pitched a complete game, giving up 5 hits, 3 runs, with 2 walks and 7 K's. Box

Following in the footsteps of Lin and Yang...

Top Prospect:
Yi-Hao Lin

Talking to a friend the other day, I was amazed to learn that each year a number of top Taiwanese middle school/high school prospects go on to Japan to play HS baseball there. The amazing part of the story is the fact that of all the kids who've gone over to Japan, only two have panned out: Wei-Chu Lin of the Hanshin Tigers and Chung-Shou Yang of the Nippon Fighters - and both guys are positional players (OF and IF). None of the Taiwanese pitchers have ever panned out. Well, Yi-Hao Lin, a 15 year old righty, will try to change all of that. Lin, who throws easily in the 90 to 93 mph range already, will attend HS in Japan. Lin has a contract with the Yomiuri Giants, so in the event Lin is successful, he will end up in the NPB. The negotiations on Lin's behalf were assisted by Lin's junior high school coach, Wu-Hsiung Huang and the WBC NT coach Hwa-Wei Lin. The best compliment paid by my friend to Lin is the fact that Lin's raw ability at his age is already better than both ML's Wang and Tsao were at the same age. Lin will represent Taiwan's under 16 National Youth Team that will play in Indonesia and compete for the title of Asia's finest in September.

*edited 7/20/06

Chung-Shou Yang at the All-Star Break...

Yang(R) pictured with all-star teammate Kawasima

The Pacific League was matched up against the Central League in the Minor League All-Star Game today. Representing the Pacific League with the Nippon Ham Fighters was Chung-Shou Yang. Normally a SS for his minor league team, Yang played 3B and was slotted 5th in the Pacific League lineup. The Central League ended up winning the game 8-4. Yang was 0-3 with 1 K. Yang's older brother, Y.H. Yang, who was also selected to the Minor League All-Star Game, DNP due to injury.

Here's a look at Yang's numbers through the All-Star Break:
213 AB's
56 hits
.263 BA
24 runs scored
6 doubles
0 triples
7 HR's
21 RBI's
4 SB
55K's
28walks

Those numbers aren't too shabby for a 19 year old playing against older competition in the minors.

Wed. Scoreboard...

Minors:
AA - Jacksonville won 9-1. Hu was 1-4 with a walk and a run scored. Box
San Antonio blanked Frisco 11-0. Chen was 2-4 with a walk and 2 runs scored. Box

Alaska:
Chu is currently 0-2 as his team is losing 4-1 heading into the 6th inning. The competition that Chu is facing in the ABL is no joke. Read more about the ABL here.

ML news:
Chien-Ming Wang's next start will be Sat. against former Yankee and current Blue Jay Ted Lilly (9-8 3.86 ERA). Should be a pretty good matchup.

Misc:
PI with a blurb on Kuo-Hui Lo - check out the left hand column.

*Updated
Youtube videos of Chen's latest HR spree.
Videos of Chen's 3 HR game from July 12th: HR #1 HR #2 HR#3
Chen's 14th HR of the season - July 18th.

Chen hits HR #14!

Chin-Feng Chen is as hot as can be. After a slow start for Chen in the CPBL - while recovering from an offseason injury, Chen has turned it into high gear lately by hitting his 14th HR of the season today to tie Chang of the Bulls for the league lead.

In other news, the Dodger's GM Ned Colletti mentioned that Kuo's recent start in Vegas wasn't an attempt to convert him into a starter, but rather to give him some additional innings to work out his control issues.

Chiang Cracks 1st Pro HR....

Chiang(R) with older bro who plays for the LA New Bears

In the first game of a GCL doubleheader for the Red Sox, Chiang and Huang led the way by driving in 3 of the 5 runs scored by the Sox. The Sox won 5-2. Chiang hit his first career pro HR, and was 2-3 with a double, a RBI and 2 runs scored. Chiang did commit his 5th error of the season though. Huang was 1-3 with a double that drove in 2 runs. Box
In the second game of the doubleheader, the Red Sox lost a close one 6-5. Chiang DNP, while Huang made an appearance late in the game as a defensive substitution in RF. Lin on the other hand, entered the game in the 6th inning in a 4-4 tie. However, Lin walked one, gave up 2 hits and 2 runs, of which only 1 was earned. Lin was charged with the loss, the first of his professional career. Box

Everett lost 8-5. Wu, playing catcher, was 2-4 with a walk, 2 runs scored, and a RBI. Box

Cheng was the hard-luck loser tonight as Lansing fell 1-0. Cheng took his 5th loss of the season, going 6 innings, giving up only 3 hits and 1 run. He did however, walk 4 batters to go along with 2 K's. Box

Wisconsin fell 7-2. Lo, hitting 3rd in the lineup, was 2-3 with a walk and a run scored. Lo also collected another OF assist as he helped gun down a base runner at 3B. Box

Don't write off Ching-Lung Lo just yet; Lo pitched another good game tonight, going 6 innings, giving up 4 hits and 1 run. He only allowed 1 walk and K'd 7 hitters. However, his relievers blew the lead and Lo got a ND. Box

Jacksonville won big, 11-1. Hu was 3-5 with 2 runs scored and a RBI. Box

Chen's Missions also won, 5-4 despite being outhit 14-6. Chen was 2-3 with a double, a walk, a run scored, a RBI, and his 2nd SB at the AA level. Box

All in all, I'd say it was a pretty good night as a whole for our boys.

Minor League Recap...

Monday Results:
Keng bounced back from a rash of rather forgettable appearances with 2 scoreless innings, in which he gave up 1 hit, with 1 walk and 2 K's. Box

Lo was 0-4 with a run scored, 1 walk, and 2 stolen bases as his team won in 12 innings, 2-1. Box

TJ Yeh picked up his first win of the season as he duplicated Keng's performance with 2 scoreless innings in relief, giving up 1 hit, with 1 walk and 2 K's. Box

Wu is currently 0-2 with a walk in the 7th inning. Follow game action here. Box

Y.F. Lin won his first game of the season for the GCL Phillies, but not without giving up some runs. Lin pitched 2.1 innings in relief, giving up 5 hits - 4 runs, with 0 walks and 4 K's. Box

Alaska:
Chu is currently 1-2 with a SB as the Panners face off against the Bucs. Box/Log

Native American Apparel......

S.W. Tseng(L) C.E. Hong(R)

Well, here's our first good look at Hong (pictured along with Tseng), the recent signee for the Braves. The photos were taken during an official joint press announcement about their signings with ML clubs. Man, the Indians and Braves official color and mascot are just too eerily similar.

Wang Wins #10!

GAMEDAY ACTION

Wang helped pitch the Yankees to their 4th consecutive victory Monday night. Wang lasted 7 innings, giving up 7 hits and 2 runs. Despite A-Rod's erratic play in the field - 3 errors, Wang had his sinker working for most of the game, inducing 14 ground outs. Wang also lowered his ERA to 3.92. Box/Recap

2006 Junior NT Roster Announced...

Pitcher Kai-Wen Cheng

Here are the 18 young men selected to represent Taiwan in September at the 22nd "AAA" Junior World Baseball Championships in Cuba.

Pitchers:
1)Yu-Hsun Chen
2)Kai-Wen Cheng - on the 2004 and 2005 junior NT
3)Chih-Lung Huang
4)Chun-Lin Chen - on the 2005 junior NT/voted top RHP at 2005 Asian Junior Championships
5)Chen-Yu Hong
6)Chun-Hsiu Chen
7)Hung-Cheng Lai - on 2005 junior NT

Catchers:
1)Chia-Chu Chen
2)Chun-Chieh Wang

Infielders:
1)Chien-Ming Su
2)Shih-Wei Chen
3)Yan-Wen Kuo
4)Wei-Chih Chen
5)Po-Ting Hsiao - on the 2005 youth NT

Outfielders:
1)Yu-Hsin Chu
2)Shu-Huan Wang
3)Che-Hsuan Lin
4)Wang-Wei Lin - on the 2004 and 2005 junior NT

In Search of #10....

Chien-Ming Wang will take the hill tomorrow against the Seattle Mariners. His opponent on the mound will be Jarrod Washburn (4-9, 4.58 ERA). Wang will attempt to join his teammates - R.J. and the "Moose" in the 10+ win club. Also, we'll get the opportunity to see what the WBC failed to showcase for us....the best pitcher in Taiwan face off against two of Japan's finest in Ichiro and Johjima.

JAPAN:
Lin was 1-2 with a double coming off the bench for the Tigers. His club lost 4-2. Box

MINORS:
The Dodger's efforts to convert Kuo back into a starter was evident in Kuo's start for Vegas today. Unfortunately, Kuo struggled with his command as he lasted only 2.2 innings, giving up 4 hits, 4 runs - 3 earned (2 via a HR), with only 1 K and 3 walks. Kuo was also charged with an error - which led to the unearned run. Kuo took the loss for Vegas. Box

Jacksonville won 5-2 as Hu was 0-2 coming off the bench. Box

San Antonio blanked Springfield 7-0. Chen blasted his third HR for the Missions, as he was 1-4 with a RBI and a walk. Box

A night after getting drubbed, Wisconsin returned the favor by crushing Quad Cities 16-7. Lo was 2-4 with a double, 3 runs scored, 2 walks, and his 4th SB. Box

Everett lost 7-3. Wu was 0-4 as the DH. Box

ALASKA:
Chu played in a doubleheader and was a combined 1-8, with a SB. Box 1 Box 2

Chen hits #2....

MINORS
Y.C. Chen hit his second HR for San Antonio tonight. He was 1-4 with a HR and 2 RBI's. That was pretty much all the offense the Missions could muster against the Cardinals, as they managed only 2 hits the entire game. The Missions lost 4-2. Box

Hu was 0-4 with a walk, a run scored and a RBI. Jacksonville won 7-3. Box

Youtube has a pretty cool video of Hu at the All-Star weekend festivities. His English is pretty good. There's also a few brief appearances by Chen.

Dunedin won 10-9. Keng pitched 2 innings of relief and gave up 4 hits, 2 runs, with a HR allowed. His ERA after tonight - 15.43. Box

Wisconsin got crushed 14-2. Lo managed to go 1-4 with a SB. Box

The GCL Red Sox won 4-3. Chiang was 2-4. Huang was 1-3 with a double and a RBI. Box

JAPAN
Hanshin won 2-1. Lin made another pinch hit appearance, grounding out in his only AB. Box

ALASKA
Follow how Chu is faring tonight as his Panners face off against the Bucs. Link

Friday News....

SCOREBOARD
Minors:
Hu jacked his second HR of the season as he had a great night at the plate, leading his team to a 6-3 win. Hu was 4-5 with 2 runs scored and 3 RBI's. Box

San Antonio won 5-2, as Chen was 1-4 with 2 RBI's and a run scored. Box

Lo was 1-4 as his team lost 4-2. Box

The GCL Red Sox routed the Reds 14-5. However Chiang and Huang DNP. Lin made another appearance as he went 2 innings, gave up 3 hits, 2 runs - 1 earned, with 1 walk and 1 K. Box


NEWS
Chin-Hui Tsao injury/recovery update here.

JChurch's Prospect Insider with some prospect rankings of Chen and Lo in the Mariners farm system: 1 2 3

News on the Haarlem Baseball Week Tournament going on in Holland July 21st to the 30th: Taiwan's NT will face off against the NT of The Netherlands, China, and Cuba. There will also be representatives from the USA and Japan. More on the participating teams here.
A big thank you to Cor for passing on the link!

Today's Rundown....

Japan:
Lin made an appearance in the 9th inning, but grounded out in his only at-bat. Box

Minors:
Kuo pitched the 9th inning for Vegas and K'd one. Box

Jacksonville won 10-9, as Hu was 1-4 with 2 RBI's. Box

San Antonio also won a nail-biter 7-6, as Chen was 1-5 with a double. Box

Lo was 1-3 for Wisconsin. He also scored 2 runs. Box

Despite Lansing's loss tonight, Cheng was on the recipient's end of a no-decision. Cheng started the first 5 innings, gave up 5 hits, 3 runs, while K'ing 4, walking 3, and giving up 1 roundtripper. Box

Everett won 5-4, as Wu was behind the plate tonight. Despite committing an error on a pickoff attempt, Wu was 2-4 with a run scored and a RBI. Box

The Red Sox won 2-1 in one doubleheader. Huang was 0-1 with a walk. Box
In the other half of a twinbill, Chiang was 1-3 with a double, a run scored, and a RBI. His team won 10-2. Box

Alaska:
The Panners lost 5-1. Chu was 1-5 and stole his first base of the season. Box
Chu leads the club with a .366 average and is second in RBI's with 19.

BRING OUT THE BROOMS......SWEPT!!!

Team USA swept the 7 game series against Taiwan with a resounding 11-3 win tonight.
Recap
Team Taiwan will next travel to Holland as they attempt to right the sinking ship. Only Sung-Wei Tseng could keep Taiwan within striking distance of the extremely talented US squad.

Wed. Highlights...

Minors:
Hu was 0-3 with a walk. Jacksonville lost 10-2.

San Antonio won 6-5. Chen was 2-5 with 2 doubles and a run scored.

Lo is currently locked in a 5-5 tie in the 8th inning. He is the pitcher of record for Modesto.
Game Log

Wisconsin won big today, 15-2 over Peoria. Lo had a big night as he was a HR short of the cycle. Lo was 3-4, with 3 runs scored, a walk, and had his second stolen base at the "A" level.

In the GCL, the Red Sox lost to the Pirates 3-1. Chiang played at 2B, and was 1-4.

Alaska:
Chu is currently in action for the Panners. Follow the game here.

CPBL:
Chin-Feng Chen hit 3 solo bombs today to lead the LA New Bears to a 4-1 win over the Chinatrust Whales! That puts him one HR behind league leader Tai-Shan Chang, who has 14 on the season.

Quiet Tuesday....

Japan:
Lin was 0-1 with a strikeout in his pinch hit appearance. His Tigers won 2-1.

US Minors:
Chen drove in the only run for the Missions as he was 1-4. The Missions lost 7-1.

Amateur News:
The gap between the USA and Taiwan is getting larger as evidenced by the 5-0 shutout. The USA pitchers dominated in today's game against Taiwan. Three pitchers led by David Price, one-hit the Taiwanese NT. Tomorrow is Taiwan's last chance to win one game in the 7 game series.
Recap

Alaska:
Chu was 0-3, but drove in 2 runs in his team's 8-3 win.

Monday Rundown...

Minors:
AA
Chen was 3-5 in his team's 8-6 loss.

Hu was 0-2 as the South All-Stars fell to the North All-Stars 9-4.

A
Lo was 1-4, with a stolen base, and an OF assist.

Yeh pitched 1.1 innings, giving up 2 hits, 2 runs, with 2 walks and 1 K. Box

Wu was 0-4 with 2 K's. Defensively, he was behind the plate.

R
Chiang was 0-3 in one game of a doubleheader, while Huang was 0-3 in the second game of a doubleheader.

Alaska:
Chu was 2-6 with a double, while his teammate Mai picked up his first win of the season, pitching 7 innings, giving up 2 runs - o earned on 2 hits. Another Taiwanese pitcher - Wu closed out the game. Box



BA's report on the two recent Taiwanese signees. After witnessing Tseng in person, Team USA's GM had high praise for Tseng, "He was outstanding. That guy is very refined. He has a good fastball, and knew how to pitch both sides, up and down."

AAA News...

The groupings for the 22nd World Junior Baseball Championships have been set. Taiwan is in the more favorable of the two groups, with the US, Canada, Mexico, Italy, and Spain in it's bracket.

Taiwan's schedule:
Sept. 18th vs. USA
Sept. 19th vs. Italy
Sept. 20th vs. Spain
Sept. 21st vs. Canada
Sept. 22nd vs. Mexico

The top 4 from each group will advance to the next round. Taiwan should be a shoo-in to advance to the next stage.

According to a friend of mine, this year's team will struggle. There is no dominant pitching for Taiwan, unlike in years past. Also, Taiwan will be without some of their better age-eligible players. Because of their professional contracts, Red Sox signees Chiang and Lin will not represent their country.

Midseason Roundup...

Well, with All-Star Break approaching this Tuesday, let's see how everyone is doing midway through the Major League season.

Stats current as of today, 7/9/06.

Hitters:
1)W.C. Lin NPB .263 38 AB's 3 HR's 8 RBI's
2)C.S. Yang NPBm .267 202 AB's 7 HR's 20 RBI's
3)C.F. Chen CPBL .320 181 AB's 10HR's 47 RBI's
4)Y.C. Chen A-AA .332 307 AB's 6 HR's 50 RBI's 22 SB's
5)C.L. Hu AA .263 331 AB's 1 HR 16 RBI's
6)K.H. Lo A .274 62 AB's 2 HR's 10 RBI's
7)C.K. Wu A .214 98 AB's 0 HR's 10 RBI's
8)C.H. Chiang R .278 36AB's 0 HR's 2 RBI's
9)C.H. Huang R .120 25 AB's 0 HR's 1 RBI

Pitchers:
1)C.M. Wang MLB 9-4 4.00 ERA 126 IP 42 K's/31 BB
2)H.C. Kuo MLB 0-4 5.60 ERA 27.1 IP 29 K's/24 BB
AAA 1-0 4.50 ERA 14.0 IP 21 K's/9 BB
3)M.C. Hsu NPB 0-3 6.19 ERA 32 IP 20 K's/12 BB
4)Y.C. Lin NPB 0-2 4.33 ERA 27 IP 9 K's/13 BB
5)Y.H. Yang NPB 0-0 9.00 ERA 2 IP 1 K/2 BB
6)C.M. Chiang NPB 0-0 0.00 ERA 1 IP 0 K's/0 BB
7)C.L. Lo A 7-3 4.39 ERA 98.1 IP 63 K's/32 BB
8)C.H. Cheng A 7-4 3.28 ERA 90.2 IP 98 K's/41 BB
9)P.H. Keng A 0-4 3.92 ERA 48.2 IP 38 K's/12 BB
10)T.J. Yeh A 0-0 9.00 ERA 5 IP 3 K's/3 BB
11)Y.F. Lin R 0-0 1.80 ERA 5 IP 3 K's/3 BB
12)W.Y. Lin R 0-0 0.00 ERA 2 IP 2 K's/1 BB

Sunday Recap...

Hu and Chen started for the World Team in the 2006 edition of the Futures Game today. Manning the middle infield spots at SS and 2B, the duo showed that the future of Taiwanese baseball is in good hands. Chen was 0-2 with a strikeout but played solid defense, while Hu was 1-3 with a RBI double. Hu also committed an error in the field. Box/Recap
ESPN Insider's Keith Law had this to say about Hu:
"The next Cesar Izturis - The quality of baseball in Taiwan is increasing all the time, and fielding is a major emphasis in Taiwanese baseball instruction. Hu is probably going to be the first product of that instruction to show off his skills in the big leagues. He's small for a shortstop by today's standards, but has outstanding range and a flair for the highlight play. He'll probably never hit for anything but the occasional empty batting average; he has mediocre plate discipline and his build is too small to generate more than below-average power. But he'll be fun to watch in the field."

Minors:
Keng made his second appearance for Dunedin and was hit hard again. Keng lasted 2.1 innings in relief, giving up 3 hits - including a solo HR, 2 runs, with 0 walks and 0 K's. Box

Japan:
Lin was 0-2 with a walk in a rare start, while playing 1B. Box

Amateur News:
The US rallied to beat Taiwan 5-2 Sunday evening. Sung-Wei Tseng, who took the loss, was dominant throughout the game for the most part, K'ing 7 in 6 innings. However, a bout of wildness in the 6th inning, when Tseng plunked 3 batters in the inning to load the bases, led to 3 earned runs, when US hitter Alvarez drove in all 3 baserunners with a double. Up until that double, Tseng had only given up 2 hits and 0 runs. LF Ming-I Wu continued to show a great eye at the plate as he was 0-1 with 3 walks. Box/PlaybyPlay Recap
The next game in the series will be on Tuesday.

Alaska - Updated:
Chu was 3-3 for the Panners, and missed hitting for the cycle by a HR. Box/PlaybyPlay

Kuo-Hui Lo Promoted...

The Mariners promoted Lo to "A" level Wisconsin. Lo made his debut last night, and was 1-4 with 2K's and was also caught stealing. Box

Wang Wins #9!

Chien-Ming Wang bounced back from his defeat to the Indians to give one of his best performances of the year. He almost pitched a complete game against the Devil Rays, before fatiguing and giving way to reliever Farnsworth in the 9th inning. In his 8.1 innings, Wang gave up 6 hits, 1 run, with 2 walks and 2 K's. Prior to the 9th inning, Wang was pitching a shutout with only 4 hits given up to the top of the D-Rays order. Opposing pitcher Scott Kazmir looked just as dominant, K'ing 7 in 6.1 innings, before the Yanks got to him in the 6th and 7th innings. 9 wins before the All-Star break is quite an accomplishment. If Wang and the Yanks stay hot in the second half of the season, 20 wins is a possibility. Box/Recap

Minors:
Not too much to report tonight. In the GCL, the Phillies lost to the Braves 7-0. Y.F. Lin pitched 1 inning, giving up 2 hits, a run, with a walk and one K. Box

Alaska:
You can follow how Po-Yu Lin and Chu are doing here.

Amateur News:
The US won it's 4th consecutive game against Taiwan's national team. The US won 3-0 with dominant pitching - allowing only 3 base hits. For Taiwan, Ming-I Wu continues to impress by going 1-2 with a double and 2 walks. Box/PlaybyPlay Recap

More on Recent Signees Hong and Tseng:
The Braves are comparing Hong to a young Chien-Ming Wang, with a similar rubber arm for his age. The organization plans to have Hong play in Australia this summer and then return back to the US for the Fall Instructional League.

Per the Indians MLB site, Indians scouting director John Mirabelli is pretty high on Tseng, comparing him to Tom Gordon and likening his status to a second or third round draft choice. "He can hit 95 and throws consistently between 90 and 93. He also throws a split and a slider." The organization plans to develop Tseng as a starter, but hasn't ruled him out in the bullpen. Cleveland will allow Tseng to complete his NT obligations and finish with the FISU World University Championships in August. Tseng will then report to Winter Haven, FL for the Fall Instructional League in September. Tseng would then possibly start next year at A+ ball with the Kinston Indians.

Friday Rundown...

Minors:
In AAA action, Kuo made his first appearance since returning to Las Vegas. Kuo pitched 2 innings, giving up 4 hits, 3 runs - 2 earned, with 1 walk and 3 K's. Box

At the AA level, Chen was 0-3 with a walk and a RBI. Box
Jacksonville's game with Carolina was rained out.
Chen and Hu will miss their team's Sat. and Sun. games as they leave for Pittsburgh and prepare for Sunday's Futures Game.

A+ action: Lo won his 7th game of the season in impressive fashion. He pitched 8 innings, only giving up 3 hits, and 3 runs - of which 2 were earned. The problem was that of the 3 hits given up by Lo, 2 of them were home runs. Lo did manage to K 6 hitters and walk one batter. Box

A ball: A day after losing his buddy to Dunedin, Cheng made his bid to join him, with a dominant pitching performance tonight. Cheng won his 7th game of the year, yielding only 2 hits in 7 scoreless innings. He K'd 10 with 3 walks. Box

A-ss action: Lo was 1-4 at the plate, playing LF and hitting out of the 2 hole. Box

Japan:
Hsu made an appearance in Seibu's loss on Friday. He faced one batter, walked him, and allowed a run to score. Box

Alaska:
Cheng-Lung Luo won against Chu's Goldpanners on Friday. Luo pitched 6 innings, giving up 7 hits, 4 runs - 3 earned, with 3 walks and 5K's. Chu was 1-5, but also committed an error. Chu was 1-4 against Luo with 1 K. Lan came in the game for the Panners in the 7th and was 0-1.
Box-PlaybyPlay

Amateur News:
The Taiwanese NT lost a doubleheader today to the US. Game 1 came down to the final inning again. The US scored 2 runs in the top of the 9th to win the game 3-1. Standouts for Taiwan were:
1)starting pitcher Chia-Chun Tang who went 6 innings, giving up 5 hits and 1 run, with 3 walks and 6 K's.
2)LF Ming-I Wu's 2-3 game with a walk, and he drove in Taiwan's only run of the game
Box/Recap
In Game 2, Taiwan lost 5-2, despite outhitting the USA 9-8. Taiwan also committed 4 errors in the game.
Standouts in Game 2 were:
1)LF Ming-I Wu was 1-3 with 2 walk and a RBI
2)RF Chih-Yao Chan was 2-3 with a run scored, a walk, and also had 2 stolen bases
3)3B Chiang-Ho Chen was 2-4
4)C Kuan-Yi Yang was 1-2 with a RBI and a run scored
Box/Recap
The games continue tomorrow night in North Carolina.

It's official: read more here about Tseng's signing with the Indians.

Cheng-Keng Duo Broken Up...

Po-Hsuan Keng was promoted from A-ball (Lansing Lugnuts) to A+ball (Dunedin Blue Jays). His teammate Cheng will remain at Lansing.

Compare this year's stats (through July 5th):
Keng 0W - 3L 2.93 ERA 21 Games 46 IP 38 K's/11 Walks
Cheng 6W- 4L 3.55 ERA 17 Games 83.2 IP 88K's/38 Walks

Obviously the main difference between the two is Cheng's command, which is a little bit worse than last year. Cheng's 2005 K/BB ratio was 2.85, while his current K/BB ratio is 2.32.

In other minor league news:
Thursday Scoreboard
Jacksonville's game was suspended due to rain.

San Antonio lost 1-0. Chen was 1-4 .

Everett lost 3-0. Lo was 2-5 out of the leadoff spot, while Wu DH'd and was 1-3 with a walk.

The Red Sox lost to the Reds 9-1 in the GCL. Chiang was 1-4 and drove in the team's only run.
Huang was 0-4. Wang-Yi Lin made his 2006 debut and pitched well - going 2 innings, giving up 2 hits, 0 runs, with 2 K's and 1 walk.

Alaska:
The Goldpanners beat the Bucs 3-1. Chu got back on track with a 2-4 game.

Amateur News:
The second game of the CT-USA matchup was cancelled secondary to rain. A doubleheader will be played tomorrow. More on the USA's talented roster.

Japan:
Hanshin beat Yokohama 2-1. Lin was 0-1 with a K in a pinch hit appearance.

News and Updates...

*The Dodgers sent Kuo back to AAA yesterday for more seasoning. After being initially called up from Las Vegas in June, Kuo seemingly had worked out all of the control issues he had earlier in the season. However, in his last 7 appearances, Kuo had given up 9 earned runs on 15 hits, with 9 walks in 9.2 innings. Despite his struggles of late, Kuo's claim to fame is still his fastball - he's K'd 29 in 27.1 innings this year with the Dodgers. Manager Grady Little still has faith in Kuo, but stated that Kuo needs to work on cutting down the walks and start to challenge hitters with his 95 mph heater. "He doesn't get beat by people hitting him. He beats himself." - Manager Grady Little on Kuo

*Colorado Rockies News:
Chin-Hui Tsao underwent an MRI on his shoulder. The surgically repaired labrum appeared fine, but some wear was discovered in the biceps tendon.
Ching-Lung Lo was named California League Pitcher of the Week for his outstanding performance on July 2nd.

*Wang will try and bounce back for the Yankees on Saturday when he pitches against Scott Kazmir of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

*More on Chinese Taipei's exhibition game from Monday.

*Over in Alaska on Monday, Po-Yu Lin won his 3rd game of the season for the Bucs. Lin pitched a complete game shutout, allowing only 5 hits, with 8 K's. Box/PlaybyPlay

*US Minors:
Hu was 2-4, hitting out of the leadoff spot. Box

Chen was 0-3. Box

Lo and Wu DNP for Everett.

Chiang and Huang were both 1-5 at the plate today. Box

*The Futures Game, featuring the dynamic duo will be broadcast on ESPN2 this Sunday at 1:00 pm Pacific.

Monday Scoreboard....

LIN

Japan:
The Hanshin Tigers won 4-2 on Tuesday, thanks in part to Lin's pinch hit home run in the 7th inning which gave the Tigers the insurance run they were looking for. It was Lin's 3rd round-tripper of the year. Box

Minors:
*Hu was 0-4 in Jacksonville's 2-0 win. Box

*Chen was 0-5 in San Antonio's 5-4 loss. Box

*Lansing lost 5-3, but Keng was able to pitch 2 scoreless innings in relief, giving up only 1 hit, with 4 K's and 0 walks. Box

*TJ Yeh pitched 2 innings for the Lowell Spinners. He gave up 2 hits, 2 runs - o earned, with 1 walk and 1 K. Box

*Lo is currently 0-3 for Everett in the 7th inning. He has also committed his first error of the season. Box/Game Log

*Chiang redeemed himself tonight for the GCL Red Sox by going 2-3 at the plate. He also committed his 4th error of the season at 2B. Huang DNP. Box

Alaska:
Chu was hitless in 7 AB's in a doubleheader played today. Game 1 Box Game 2 Box

2 Taiwanese pitchers took losses on Monday's doubleheader. Game 1 Box Game 2 Box

Atlanta Braves sign Chen-En Hong

With the international signing period upon us, another Taiwanese kid has been signed by a major league organization according to the news out of Taiwan. Chen-En Hong, who is currently on the preliminary NT roster for this year's "AAA" World Junior Baseball Championships in Cuba, attends the same HS as Red Sox signees: Chiang and Huang. The 6'1", 165 pounder received a $120,000 signing bonus. His fastball has been clocked around 89 - 90 mph.

CT Loses 1-0 to USA....

In Game 1 of of a seven game series, Chinese Taipei lost a close game 1-0 to the US NT. The US rallied with some timely hitting in the bottom of the 9th inning off of relief pitching to secure the first win of the series. The starting pitcher for CT was Sung-Wei Tseng, the ace of the staff and recent Indians signee. Tseng pitched 5 scoreless innings, giving up only 2 hits, to go along with 4 K's and 0 walks. Tseng was locked in a fierce duel with US pitcher David Price, who was equally dominant, K'ing 10 in 7 scoreless innings. Aside from Tseng, the only other bright spot for CT was LF Chun-Yu Kuo's 2-3 performance at the plate. Taiwan's offense managed only one other hit the entire game off of US pitching.

Game Recap
Box Score

Game 2 of the series is Thursday night in South Carolina.

Breaking News: Sung-Wei Tseng Signs with Indians!

photos from goldpanners.com

The Cleveland Indians have signed 21 year old Taiwanese pitcher Sung-Wei Tseng. He will receive an estimated signing bonus of $375,000. Tseng, who's fastball has been clocked in the low to mid 90's, is currently on the NT touring the US right now. Tseng was being courted by teams in Japan, but will now get his chance to show his wares in the US.

Wang Loses to Indians...

On paper, it looked like a game that Wang could have won. He was facing the Indians, a team he had shutout on June 13th, and who were second to last in their division. His mound opponent was a rookie - J. Sowers. Sounds pretty favorable for Wang right? Well, I guess that's why they play the games.

The Indians, after being dominated earlier this season by Wang, knocked him out of the game in the 6th inning. In 5.1 innings, Wang gave up 11 hits (allowing a hit to every batter in the Cleveland lineup), including a HR, and was charged with 5 earned runs. He K'd 2 and walked 2 batters. What happened to Wang tonight? Well, simply put, his sinker wasn't "sinking" as he left his pitches up in the zone. It was easily Wang's worst outing in over a month, when he lost to the Tigers on June 1st.

Box

*Updated 7/4/06
Kuo pitched the last 2 innings in the Dodger's 10-4 win over the D-Backs. Kuo gave up 4 hits, 2 runs - both earned, with 1 walk and 2 K's. Box/Recap


Minors:
AA: Hu was 2-5 with a RBI and a run scored in Jacksonville's win. Box
Meanwhile, Chen was 1-4 with a triple, 2 runs scored, and a SB in his club's loss tonight. Box

A ss: Lo is currently 1-4 as his team has come from behind in the 7th inning. Lo cracked his 2nd HR of the season - a 2 run shot in the 7th. Lo also flashed his arm strength when from LF he gunned down a runner trying to stretch a single into a double in the 3rd inning. Box /Game Log

Rookie: Lin earned his first save of the season for the GCL Phillies. He pitched 2 scoreless innings with 0 hits and only 1 walk allowed. Box
Chiang had a rough day for the GCL Red Sox; he was 0-5 and committed 2 errors in the field. His teammate, Huang fared slightly better - going 0-3 with a run scored and a RBI. Box

Amateur News:
The Taiwanese NT lost to the SteepleCats tonight 3-0. Whoa, not good. They'll face much stiffer competition tomorrow night against Team USA. Pics (Page 1 2) taken from today's game.

Monday Preview....

Here's more on Wang's 4:00 PM Pacific start today vs. the Indians. After last night's offensive outburst, Wang should receive all the run support he'll need to win #9 tonight.

The Taiwanese NT is in Massachusetts. Prior to tomorrow's matchup in Rhode Island against the US NT, our boys will go up against the North Adams SteepleCats (a collegiate summer baseball team) tonight at 4:00 PM Pacific. Photo gallery of the CT NT.

Last but not least, here's a little blurb on Ching-Lung Lo and his performance last night.

Sunday Roundups....

Minors:
AA: Jacksonville lost 4-0. Hu was 0-1 coming off of the bench today.
San Antonio won 8-1. Chen has continued where he left off at IE, by going 3-5 with 2 doubles and a run scored.

A+: Modesto won 6-3. Lo had a great performance, pitching 7 strong innings, giving up only 3 hits, 1 earned run, and more impressively K'd 10 with 0 walks. He won his 6th game of the season.

A: Lansing lost 10-6. Cheng also pitched superbly - going 6 innings and giving up 5 hits, 4 runs - 0 earned. He K'd 11 with 0 walks, and ended up with a no-decision.

A ss: Everett lost to Vancouver 5-3. Wu DH'd and was 0-3 with a walk. Lo was 1-4 with a triple and a RBI.

CPBL First Half Roundup...

From L to R: Pan, Yang, Lin, Peng, Hsieh, & Cheng

The LA New Bears wrapped up the first half title in the CPBL, but barely. They had to fend off a mad charge by the runner-up President Lions who had won 17 consecutive games to put them 1/2 game behind the Bears. By winning the first half crown, the Bears have guaranteed themselves a spot in the CPBL Championship game. Their opponent will be determined by whoever wins the second half crown.

Stats through July 1, 2006 of some notable domestic players:
HITTERS:
Chin-Feng Chen BEARS .310 9 HR's 40 RBI's
Chih-Sheng Lin BEARS .268 7 HR's 34 RBI's
Chia-Hsien Hsieh COBRAS .277 11 HR's 38 RBI's
Tai-Shan Chang BULLS .385 14 HR's 38 RBI's
Chang-Ming Cheng WHALES .292 0 HR's 14 RBI's
Chih-Yuan Chen ELEPHANTS .229 5 HR's 24 RBI's
Cheng-Min Peng ELEPHANTS .320 2 HR's 8 RBI's (missed most of season with injury)
Guan-Ren Chen ELEPHANTS .363 7 HR's 34 RBI's (possible R.O.Y.)

PITCHERS:
En-Yu Lin COBRAS 9-4 2.05 ERA 110 IP/115 K's
Si-Yo Wu BEARS 10-0 1.72 ERA 78.2 IP/82 K's
Chien-Fu Yang BULLS 7-5 3.93 ERA 87 IP/ 56 K's
Wei-Lun Pan LIONS 7-2 1.91 ERA 85 IP/ 47 K's

The CPBL All-Star game will take place July 22nd.