So Close.......

Amateur:
1)In the Palomino World Series, Taiwan lost in the championship game to Puerto Rico 3-2 in extra innings. As relayed to me by someone (thanks JC!) at the game, lefty De-Jen Chen pitched a complete game - throwing the full 8 innings. From the perspective that he probably was the #3 pitcher on the staff, the kid was outstanding. The hardest part about today's loss was the fact that the game was lost on an error from the SS - in the bottom of the 8th with the score knotted at 2 runs apiece, Puerto Rico had a runner at 3rd with 1 out. The next batter was intentionally walked to set up the double-play ball. The very next hitter hit a ground ball that was fielded cleanly, flipped to 2nd for the force out there, but an errant throw by the SS led to the GW unearned run. Tough way to lose, but the kids have nothing to be ashamed of - the outcome easily could have been reversed had they capitalized on some earlier missed scoring opportunities. The kids will fly back to Taiwan tomorrow. When time permits, I'll post some vids that I took during Saturday's game vs. Redlands.

2)After losing 4 of 5 games to the US earlier in the summer, Taiwan extracted a small measure of revenge by beating the US in the WPT 10-5 on Sunday. The hitting star for Taiwan was Yi-Chuan Lin who was 3-5 with 2 RBI's. With the win, Taiwan evens its record at 2-2 and will have an off-day tomorrow. It will then play the same 4 teams again beginning August 7th. Box/Recap

3)The outcome of today's matchup in the Bronco World Series between Taiwan and Lafayette, IN has not been posted yet - although I like the team's chances. As for the Pony Asian-Pacific Qualifier, the outcome between Taiwan and Japan in the championship game (took place 8/4) is still unknown to me at this time. *UPDATED 8/6 - Taiwan defeated Lafayette, IN 16-1 on Sunday to finish first in its pool. The team will play the #2 team in the other pool - Tamiami, FL in one semifinal today - 8/6.



US Minors:
R - The Red Sox won 3-1. CH Lin was 0-4, while CH Huang was 0-3. Box

R - The Twins and Reds played two today: In game 1, WW Lin was 2-4 with a double, a triple, and a RBI. Box In game 2, TK Chiu threw well despite earning a loss - he allowed 2 runs on 7 hits over 5.1 IP - to go along with 7 K's. Box

R - Bristol lost 6-3. PY Lin lost his 3rd game of the season, lasting 3.1 innings - allowing 4 runs (1 earned) on 3 hits. Box

A ss - Tri-City lost 9-3 today. SA Kuo had his worst outing of the season - allowing 6 runs on 4 hits over 2 innings. He is now winless in his last 5 starts. Box

A - Lansing won 12-4. Keng allowed 2 runs on 4 hits over 1.2 IP. Box

A - Wisky won 19-10. KH Lo was 2-3 with 2 doubles and 2 walks. Box

AAA - Vegas lost 9-8. Hu was 4-5 with 2 doubles and a RBI - he also committed his 4th error in Vegas. Box



NPB:
The Tigers won 4-2. WC Lin was 2-4 with a RBI and a walk. Box



CPBL:
Bears 4 - Cobras 3: SP Feng-Hua Lee gave the Bears a good outing allowing 1 run on 5 hits over 6.2 IP. He received run support from game MVP Long-Yi Huang, who was 3-4, drove in 1 run, and hit HR #6 as well as CS Lin who hit HR #13 and was 1-3 with 2 RBI's. CFC was 0-4. For the Cobras, CH Hsieh hit HR #14 and was 1-4 with 2 RBI's.

Whales 18 - Bulls 4: Yu-Chieh Shen picked up victory #3 after allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 7 hits over 6 IP. The Whales put on a 20 hit barrage led by game MVP Carlos Villalobos, who was 3-5 with 4 RBI's as he hit HR #4. For the Bulls, Tarzan hit HR #14 as he was 2-4 with 2 RBI's.