Thursday Roundup...

Minors:
AA - San Antonio is winning 4-0 in the 8th inning. Chen is currently 1-2 with a walk and a run scored. Box

A - Lansing lost 4-3. Cheng lost an opportunity to win his 12th game of the season when Western Michigan scored 3 runs in the bottom of the 9th inning to pull out the win. Cheng pitched 5 innings, giving up 3 hits, 1 run, with 4 walks and 4 K's. Keng relieved Cheng and threw 2 scoreless/hitless innings to go along with 3 K's and 2 walks. Box

A - Wu is catching for Everett tonight. The game is scoreless in the 2nd inning. Box

A - Lowell won 8-1. Chiang was 1-4 with a walk. Box

Majors:
Wang's next scheduled start will be on Monday, September 4th against the KC Royals.

No More Status Kuo.......

The Dodgers recalled Hong-Chih Kuo last night. After showing improvement with his control in Vegas, the Dodgers are giving Kuo his 3rd chance this season to see what he has to offer the ballclub this time around. With the success that Kuo has had as a starter in AAA, there is speculation that Kuo will replace Mark Hendrickson in the rotation. If the rumors are true, then Kuo could possibly start for the Dodgers on Tuesday against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Chiang's First Win!!

Sweet vid of Chiang's first win Tuesday, August 22nd....nice vintage short clip of Taiwanese slugger Meishi Ro included as well

Wang's Sinker vs. Ichiro

Wang showing why his sinker is so effective against one of the game's best hitters.

Sweet Sixteen!!!

Majors:
In the opening game of the series, Chien-Ming Wang pitched a gem against the AL Central leaders - Detroit Tigers. Through 7.2 innings, Wang pitched a 3 hit shutout. Although he fatigued in the 8th inning and left the game with runners on 2nd and 3rd, Scott Proctor was able to get the final out of the 8th inning on one pitch. Wang's line for the night:
7.2 IP 3 hits 0 runs 2 walks 3 K's
Wang now joins Roy Halladay for tops in the majors with 16 wins. He also lowered his ERA to 3.66. Wang is a darkhorse in the AL Cy Young race.
Box/Recap
Recap 2
ESPN's Rob Neyer's take on Wang's success

The idea of Kuo starting in the majors is being tossed around by Dodgers manager Grady Little. Read more here.


Minors:
In an earlier post, we took a look at how Chih-Hsien Chiang did this past summer.
Let's take a look at how 20 year old prospect Kuo-Hui Lo did in his first pro season. Starting off the year in A ball with the short season Everett Aquasox, Lo hit .276 in 58 AB's with 3 doubles, 1 triple, and 2 HR's - for a .466 slugging average. Lo also drove in 10 runs, scored 10 runs, and stole 8 bases. In his short stint with the Sox, Lo caught the eye of long-time Aquasox radio announcer Pat Dillon. Dillon cited Lo as one of the top hitting prospects on the Sox team this past summer. After 16 games with Everett, Lo was then promoted to full season A-ball in Wisconsin. Prior to landing on the DL, thus ending his season, Lo played in 29 games with Wisconsin. Lo hit .243 in 107 AB's, had 3 doubles, 1 triple, and 1 HR - for a .318 slugging average. Lo drove in 7 runs, scored 21 runs, and also stole 16 bases for Wisconsin. Although all of Lo's numbers were down at Wisconsin, the most disturbing stat for Lo was the 31 K's in 107 AB's. Despite his struggles this year, Lo's most impressive stat was his 24 SB's. Lo's cumulative numbers for the season:
.255 BA 165 AB's 6 doubles 2 triples 3 HR's 17 RBI's 14 walks/43 K's 24 SB's

Scores:
AA - San Antonio won 5-3. Chen was 3-4 but was caught attempting to steal 2nd base in the 3rd inning. Box

A - Everett lost 1-0. Wu was 2-2 in the first game of a doubleheader. Box

Chiang Cracks 2nd HR of Season....

Minors:
A - Lowell won 5-3. Chiang hit his 1st HR in A-ball, cracking a 3 run shot in the 4th inning. Chiang was 2-5 with a run scored and 3 RBI's. Box/Recap

AA - Jacksonville won 2-0. Hu was 0-2 with 2 walks. Box

AA - San Antonio was shut out 6-0. Chen was 0-2 with 2 walks and his 5th SB for SA. Box

Majors:
Wang's start versus Detroit was rained out today; he will pitch the first game of a doubleheader tomorrow at 1:05 pm Eastern.

Monday News...

Minors:
AA - Hu finally broke out of a minifunk as he was 3-5 with a double and 2 runs scored as Jacksonville lost 10-5.

AA - Chen was 0-4 as San Antonio lost 2-1. Chen continues to demonstrate his defensive versatility by playing at SS tonight.

A - Lansing lost 3-1. Keng pitched 2 inning of middle relief, gave up 3 hits, 1 run - via a HR, to go along with 4 K's and 0 walks.

A - Lowell won 13-2. Chiang was 1-4 with a RBI.

Other:
Dodgers beat writer Ken Gurnick feels that Kuo could be a late-season impact player who might possibly start for the Dodgers this weekend. Read more here.

Sunday Recap...

C.M. Chiang

Japan:
In his second career start for the Yomiuri Giants, Chiang earned a ND despite pitching another good game. Chiang lasted 6.2 innings, giving up 1 run on 8 hits. He had 4 K's and 0 walks. Box

Minors:
AAA - Kuo started for Vegas and pitched 3 innings. He was spectacular, K'ing 5 and giving up only 1 hit - a HR to Terrmel Sledge which accounted for Kuo's only earned run allowed. Box
Kuo is expected to get called up to LA this Friday.

AA - Jacksonville won 5-3. Hu was 0-3. Box

AA - San Antonio is losing 9-7 in the 7th inning. Chen is currently 0-3 with a walk and a run scored. Box/Game Log

Chiang Update....

CHIANG in his new uni....
A big Thank You to my buddy for this vid still image

Ok, let's take a quick look at how Chiang did in his first season in the US. In the GCL, on a loaded ball club, Chiang managed a .287 BA in 122 AB's. Of his 35 hits, 8 went for doubles, 2 were triples, and 1 was a roundtripper - for a slugging percentage of .410. Chiang drove in 12 runs and scored 12 runs, hitting mostly out of the top or bottom of the lineup. While he only walked 4 times during the season, he also only struck out 11 times as well, exhibiting his best attribute - his Ichiro-like hand-eye coordination. Chiang did commit 10 errors on the season at 2B, but I full expect Chiang to steadily improve in this department over the next few years due to his athleticism and work ethic.
Chiang will get a few more AB's this year with the Lowell Spinners before he moves on to the instructional league in the fall. While his numbers weren't spectacular, let's not forget that he's 18, learning a new language and spending his first extended time away from home. Also, prior to coming to the US, Chiang hadn't played in a baseball game since March of 2006. The 3 month layoff may have contributed to Chiang's slow start in the GCL.
Another note on Chiang is the fact that he was diagnosed with diabetes in the past year, which was made public recently. Rumors that the ailment scared off teams from signing are not true. In fact, Chiang was offered $500 K by the Yakult Swallows and the Atlanta Braves, had he not already signed with the Red Sox. The kid likes the Red Sox and took less money to play for the organization - you gotta love his loyalty. Although having diabetes is no laughing matter, it is a disease that can be managed effectively with today's advances in medical technology. Many famous baseball players are diabetics, although most of us wouldn't know unless we witnessed an insulin injection. Bottom line - diabetes won't hold Chiang back from climbing the Sox organizational ladder. The depth at 2B - middle infield is thin in the organization. Assuming he starts the season next year in Greenville, I look foward to seeing him fullfill his vast potential in the future.


Majors:
Ok, it looks like Wang will start Tuesday against the Tigers Nate Robertson per the NYY official site. Wang will be gunning for win # 16 and try to build momentum towards the playoffs.

Saturday Roundup....

Minors:
AA - Hu was 0-2 with a walk, a run scored, and a RBI. Jacksonville won 6-5.

AA - San Antonio won 8-6 in extra innings. Chen continues to swing a hot bat as he went 3-6 with a double, a RBI, a run scored, and his 4th SB for SA.

A - Cheng won his 11th game of the season by throwing 5 shutout innings, giving up 2 hits, to go along with 6 K's and NO walks! Lansing won 7-1.

A - Wu walked in his lone AB. Everett lost 8-4.

A - Lowell won 3-1. In his first game with Lowell, Chiang grounded out in his only AB.

Change of Heart....

As sudden and unexpected as his decision was to shun all media in Taiwan, Wang has changed his mind and will allow interviews again to the Taiwanese media on the day of his next start against the Detroit Tigers - August 30th. What an interesting turn of events here.....

Minors:
AA - Jacksonville won 7-6. After a short hiatus, Hu made his return and was 0-3 with 2 walks and 1 run scored. Box

AA - San Antonio lost 3-2 in extra innings. Chen was 2-3 with 2 walks and a run scored. Box

A - Lo took his 4th loss on the season as his team lost 9-5 to Stockton. Lo lasted 4.2 innings, giving up 9 hits, 7 runs - 5 earned, to go along with 5 K's and 5 walks. Box

A - Lansing won 2-1. Keng pitched in middle relief, throwing 3 scorless innings, giving up 2 hits, and K'd 4 batters. Box

A - Lo has been placed on the DL by Wisconsin. Not too sure if we'll see Lo again as Wisky only has 10 games remaining this season.

A - Everett won 3-2. Wu made a defensive appearance in the 9th inning.

R - The Red Sox are the GCL champs!!! Despite being hitless in the 3 game series versus the Dodgers, Chiang has been promoted to Lowell to finish out the season. The 18 year old was 0-3 tonight. Box

Thursday Recaps....

Minors:
AA - San Antonio lost 5-3. Chen managed to go 2-4 with a RBI and a run scored. Box

R - Chiang was 0-3 with a RBI as the Red Sox evened things up in the series by winning 5-1. Box

CPBL:
Wed. News - Tai-Shan Chang has retaken the HR lead from C.F. Chen by cracking 2 HR's in Wed's win over the Lions. I think Chen's been homerless over the past few weeks. Read more here.

Other:
Interesting read on Wang and his alma mater - Chunghsueh Elementary School in Tainan, Taiwan.

NT Preliminary Roster for 2006 Asian Games

With the 2006 Asian Games coming up in December, Taiwan has named a 50-man preliminary roster. Here it is:

Pitchers:
1)Pai-Yu Lin - Amateur
2)Cheng-Lung Lo - Amateur
3)Chia-Jen Lo - Amateur
4)Chen-Chang Lee - Amateur
5)Chia-Chun Tang - Amateur
6)Chao-Hao Tseng - Whales
7)Wei-Ming Chu - Whales
8)En-Yu Lin - Cobras
9)Yueh-Ping Lin - Lions
10)Wei-Lun Pan - Lions
11)Chien-Fu Yang - Bulls
12)Si-Yo Wu - Bears
13)Fong-Hua Lee - Bears
14)Hong-Chih Kuo - Dodgers
15)Po-Hsuan Keng - Blue Jays
16)Chi-Hung Cheng - Blue Jays
17)Sung-Wei Tseng - Indians
18)Ching-Lung Lo - Rockies
19)Wei-Yin Chen - Dragons
20)Chien-Ming Chiang - Giants
21)Ying-Chieh Lin - Eagles
22)Yao-Hsun Yang - Hawks
23)Chien-Ming Wang - Yankees

Catchers:
1)Yi-Wei Lee - Amateur
2)Hung-Yu Lin - Amateur
3)Chih-Kang Kao - Lions
4)Chun-Chang Yeh - Bulls

Infielders:
1)Sheng-Wei Wang - Amateur
2)Yi-Chuan Lin - Amateur
3)Kuo-Ching Kao - Lions
4)Chia-Wei Chen - Lions
5)Kuo-Lung Hsu - Bulls
6)Chih-Wei Shih - Bears
7)Chih-Sheng Lin - Bears
8)Tai-Shan Chang - Bulls
9)Chang-Ming Cheng - Whales
10)Yung-Chi Chen - Mariners
11)Chin-Lung Hu - Dodgers
12)Chung-Shou Yang - Fighters

Outfielders:
1)Chun-Yu Kuo - Amateur
2)Chih-Yao Chan - Amateur
3)Yuan-Chin Chu - Amateur
4)Yu-Hsien Ming - Bulls
5)Chien-Ming Chang - Bulls
6)Guan-Ren Chen - Elephants
7)Chih-Yuan Chen - Elephants
8)Chin-Feng Chen - Bears
9)Chia-Hsien Hsieh - Cobras
10)Kuo-Hui Lo - Mariners
11)Wei-Chu Lin - Tigers

The Korean preliminary roster has also been announced - surprisingly, no H.S. Choi, C.H. Park, J.W. Seo, or B.H. Kim.

Back in the Groove!

Chien-Ming Wang brought his "A" game on Wed. night versus the Mariners. After struggling with his sinker the past few games, Wang got back on track with a "typical" Wang performance - inducing ground outs (11 of them tonight) with his sinker. Wang even managed to K 5 hitters (including Ichiro once and Beltre twice). Wang pitched 7 innings, giving up 7 hits - 2 runs (both runs scored in the 7th inning), to go along with 5 K's and no walks. With his 15th win on the season, Wang is now one of only 4 Major Leaguers in the 15 + win club. As Wang continues to rack up the victories, he is now chasing Chan Ho Park who had 18 victories in 2000 with the Dodgers, to surpass the number of victories in a season by an Asian pitcher in the Major Leagues.
Box/Recap

Minors:
AA - Chen was 1-4 with 2 RBI's as the Missions won 4-3. Box

A - Wu finally made an appearance for the AquaSox as he went 1-4. Everett lost 3-1. Box

R - The Red Sox are in the GCL finals versus the Dodgers. The Sox lost the opener 2-0. Chiang was 0-4. Huang was 0-0 with a pinch hit sacrifice bunt. Box

Go...The Kid who was Perfect vs. CT...

GO!

Youth:
I got a good look at Little League Japanese pitcher Go Matsumoto - all 5'10" of him on tv today. He was impressive in his win against Curacao on Tuesday, clocking 75 mph and mixing in some nice breaking pitches. This is the same kid who threw a perfect game shutout against Chinese Taipei in the Asian Regional in Hong Kong.

Chiang Wins First Pro Game!!

Japan:
Over in the NPB, Chien-Ming Chiang won impressively in his first NPB career start for the Yomiuri Giants. Chiang, who was recently called up from the Nigun team, pitched 7 innings, giving up 3 hits and 1 run, to go along with 7 K's. The Giants won 3-1 versus the Yokohama BayStars. Chiang is the first Taiwanese pitcher to earn a victory in Japan this year. Prior to going down with an injury, Ying-Chieh Lin was 0-2 for the Rakuten Eagles, while Ming-Chieh Hsu was 0-3 with the Seibu Lions. Great start for the 21 year old! Box

Minors:
AAA - Kuo won his 4th game - (third consecutive) of the season for Vegas. Kuo pitched 5 innings against Tacoma, giving up 4 hits, 1 run - via a solo HR. Kuo struggled with his command, giving up 3 walks, but he did manage 4 K's. Box

AA - San Antonio won 3-2. Chen was 0-2 with a walk and a RBI. Box

News - Ching-Lung Hu will play for the Mesa Solar Sox in the AFL. He will be following in the footsteps of C.F. Chen who had a blistering showing in the AFL in 2000 and 2001 (.329 7 HR's 19 RBI's 73 AB's).

Majors - UPDATED:
Instead of Cha Seung Baek or Gil Meche, Chien-Ming Wang is finally set to face King Felix (10-11, 4.50 ERA) on Wed.

8/21 Monday Recaps...

Minors:
AA - Hu got the night off.

AA - Chen had a big night for San Antonio. Chen was 2-4 with a double, a triple, and drove in half of his team's 10 runs scored. San Antonio blanked Tulsa 10-0. Box

A - Lansing lost 3-1. Keng made a relief appearance, throwing 2.1 innings of no-hit, shutout ball, to go along with 2 walks and 1 K. Box

A - Wisconsin won 5-4. Lo left the game with an apparent leg injury after grounding out to 1B in the first inning. Box

R - Chiang and Huang DNP

R - The Phillies won 8-4. Lin pitched 1 scoreless inning in relief. Box

AAA News - Kuo will start Tues. night for Vegas against the Mariners AAA club - the Tacoma Rainiers.

Majors:
The Mariners starter for Wed. night has been announced. Wang will face off against Korean rookie Cha Seung Baek. Sweet matchup!

La New Kevin Huang Interview

For those of you that can understand Chinese, an interview with Kevin Huang

Where Have You Gone...Kevin Huang?

CPBL:
Kevin Huang finally made some headlines, winning his first professional game in nearly 3 years!
The former Red Sox farmhand, pitching for the LA New Bears (teammate of C.F. Chen), won against the Chinatrust Whales. Huang went 6 innings, giving up 5 hits and 1 run, to go along with 5 K's. Read more here.

Majors:
The most recent news on Tsao is not good. Since his last throwing session on August 1st, Tsao has experienced another setback with muscle soreness. It looks like we won't be seeing Tsao until possibly next year.

Wang is scheduled to go on Wed. night against the Seattle Mariners. The starter for the Mariners is still TBD.

Minors:
AA - Hu and Chen both got the night off.

A - Modesto lost 5-4 in extra innings. Despite getting a ND, Lo started and had a decent outing. Lasting 7 innings, Lo got into trouble in the 2nd inning when he gave up 4 runs on 4 hits and a walk. Aside from that inning, Lo pitched well, giving up 7 total hits, allowed 4 runs total, and had 1 walk with 9 K's. Box

A - Wisconsin lost 8-7. Lo was 0-4 with 1 walk, 2 runs scored, and also K'd 3 times. Box

The Return of Lo.....

Minors:
A - Wisconsin lost 6-1. Kuo-Hui Lo made his return with a 1-3 game at the plate. Despite stealing his 16th base of the season for Wisconsin, he was also picked off at first base and thrown out trying to steal second base. Box

R - In the GCL, the Red Sox won 5-1 in the 13th inning, with all 3 Taiwanese kids getting into the game. Chiang was 1-5 with a walk. Huang was 0-5 and committed his 5th error at 3B. Meanwhile Lin picked up his first save of the season with a perfect 13th inning. Box

AA - San Antonio won 7-3. Chen was 0-4 with a walk and a run scored. Box

Third Time's a Charm!!!!

Wang finally won his 14th game of the season against arch-rival -the Boston Red Sox. Wang pitched 6 + innings (he faced one batter in the 7th) and gave up 7 hits (all to 3 batters) - 1 HR, 3 runs, with 4 walks (2 intentional to Manny Ramirez) and 2 K's. Wang left the game in the 7th with a 4-3 lead. Despite the win, Wang struggled with finding the strike zone (90 pitches - 49 strikes) - the home plate ump calling a tight strike zone didn't help either. Wang also went away from his signature pitch - his sinker quite a bit, utilizing a slider throughout the game. Wang was consistently in the mid 90's with his fastball (between 94 to 96 mph) and the HR allowed to Manny was a decent pitch that Manny barely poked over the wall near the RF foul pole (~ a 310 foot shot). Ramirez (2 intentional walks, 1 HR) and Hinske (3-3 - all doubles) continued their mastery of Wang's pitches. All in all, not one of Wang's better performances, but it was still good enough for a win nonetheless. Wang joins elite company with his 14th win of the season, trailing only Roy Halladay who has 15 wins to lead the Majors.
Box/Recap

JAPAN:
Hanshin lost 12-11. Lin, getting his daily pinch hit appearance, flied out in his only PA. Box

MINORS:
AA - San Antonio lost 10-4. Chen was 0-3 with 2 walks, a run scored and his 3rd SB for SA. Box

AA - Jacksonville lost 9-3. Hu hit his 4th HR of the season and drove in all 3 runs as he was 1-3. Hu did commit a rare error, his 10th of the season. Box

A - Wu made an appearance behind the plate as a defensive substitution. His team lost 8-2. Box

Respect My Privacy......

It looks like Wang will be avoiding the Taiwanese media for now. I guess somewhere along the line, too much info was made available to the public regarding Wang's private life. The NY Times recently wrote an article that talks a little bit about Wang's personal life. It looks like Alan Chang, Wang's agent and PR, will be getting a lot of calls! Heck, I might call him too! :)

Thurday Recaps:
Japan:
Lin was 0-1 as Hanshin lost 7-1. Get the kid some more AB's please!!! Box

Minors:
AAA - Kuo started for Vegas again and pitched 4.2 innings of shutout ball. He gave up only 4 hits, with 9 K's and 1 walk! Lookin' good man! Box/Game Log

AA - Jacksonville won 3-0. Hu was 1-4 with 3 K's. Box

AA - Chen was 2-5 with a RBI and was also picked off at first. San Antonio won 4-3. Box

A - Lansing won 4-1. Cheng joined C.L. Lo in the 10 win club as he pitched 5 shutout innings of 1 hit ball to go along with 8 K's and 3 walks. Box

R - The Red Sox won 3-1. Chiang DNP. Huang made a defensive appearance in the final inning only. Box

Wed. Recap....

Japan:
Lin was 0-1 with a K in a pinch hit appearance as Hanshin won 4-3. Box

Minors:
AA - San Antonio lost 11-10. Chen was 0-1 in a pinch hit appearance. Box

AA - Jacksonville won 6-1. Hu was 0-4. Box

A - Lansing won 9-0. Keng pitched 2 scoreless innings in relief, giving up 1 hit and K'ing 1. Box

R - The Red Sox won 12-3. Chiang started the game as the DH and was 1-1 with a double and a run scored. He left the game in the 3rd inning after doubling and was replaced with a pinch runner. Hopefully he wasn't hurt on the play. Lin pitched 2 scoreless innings in relief and K'd 1. Box

R - Y.F. Lin won his 3rd game of the season for the Phillies who won 11-9. Lin pitched 2.1 innings in relief, giving up 3 hits, 2 runs - 1 earned, to go along with 1 K. Box

WUBC Recap:
The All-Star team was announced and the lone representative from Taiwan was 1B Fu-Jen Shen.

Final Stats of notables from Taiwan:
Batting:
1)Hsien-Hsien Yang .391 BA* 3 SB's* 7 runs scored*
2)Fu-Jen Shen .290 BA 7 RBI's* 6 runs scored
3)Hung-Yu Lin .346 BA 1 HR* 3 RBI's
Pitching:
1)Sung-Wei Tseng 2-1 1.85 ERA 19.1 IP*/25 K's*/1 BB
2)Chen-Chang Lee 1-0 0.00 ERA* 15.1 IP/15 K's / 6 BB
3)Ko-Chien Lin 3*-0 0.84 ERA 10.2 IP/6 K's / 3 BB

* denotes led team

When Talent and $$$$ Collide......Yi-Hao Lin

Lin pictured with dad and JR. High School Coach Wu-Hsiung Huang

Lin with Huang

Lin with Yomiuri Giants Rep

This is the story of uber-prospect Yi-Hao Lin. The 15 year old who's fastball has already been clocked at 93 mph is part of an ongoing trend of underhanded deals that send some of Taiwan's best players to Japan. A well-documented case of this practice occurred in the early 80's when the Blue Jays tried to sign Taiwanese legend Tai-Yuan Kuo. Despite securing a verbal agreement with Kuo, the Jays ultimately ended up losing Kuo to the NPB Seibu Lions when Kuo's brother made an under-the-table deal with financial incentives to secure Kuo's rights with the Lions.
Moving on to the present - Lin was signed, sealed and delivered to the Yomiuri Giants with his parents' blessings and the guidance of his junior HS coach Wu-Hsiung Huang and WBC head coach Hua-Wei Lin. Here's where things start to get a little gray. First of all, Lin is only 15 years old. Even in the MLB, there's a rule that kids have to be at least 16 years of age to sign with a ball club. The fact that Lin is already off the market table with his "commitment" to the Yomiuri Giants is compounded by the rumor that both W.H. Huang and H.W. Lin were compensated for helping to deliver Y.H. Lin to the Giants. Also, consider this: W.H. Huang and H.W. Lin were staunch advocates against Taiwanese HS kids signing with Major League clubs until after their graduation. This philosophy contradicts their stance with Lin. Did Huang and Lin really have Lin's best interest at heart, or were they merely looking out for themselves? I dunno, I just merely present the info so that you can come to your own conclusion.


As for Lin, he is currenty on the under 16 NT that will be playing in Indonesia from September 3rd through the 10th, competing for the title of Asia's best in the youth category. He will be joined by fellow top prospect, Rong-Hao Hsieh, a 16 year old pitcher with good mound presence and a fastball in the upper 80's.

Silver Lining for Our Boys....

Amateur:
Well, it just wasn't meant to be. Taiwan lost for the 9th consecutive time to the US tonight in the championship game of the WUBC. The US showed off it's offensive prowess tonight by scoring 18 runs on 22 hits!!!!! Taiwan managed to score 9 runs of it's own, but in the end it didn't matter as the US defended it's WUBC Title. Congrats to the US - there's gonna be quite a few kids from this US team that we'll be seeing shortly in the Major Leagues - what a talented, prospect-laden team!!! However, I couldn't be prouder of our guys!!! Congrats on a great showing in this tourney!
Box

Minors:
AA - Chen was 0-5 as San Antonio lost 4-2. Box

AA - Hu was 0-3 with a walk as Jacksonville won 3-2. Box

A - Modesto is currently winning 9-7 in the 8th inning. Lo is in line to win his 10th game of the season despite getting hit hard. Lo went 6 innings, giving up 8 hits - 2 HR's and 7 runs, with 1 walk and 7 K's. Box/Game Log

R - In the GCL, the Red Sox won 3-2. Chiang was 1-3 with a RBI. He committed his 10th error of the season in the field as well. Box

Victory At Last!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Taiwan battled Cuba on it's home soil and pulled out an unforgettable 2-1 win in 15 innings! With a pitcher's duel keeping things deadlocked for the first 8 innings, DH Hung-Yu Lin gave Taiwan an early lead with a solo blast in the 2nd inning. Cuba came right back to score against Lee in the top of the 3rd inning. Lee pitched extremely well - he was clocked in the low 90's, giving up only 2 hits in 8.1 innings to go along with 6 K's. In fact the only downside to Lee's night was the fact that he did struggle with his command - he had 5 walks. Lee's counterpart - Cuban starter was also dominant - Deynnis Saurez pitched 7.2 innings, giving up 3 hits - 1 run, while K'ing 14 and walking 3.
Taiwan's relievers managed to hold down Cuba's offense - C.F. Chen, C.J. Lo and K.C. Lin blanked Cuba for the last 6.2 innings. The hero on the night offensively for Taiwan was pinch hitter Han Lin, who drove in the game winning run in the 15th with a RBI single.
Box
From what I can recall, the last time we beat Cuba in a men's senior competition was in the 1980's ( the 1983 Intercontinental Cup, the 1984 and 1986 Baseball World Cup). This victory has been a long time coming.
Taiwan won't get much rest and time to celebrate as it will now face the US today for the championship game at 8:45 pm local time. Taiwan will attempt to win against the US for the first time in 9 tries this summer. The US is also looking to defend it's WUBC crown - it won the title in 2004. I'm curious as to who the starter for Taiwan will be, as Tseng pitched a complete game on Sunday and Lee pitched last night. Good luck to our boys tonight! Jia Yo!!!

Extra Innings Nail Biter....

Amateur:
The site for the WUBC is temporarily down, but the last time I checked, Taiwan and Cuba were deadlocked in a 1-1 tie in the 14th inning. Chen-Chang Lee was as advertised for Taiwan as he held the Cubans to 2 hits and 1 run over 8.1 innings. Hopefully when I wake up in the morning, I'll hear some good news about the results.

Thanks to Ben from the ABF, I was able to find out the results of the World Boys Baseball Tournament in Japan. Japan finished in first place by beating Brazil by a slim margin of 2-1. Taiwan ended up losing to Seoul, Korea by the same score 2-1 to finish 4th in the tourney.
I was able to find out from my buddy that the mystery pitcher is none other than 15 year old Wen-Hao Cheng.

Majors:
Chien-Ming Wang will get his third crack at winning #14 against the Boston Red Sox on Friday. Wang will face off against Jon Lester (6-2, 4.09 ERA). The game will be broacast on ESPN at 10:00 AM Pacific, so set your TIVO's/DVR's!

With the way Kuo is pitching, expect a September call-up to the Bigs when they expand the rosters. We'll see if Kuo can continue to demonstrate better command of his pitches at the Major League Level.

Minors:
AA - In 3 plate appearances against former top prospect for the KC Royals, Zack Greinke, Chen manage a single and a RBI. Chen was 2-3 overall, with a RBI and a run scored. San Antonio lost 11-3. Box

A - Everett is losing 7-5 in the 7th inning. Wu is currently 0-2 with a RBI behind the plate. Box/Log

R - Chiang continues to pick up his hitting. The Red Sox won 9-8 in extra innings as Chiang was 4-5 with 2 doubles, a triple, 2 runs scored, and 1 RBI. On the other hand, Huang continued to struggle at the plate as he was 0-4 with 2 K's; he also committed his 4th error of the season while playing at 1B. Box

Mystery Kid 2.....

Unfortunately, I was unable to find out who won the 2006 World Boys Baseball Tournament in Osaka, Japan. I do know that Japan and Brazil were playing for the gold, while Taiwan was supposed to duke it out with Seoul, Korea for the bronze.
However, in doing some research I did find out that the representatives from Taiwan are from Gui Ren Junior High School in Tainan County. The starter for the Taiwanese youth NT against the Australia junior NT (8/11/06) was clocked at 86-87 mph on his fastball. Knowing that these kids are only 13 to 14 years old, that is pretty impressive stuff!! Does anybody know who the starter for Taiwan was against Australia?

Wang Loses Fifth of the Season.....

Chien-Ming Wang had his second straight tough outing as he gave up a career high 13 hits in 5.1 innings to the Angels. Aside from a leadoff HR allowed, the other 12 hits were all singles. Based on the law of averages and with Wang's rep as a power sinker pitcher, you knew that Wang was due for one of these games - eventually, the ball will find it's way through the infield. Wang ended up allowing 5 earned runs with 2 walks and 3 K's. Rookie sensation Jered Weaver improved to 8-0 on the season.
Box

Amateur:
Italy played Taiwan tough today in the quarterfinals of the WUBC. Taiwan won 2-0 behind ace Sung-Wei Tseng's complete game 3 hitter. Tseng struck out 14 hitters! Taiwan itself struggled offensively as it mustered up 2 runs on only 5 hits. The coach did the right thing by playing Tseng today; at least he ensured that Taiwan will finish in the top 4. Box
Taiwan will play Cuba in one semifinal, while the USA is matched up against Japan in the other semifinal tomorrow.
Who will pitch against Cuba?....we'll probably see Chen-Chang Lee.


Prior to the start of the "AAA" Championships in Cuba on September 16th, the CT junior NT will be in Georgia (from the 8th to the 10th) for a few warm-up games. Read more here.
*UPDATED* The CT NT junior team will then play a 3 game warm up series versus the US junior NT from the 11th to the 13th, also in Georgia.

Minors:
AA - Chen was 0-3 as San Antonio lost 7-2. Box

A - Lansing lost 7-5. Keng pitched the last 2 innings, giving up 2 hits, 0 runs, with 2 K's. Box

Japan:
Hanshin lost 13-5. Lin drove in a run on a groundout in his only plate appearance. Box

Kuo the Starter?

MINORS:
Kuo started for Vegas again tonight and won his 3rd game of the season. Kuo was impressive as he lasted 6 innings, giving up 4 hits, 1 run, with 0 walks and 5 K's. Box
LA VP of scouting and player development Roy Smith recently commented on Kuo's status as a starter by saying,
"More than anything, we want to get Hong-Chih more innings and allow him to improve his fastball command and the development of his secondary pitches. He's progressing nicely and he'll probably be back in whatever role is most needed in the big leagues."

Cheng started for Lansing and earned a ND despite pitching 4.2 innings, giving up 1 run on 6 hits, with 4 walks and 6 K's. Box

Wu was 1-3 with a walk and a RBI for Everett. Box

Chiang was 3-5 with a run scored as the Red Sox won 10-3. Box

Y.F. Lin pitched 2.0 innings for the Phillies, giving up 3 hits and 1 run, with 2 K's. Box

Second Crack at #14....

Chien-Ming Wang will take the hill tomorrow at home for the Yankees versus the Angels at 10:00 AM Pacific. He will face rookie sensation Jered Weaver (7-0, 2.2o ERA). The game will be on TV locally in LA - 10:00 AM on channel KCOP - UPN 13.
Good read on Wang from today's NY Times.

*Updated*
Taiwan lost to Japan in the World Boys Baseball Tournament 7-1 Saturday. Taiwan will now play Seoul, Korea for third place tomorrow.
This has been a good year for Japan against Taiwan.

Taiwan Loses BIG to USA.....

The USA showed that they are the team to beat as they crushed Taiwan 12-1 in a shortened 7 inning game. Of the 5 Taiwanese pitchers to appear, only C.J. Lo came away unscathed. USA pitching was dominant, giving up only 2 hits. Their hitting was equally impressive as they cranked out 4 HR's in the game. Box
By taking second place in Pool B, Taiwan will play Italy on Sunday in the quarterfinals. Assuming that Taiwan beats Italy, they would most likely play the first place team (Japan or Cuba) of Pool A in the semifinals. If I were a betting man, the odds that Sung-Wei Tseng would make an appearance in the semifinal game would be extremely good.

MINORS:
AA - San Antonio lost 5-1. Chen was 1-4 with a double. Box

AA - Jacksonville lost 4-2. Hu was 0-4. Box

JAPAN:
Hanshin lost 3-2. Lin was 0-1 with a K in his pinch hit appearance. Box

YOUTH:
At the World Boys Baseball Tournament in Osaka, Japan, Taiwan defeated the Australian "AA" NT 8-6 and the Korean Tegu team 9-1 in a doubleheader on Friday. With that win, Taiwan won pool B and will now play in the semifinals against Japan, the winner of pool A on Saturday.

MISC:
Odds on Wang?
Sportsbook.com has put Wang up as a 15-1 favorite to win the 2006 AL Cy Young Award. Wishful thinking but as impressive as Wang has been this year, where is teammate Mike Mussina? Also, I can't remember the last time a starting pitcher won the Cy Young with as low a K/IP ratio as Wang has. At least Wang is being recognized for his effort and performance on the field this season.

Cool Vid of Taiwan vs. the US

I found a little something to get us pumped up for today's game versus the US in Cuba.
The video from below was taken from the July 4th, 2006 game between Taiwan and the US. It was the opening game in a 7 game friendly series between the two countries. Tseng started and pitched well for Taiwan. Unfortunately, the US pitchers pitched just as well.
Hopefully the outcome of today's game will finally be in our favor!

Baseball Game of Chinese Taipei(Taiwan) and United States

July 4th, 2006 matchup between the US and Taiwan. Taiwan lost 1-0.

A Pair of Aces Up Their Sleeves....

S.W. Tseng
photo courtesy of goldpanners.com

C.C. Lee
photo courtesy of Angel Yu

Over in Cuba today, the Taiwanese NT beat the Czech NT 5-0 to run their record to 4-0 in the tourney. The Taiwanese University NT had a masterful showing from one of their young guns - Chen-Chang Lee. The 19 year old righty was dominant today as he threw 7 near-perfect innings in which he pitched a hitless shutout through 7 with 9 K's and only 1 walk. His reliever, C.W. Lin gave up the only hit of the game in the 9th inning to the Czech team. Lee, who was profiled in an earlier blog post, was cited by Cor as throwing 91 to 93 mph in Holland. The strength of this year's team lies in their pitching staff led by Sung-Wei Tseng. Neat coincidence how Lee and Tseng almost ended up together in the Cleveland organization. Box
Anyways, Taiwan will take on the US tomorrow to determine the seedings for the quarterfinals. Win or lose, Taiwan will play either the 3rd or 4th place team from the other bracket - which will be determined by tomorrow's games (most likely either the Bahamas - who beat Cuba in this tourney already, Italy, or Nicaragua).

MINORS:
AA - Hu was 1-4 with a double and a RBI as Jacksonville won 4-3. Box

A - Lansing won 3-0. Keng earned his 3rd save of the season with 2 scoreless innings in relief. He gave up 1 hit with 1 walk and 2 K's. Box

A - Wu was 0-4 with 2 K's as his team lost 13-4. He also committed his 3rd error of the season behind the plate. Box

R - Lin won his second game of the season for the Red Sox. Pitching in relief, Lin threw 3 scoreless innings giving up 1 hit, with 3 K's and 1 walk. Chiang DNP, while Huang's average plummets to .143 with an 0-3 night. Box

JAPAN:
Hanshin lost 10-6. Lin managed another hit (single) in a pinch hit appearance. Box

YOUTH:
Over in Japan, there is a tourney called the World Boys Baseball Tournament for boys aged 14-15 going on right now. Taiwan is participating and won their first game versus Alameda, USA 10-0. Taiwan will play a doubleheader tomorrow: first against Australia ABF then followed by Korea Tegu. If Taiwan finishes first in it's group, it will play in the semifinals on Saturday versus the winner of Group A: Fresno, USA/China/Japan/Mexico Rojo.

3-0 at WUBC.....

But not without an initial scare from the Virgin Islands. Taiwan found themselves down 3-0 after the first inning. Taiwan starter Chia-Chun Tang, who pitched well in Holland, wasn't able to survive the first inning. Taiwan was able to take a lead going into the 6th inning before the V.I. tied it up 4-4 in the bottom of the 6th. From there on out, Taiwan racked up 11 runs in the final 3 innings to win convincingly 15-4. Ko-Chien Lin won his second game of the tourney. Offensive stars for Taiwan were: Chun-Yu Kuo who was 2-4 with a HR and 3 RBI's and Fu-Jen Shen who was 3-5 with 2 RBI's. Box
Taiwan's next game should be a gimme against the Czech Republic. After that it's a rematch against the US team that swept them 7-0 in an exhibition series this past summer.

Japan:
Lin was 1-1 in a pinch hit appearance with a double. Box

Minors:
Hu was 1-5 with a walk and a SB. Box

He's back!! Chen returned to San Antonio and was 0-3 with 2 walks and a run scored. Box

Lo won his 9th game of the season, pitching 7 innings, giving up 5 runs - 4 earned, with 0 walks and 6 K's. He also gave up 2 HR's. Box

Chiang DNP, while Huang was 0-4 with 2 K's. Box

Tamiami, FL Wins Bronco World Series....

In a faceoff between the top two teams in the tourney, Taiwan lost 6-1 to the boys from Tamiami, FL on Tuesday night.
Congrats to the Tamiami team!!
To the kids on the Taiwanese team, keep your heads up, we're proud of your effort and look forward to seeing you guys play in the future.

Wang's Streak Comes to an End...

Majors:
Chien-Ming Wang earned a ND tonight versus the Chicago White Sox. Wang pitched 5 innings, giving up 7 hits, 4 earned runs, with 2 walks and a K. Wang's 19 scoreless innings ended in the second inning when the Sox struck for 3 runs. Wang left the game with the score knotted up at 4 runs a piece. Wang's ERA now stands at 3.69. Box It was a great run while it lasted! Time to start up a new streak Wang!!

Minors:
Jacksonville lost 3-1. Hu was 1-4, as his team collectively had 3 hits the entire game. Box

With his team leading 6-5, Lo was 0-1 with a SB before being replaced by a pinch runner. Hopefully he didn't get hurt stealing his 15 base on the season for Wisky. Box

Chiang was 0-4 for the GCL Red Sox as they won 4-2. Box

2006 World University Baseball Championships Roster & Update

Sidearm Thrower: Chen-Chang Lee

Two pitchers were cut from the 24 man list that participated in the Holland Tournament to finalize the roster below (22 players).

PITCHERS:
1)Wei-Jen Cheng
2)Chia-Chun Tang
3)Chen-Chang Lee
4)Chia-Wei Lin
5)Ching-Ming Wang
6)Sung-Wei Tseng
7)Chia-Jen Lo
8)Chien-Fu Chen
9)Ko-Chien Lin
***Hung-Wen Chen and Cheng-Yang Chen were cut from the team after the Holland tourney

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

INFIELDERS:
1)Fu-Jen Shen
2)Sheng-Wei Wang
3)Han Lin
4)Chih-Hsiang Lin
5)Hsien-Hsien Yang

OUTFIELDERS:
1)Ken-Wei Lin
2)Chen-Yu Chung
3)Chih-Yao Chan
4)Chia-Hui Wu
5)Chun-Yu Kuo

After 2 games, Taiwan is currently undefeated in their pool play. Taiwan beat Mexico today 7-2, despite using 5 pitchers and giving up 2 HR's. Taiwan was down 1-0 until the bottom of the 6th inning when CF Chen-Yu Chung blasted a 3 run HR to give Taiwan a lead it would not relinquish again. Chung was the star of the game, going 3-4 with a 2B, a HR, and 3 RBI's. 1B Fu-Jen Shen chipped in 2 more RBI's with a 1-4 day at the plate. C Yi-Wei Lee was 2-4 with a double and a run scored. As for the pitching, 5 pitchers (C.F. Chen, C.M. Wang, K.C. Lin, C.W. Lin, C.J. Lo) combined for 8 hits, 2 runs allowed (on solo shots), struck out 7 and walked 2 batters. Ko-Chien Lin got the win, throwing 3.2 perfect innings. Taiwan plays the Virgin Islands tomorrow and has a good chance of being undefeated before it plays it's final preliminary game against the US.

2 Wins Versus Puerto Rico?

TSENG'S PERFORMANCE TODAY (summed up in 1 word): DOMINATING!

Amateur:
Over in Cuba, Taiwan's University NT got off to a great start by beating Puerto Rico 2-0. Cleveland Indians signee Sung-Wei Tseng was simply outstanding as he threw a complete game 3 hit shutout versus P.R. Tseng stuck out 11 and walked none. 1B Fu-Jen Shen was the star on offense for Taiwan as he was 2-3 with a RBI.

Youth:
In the Bronco World Series, with the championship game at stake, Taiwan played Puerto Rico today in one semifinal - score pending.
*Updated* Taiwan WILL play in the championship game tomorrow vs. Tamiami, FL. Taiwan defeated Puerto Rico 10-4 tonight! Way to go!!! Supposedly the championship game will be broadcast on this link, however, I haven't been able to get it to work.

Minors:
AA - Jacksonville lost 3-2 in extra innings. Hu got in the game late as a pinch hitter and walked in his only plate appearance. Box

A - Wisconsin lost 3-2 in extra innings. Lo, out of the leadoff spot was 0-4 and was also picked off attempting to steal second base. Box

A - Lansing won 3-2. Cheng picked up his 9th win of the season with a tremendous outing tonight. Cheng pitched 5 innings, giving up 2 hits, 1 run - none earned, with 7 K's and 3 walks. Box

R - In the GCL, the Red Sox lost 12-8. Chiang was 1-4 with a walk and a RBI. He also committed 2 errors in the game (9 total for the season). Huang started at 1B again and was 0-2 with 2 walks and 2 runs scored. Box

R - In other GCL action, the Phillies won 4-1. Y.F. Lin pitched 2 innings in relief, giving up 1 hit, 1 run, with 1 walk and 2 K's. Box

R - In the AZL, the Mariners are losing 3-1 in the 6th inning. Chen, down in Peoria recovering from his injury, is currently 1-3. Box/Game Log

Miscellaneous:
Kuo was selected PCL Pitcher of the Week.

Cheng was selected the Pitcher of the Month for the Jays minor league organization for the month of July.

On the Comeback Trail...

Yung-Chi Chen returned to game action last night in the rookie-level Arizona League. In his first game back since partially dislocating his left shoulder, Chen was 1-5 with a double and a RBI. Box

World Champs!!!!!!!!

Taipei, Taiwan was crowned World Champion in the Palomino Division (17-18 year olds) of the Pony League World Series today. Taiwan beat Harlingen, Texas in the title game 5-3! Congratulations!!!!!!

Lo Cracks 1st HR for Wisky.......

Mr. K.H. Lo # 52

Minors:
AA - Jacksonville won 12-4. Hu was 0-4 with a walk and a run scored. Box

A - Wisconsin came from behind to beat Beloit 11-10. Lo finally broke out of a slump with his 1st HR at Wisconsin. Lo was 3-4 with 2 RBI's, 3 runs scored, and 2 SB's! Box

A - Keng earned a save (his second) for Lansing as he pitched the last 2 innings, giving up 3 hits and 1 run. Box

Amateur:
Taiwan's game versus the US at the World University Championships was rescheduled today for August 11th. Taiwan will still play Puerto Rico tomorrow.

Youth:
Taiwan beat Oak Park, IL 14-4 today in the Bronco World Series, securing the top spot in the Green Division. Taiwan will next play tomorrow against the runner-up from the White Division - either Puerto Rico or New York. The winner of that game will play for all the marbles in the Championship game on Tuesday.
*Updated*

HR Derby Champ!

photo taken from broncoworldseries.org site

Tse-Yang Peng (pictured in the middle) of Taiwan won the Bronco World Series HR Derby that took place on Saturday morning. Peng launched 12 HR's before reaching his 10 out quota! His teammate, Chen-Long Chen (on left) earned 3rd place with 4 HR's, 3 behind the runner-up from Puerto Rico. Congrats! Hopefully the big bats will carry these kids to a championship this year!

Win # 13 Video...

From Youtube, game highlights of Chien-Ming Wang's 13th victory vs. Toronto last week below.

Win #13 August 2nd vs. Toronto

Saturday Scoreboard...

Majors:
Wang is scheduled to start the series against the White Sox on Tuesday. Wang will put his 5 game winning streak and 18 scoreless innings on the line against Freddy Garcia (10-7, 4.87 ERA). This will be Wang's first career start vs. the defending champs.

Minors:
Kuo continues to impress as a starter as he pitched 5 scoreless innings, giving up 4 hits on 1 walk and 5 K's. Kuo ended up with a ND as Las Vegas lost 5-0. Box

In game 1 of a doubleheader, Hu was 1-2 with a walk as his team lost 2-1. Box
In the second game of the doubleheader, Hu was 0-4, with a walk, 2 runs scored, and his 10th SB of the season. Box

Wisconsin lost 14-4. Lo was 0-4 with 3 more K's tonight. Box

In the GCL, the Red Sox won 5-2. Chiang was 1-3 with a RBI sac-fly, a double, and a run scored. Box

Youth:
Taiwan played Pacific Grove tonight at the Bronco World Series - and won 10-0. Taiwan's next game is Sunday vs. winless Oak Park, IL.
*Updated*

Twist of Fate....

Taiwan lost to Japan today in the Pony League Asian Championship game 6-5. The score and outcome was a reversal of the opening game on Wed. night between the same two teams.
Japan will go on to Washington, PA to represent the Far East.

I wish Little League would have given the Taiwanese kids the same opportunity to play in a championship game!!!

In other Japanese news, Wei-Chu Lin was 0-1 in Hanshin's 11-7 win over the Carp. Box

8/4/06 Roundup...

Mr. Lo

Minors:
Ching-Lung Lo pitched well for Modesto as he went 6 innings, giving up 7 hits, 3 runs, on 3 walks and 9 K's. Lo fatigued in his last inning of work, when he allowed 3 runs on a balk, 2 walks, a wild pitch, a hit batter, and 2 hits. Lo received a ND as he left the game in a 3-3 tie. Box

Wu was 0-3 with a walk for Everett. Box

Kuo is scheduled to start tomorrow for Las Vegas vs. the Oklahoma RedHawks.

Youth:
Taiwan beat the Philippines 11-1 Friday to set up a championship match with Japan on Saturday. Winner goes on to the Pony League World Series in Washington, PA.

Tomorrow's Bronco World Series game (CT vs. Pacific Grove, CA) will be broadcast on the internet at 4:30 PM Pacific. Link
Supposedly, the video for CT's first game versus North Seattle, WA is up, but I can't get the link to work. Anyone else get it to work?

Thursday News....

Minors:
Ching-Lung Hu DNP tonight, but Baseball America recently rated Hu the best defensive SS in the Dodger's organization. Read more here.

Wisconsin won 6-2 tonight. However, Kuo-Hui Lo continued his struggles at the plate as of late. Lo was 0-4 with 3 K's tonight. Box

In the GCL, the Phillies lost to the Yankees. Y.F. Lin made an appearance in relief, pitching 2 innings, giving up 2 hits, 2 runs - 1 earned, with 0 walks and 2 K's. Box

Japan:
In his team's 5-1 win, Lin walked in his only plate appearance. Box

Amateur:
The World University Games begin this Sunday in Cuba. 11 total teams will be participating in two groups. In group A is Cuba, Japan, Nicaragua, Italy, and the Bahamas.
Taiwan will be in group B along with the US, Puerto Rico, Mexico, the Czech Republic, and the Virgin Islands.
Taiwan's preliminary schedule:
1)Sunday 8/6 vs. USA
2)Monday 8/7 vs. Puerto Rico
3)Tuesday 8/8 vs. Mexico
4)Wednesday 8/9 vs. the Virgin Islands
5)Thursday 8/10 vs. the Czech Republic
Following group play, the top 4 teams from each group will advance to the quarterfinals. The semifinals will take place on Sunday 8/13, with the championship game taking place Tuesday 8/15.

Youth:
In the Asian Pony Baseball Regionals, Taiwan defeated Russia 11-0. Taiwan will play the Philippines tomorrow, with the championship game versus Japan on Saturday 8/5.

The Bronco Baseball World Series schedule has been set. Taiwan's first game was tonight versus North Seattle, WA - Taiwan won a close game 5-3.
*Updated

Chen on a Tear!!!

In Chen's most recent outing - August 1st versus the Sinon Bulls: he was 3-4 with with 2 HR's (including a walk-off GW HR), 3 RBI's, and 2 runs scored.
Below are a few vids of Chen's most recent HR barrage. Impressive stuff!

Chen - HR # 17

GW HR for C.F. Chen August 1st versus the Sinon Bulls.

Chen - HR # 16

Chen - HR #15

Card of the Month - Taiwan's Finest C.M. Wang

This month's pick is a no-brainer. Chien-Ming Wang has simply exceeded all expectations placed on him and has solidified his status as the Yankee's #2 starter.
I actually picked up this card at the National in Anaheim last week.

Did you Know? Wang was on the 1997 junior NT that won a silver medal, losing only to Cuba in the '97 World Junior Baseball Championships held in Canada.

Man On Fire!!!!

Wow, unbelievable.....Chien-Ming Wang's hot streak continues as he pitched an 8 inning 4 hit shutout today versus the best hitting lineup in the majors - the Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays, who lead the ML with a .293 cumulative BA and .480 Slugging Percentage, were shut down by Wang's sinker - he induced 16 groundouts and gave up only 1 extra base hit (to Hinske of all people). Aside from winning his 5th straight game, Wang has also pitched 18 scoreless innings now. Wang's record on the season stands at 13-4 with a 3.58 ERA. Box/Wrap
Barring injury, Wang is in good shape to win 20 games this season. The Yankees have the type of offensive lineup to help Wang win even if he's having an off day. I'm excited to see what Wang and the Yankees can do over the next 2 months and hopefully into the postseason.

Japan:
Lin finally got a start for the Hanshin Tigers in CF. He was 1-3 with a double, although his team lost 3-2. Box

Minors:
AA - Hu was 2-5 with a double as Jacksonville won 7-4. Box

A - Lansing lost 9-6. The "Siamese Twins" Cheng and Keng made another joint appearance together. Cheng started the game and pitched 5 innings, giving up 6 hits, 3 runs, with 2 walks and 3 K's. Keng relieved Cheng with the score all knotted up at 3. Keng pitched 2.1 innings and was victimized by several team errors to give up 4 unearned runs and take the tough loss. Box

Wisconsin lost 14-3. Lo, playing in LF, was 1-4 and committed his 4th error of the season. Box

R - The Red Sox won 2-1. Chiang was 1-4, committing his 7th error of the season at 2B. Lin pitched well, throwing 3 shutout innings. Box

Youth:
Over in the Philippines, Chinese Taipei is trying to qualify for the Pony League World Series (13-14 year olds). Playing their toughest opponent in the tourney - Japan, CT managed a 6-5 win today to start off the Asian Regionals on a good note. CT will play 2 more games versus the Philippines and Russia before a championship game is played on Saturday between the top 2 teams - in all likelihood a CT-Japan rematch.

Wang's 12th Win

Highlights of Wang's complete game shutout July 28th versus the T.B. Devil Rays.

In Search of #13...

Majors:
Chien-Ming Wang takes the hill tomorrow for the Yankees vs. Toronto starter Ted Lilly (9-9, 4.02 ERA). Wang has won his last 4 consecutive starts and is 1-0 versus Toronto, although the Jays offense has hit well off of Wang - particularly Ed Hinske, who's cracked a few HR's against Wang.

Chin-Hui Tsao Update: Tsao threw a simulated inning of batting practice today. Tsao's prognosis will depend on how well he recovers from today's performance. Read more here.

Minors:
Jacksonville lost 6-3. Hu was 1-5 with a double. Box

Wisconsin lost 8-7. Lo was 2-3 with a walk, 2 runs scored, and swiped his 12th base of the season. Box

Lowell lost 7-0. Yeh made an appearance in the 9th inning, but unfortunatley was knocked around. Yeh gave up 4 hits, 2 runs, with 1 walk and 1 K in his inning of work. Box

The Red Sox won 8-3 in the GCL. Chiang was 0-4 as the DH. Box

Alaska:
The 2006 All ABL Team was named. Despite a solid season by Taiwanese OF Chu, he did not make the cut. Chu finished the season 7th in the league with a .321 batting average and was in the top 10 as a run producer with 21 RBI's. I'm sure we'll be seeing more of Chu on the Taiwanese NT.

Miscellaneous:
Surfing through the web, I found a pretty cool blog with good pictorial and video coverage of Taiwanese major leaguers Chien-Ming Wang and Hong-Chih Kuo. Check it out!