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Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Win Vs. Italian NT....

NT:

CL Huang

Preparing for the World Cup, Taiwan defeated Italy 6-0 on Wednesday. The NT was actually held scoreless until the 7th inning when it scored a run (the RBI coming from La New Bears SS Chih-Sheng Lin) - and then tacked on 5 more in the 8th inning. Chih-Lung Huang started for the NT and threw 5 scoreless innings. He allowed 3 hits, K'd 4 and allowed no walks. He was clocked at a high of 89 mph. Following Huang, MC Hsu, Yu-Chieh Shen, and Po-Hsuan Keng combined to shutout the Italian NT over the last 4 innings. CS Lin and CFC were supposed to get the night off following their draining Taiwan Series loss, however both made PH appearances and collected a hit each. Breaking the game wide open for the NT in the 8th inning, was 3B Yi-Chuan Lin's triple. The NT will play Australia tomorrow. En-Yu Lin is expected to start the game.



AFL:
YC Chen continues to smoke the ball in Arizona. Chen was 3-4 with a walk and drove in 3 runs to help lead his team to a 10-7 win Wed. Box/Recap

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Chih-Lung Huang on the Mound Tomorrow.....

NT:
In final preparation for the WC, the NT will play the Italian NT tomorrow. 18 year old Chih-Lung Huang is expected to start tomorrow's game.



Other:
Prospect Insider (a tremendous site on the Seattle Mariners organization and their prospects) has a few scouts' impression on Yung-Chi Chen:

"Scout 1 - “He’s a real solid baseball player showing some strong fundamental skills, and decent speed. I like his footwork around the bag at second compared to where he was two years ago in A ball, too. I think he can manage second base and his bat, while lacking pop, holds its own.”

Scout 2 - “He’s ideal for a utility spot, especially if he can learn to play some outfield. I don’t think he’ll hit enough to play everyday, but the physical tools are there for him to be average in most areas, and average across the board can make one a regular.”

Scout 3 - “Two words: Placido Polanco. Polanco bloomed late with many of the same physical skills and Chen could follow a similar path.”"



Speaking of the Mariners, remember P Chao Wang? The kid was the first player ever signed from China. He is now a 22-year old OF playing for the Chinese NT in the AFL.

Monday, October 29, 2007

Monday Observations...

AFL:
YC Chen was 1-3 with a walk and committed his 2nd error of the season. His team crushed the Chinese NT 20-4. Box


Konami Cup:
Three of the four team participants for the upcoming Konami Cup have been determined. In addition to the President Lions and a CBA All-Star team (essentially the Chinese NT), the 2007 KBO champs have been crowned - the SK Wyverns. The representative from the NPB will be the winner of the 2007 Nippon Series between the defending champs - the Nippon Ham Fighters and the Chunichi Dragons.

Sunday, October 28, 2007

CFC vs. Toot Toot....

In a battle of the league's best hitter versus the top home-grown pitcher in the league, it was a no-contest as Chen blasted two HR's off of Wei-Lun Pan in game 6 of the Taiwan Series on Saturday:
HR #1





HR #2


Your 2007 CPBL Champs: President Lions

2007 Taiwan Series (Game 7):

Game 7 and Taiwan Series MVP
In front of a crowd of 20,000, the President Lions avenged last year's sweep by defeating the La New Bears 4-2 on Sunday to win the 2007 Taiwan Series. Lions starter Nelson Figueroa won his third game of the Taiwan Series, earning game MVP honors for his CG victory. NF allowed only 2 runs on 5 hits over 9 IP - he also had 8 K's and 1 walk allowed. For his outstanding play in the Series, NF was also selected the 2007 Taiwan Series MVP.
The Lions struck first, scoring 3 runs in the top of the 4th when the #6 (Lien-Hung Chen 1-3 with a RBI), #7 (Sen Yang 2-4 with a RBI), and #8 (Tai-Chi Kuo 2-4 with a RBI) hitters in the lineup all came up with clutch hits. The Bears would score a run in the bottom of the 6th when Chin-Feng Chen (1-3 with a double and a RBI) came up with a clutch double scoring one run - however Chih-Sheng Lin (who was at first when CFC doubled) was thrown out at the plate to end the threat. The Lions would tack on another run in the 7th inning after the Bears' second baseman committed an error. Trailing 4-1 heading into the bottom of the 9th, the Bears would score their final run of the game on Chih-Sheng Lin's second HR of the series (he was 2-4 with a HR and a RBI).
For their efforts, Fu-Hao Liu of the Lions and Chin-Feng Chen (Bears) were elected Most Outstanding Players of the Series.
The championship was the 5th in the club history of the President Lions, with the last one coming in 2000. The Lions will now represent the CPBL in the 2007 Konami Cup taking place Nov. 8th through the 11th.
Congrats to the Lions (and the Bears) for an outstanding Series!

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Superman Comes Through!

2007 Taiwan Series (Game 6):

Game 6 MVP
pic from Apple Daily

Well it all comes down to one game now. The Bears evened the series at 3-3 with Superman - Chin-Feng Chen, doing all he could to carry his team on his back. The Bears held on for a 6-5 win on Saturday.
Both teams went with their own Taiwanese aces: Wei-Lun Pan for the Lions and Yu-Wei Hsu for the Bears. Yu-Wei Hsu earned the win despite allowing 4 runs on 7 hits over the first 5 IP. His opponent on the mound, Wei-Lun Pan took the loss after allowing 6 runs on 11 hits over 8 IP.
5 long balls were hit by three guys. Taking the ball deep for the Lions were: Fu-Hao Liu who hit his 3rd HR of the Series - a solo shot in the 6th inning & regular season HR record holder Tilson Brito, who smacked his first 2 HR's (both were solo roundtrippers) of the Series. For the Bears, Chin-Feng Chen hit his 3rd and 4th HR's of the Series - a 3-run shot in the 1st inning and a 2-run shot in the 5th inning to account for almost all of his team's runs.
After Chen's second HR of the game, the Bears held a 6-3 lead after 5 innings. The Lions would make things interesting after tacking on a run in both the 6th and 7th innings. But Bears reliever Wen-Hsiung Hsu would settle down and blank the Lions in the 8th and 9th innings to pick up a huge save.
For being a one-man wrecking crew, CFC earned game MVP honors. Offensively for the Bears: CFC was 2-4 with 2 HR's and 5 RBI's/Chih-Sheng Lin was 1-4/Chien-Wei Tsai was 3-4/Chih-Tsung Chiang was 2-4 with a triple/Feng-Min Chen was 2-3 with a double and a RBI.
For the Lions: Tilson Brito was 2-3 with 2 HR's and 2 RBI's/Fu-Hao Liu was 2-4 with a double, a HR, and a RBI/Sen Yang was 2-3 with a RBI/Sheng-Chieh Hsu was 1-2 with a RBI.
The final game of the Series takes place tomorrow in Kaohsiung. The Lions will put their hopes in Nelson Figueroa, who has already won games 1 & 4 in the Series. The Bears will counter with
Andrew Lorraine, winner of game 3.


WC:
The Cuban NT has been announced. All of the stars will be there in Taiwan.

Thursday, October 25, 2007

10/25 AFL Update.....

AFL:
Chen was 1-3 with 2 walks and an error as his team beat Team USA 8-6. Box/Game Log


Surprisingly, YC Chen was not selected to the AFL Rising Stars Showcase (taking place Friday Oct. 28th). His Taiwanese brethren CL Hu was selected to participate in the game.

Stayin' Alive...

2007 Taiwan Series (Game 5):
The LA New Bears staved off elimination with a come-from-behind victory over the Lions on Thursday. The Bears won 8-5 in a slug-fest that saw 6 balls leave the yard. Trailing 5-4 heading into the 8th, the Bears would rely on some timely hitting in the 8th and the long ball in the 9th to help seal the deal. Game MVP honors went to Bears pitcher Mac Suzuki who earned the win after relieving starter Kevin Huang. Huang lasted only 3.2 innings and was pulled after the Lions scored 3 runs in the bottom of the 4th to tie things up at 3-3. Mac would pitch the remaining 5.1 innings and allow only 2 runs on 7 hits (to go along with 6 K's and 2 walks allowed) the rest of the game. Lions starter Pete Munro earned a ND - he threw 7 innings, allowing 4 runs on 5 hits.

Offensively for the Bears: CF Long-Yi Huang was 2-5 with a HR and 2 RBI's/RF Chien-Wei Tsai was 1-5 with a HR and a RBI/SS Chih-Sheng Lin was 1-3 with a HR and a RBI/DH Chin-Feng Chen was 1-4 with a HR and 2 RBI's/1B Kit Pellow was 1-5 with a RBI.

For the Lions: PH Po-Chao Yang hit a key 3 run HR in the 4th - he was 1-1 with a HR and 3 RBI's/RF Fu-Hao Liu was 2-5 with a HR and a RBI/3B Tilson Brito was 1-2 with a RBI/2B Kuo-Ching Kao was 1-5/LF Tai-Chi Kuo was 2-3 with a double/CF-LF Wu-Hsiung Pan was 3-5.

Game 6 will take place Saturday as the Lions look to close out the Series with ace Wei-Lun Pan set to face off against Yu-Wei Hsu.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Wed. News..

AFL:YC Chen had a productive day at the plate. He was 2-2 with 5 RBI's to help lead his team to a 9-5 win. Box/Recap


NT (WC News):
LHP Si-Yo Wu (Marines) and RHP Chih-Chia Chang were cut from the prelim. NT roster.

One Away....

2007 Taiwan Series (GAME 4):
The Lions moved within one game of winning the Taiwan Series after defeating the LA New Bears 11-4 on Wednesday. Nelson Figueroa, the game MVP, defeated Wen-Hsiung Hsu with a dominant performance. NF allowed only 1 unearned run over 7 IP - giving up 9 hits to go along with 9 K's and one walk allowed.
The Lions took a lead they would not relinquish in the bottom of the first. With the bases loaded, Kuo-Ching Kao came up to the plate and smacked a grand slam to give his team a 4-1 lead after one inning of play. In the 5th inning, the Lions would tack on 5 more runs to put the game out of reach. The Bears would rally for 3 runs in the 8th on the strength of Kit Pellow's 3-run HR - but that was all she wrote for the Bears. The Lions would tack on two more runs in the bottom of the 8th for the final tally.
Offensively for the Lions: Wu-Hsiung Pan was 2-4/Tilson Brito was 0-2 with 2 walks/Kuo-Ching Kao was 1-4 with a HR and 4 RBI's/Fu-Hao Liu was 1-4 with a triple and 2 RBI's/Lien-Hung Chen was 2-4 with 2 RBI's.
The Bears actually managed to outhit the Lions (12-9) with: Chih-Sheng Lin 4-4/Chin-Feng Chen 3-4/Kit Pellow 2-4 with a HR and 3 RBI's/Long-Yi Huang 2-4 with a triple.
The Lions will try and close out the Series tomorrow as they send Pete Munro to the mound against Game 1 loser Kevin Huang.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

10/23 AFL....

AFL:
YC Chen is currently 0-2 as his team is up 2-0 in the 4th. CL Lo has thrown three perfect innings so far. Box/Log

*Hu is currently out with a sore right hamstring.

Bears Take Game 3....

2007 Taiwan Series:
The Bears eeked out a 7-6 win on Tuesday to help pull them to a 2-1 deficit in the Taiwan Series. Facing 16 game winner Wei-Lun Pan and with their own ace (Gary Rath) out of the playoffs with an injury, the Bears found a way to come out on top in a must-win situation.

SCORING RECAP:
*Bears Top 2nd - Chih-Tsung Chiang hits a solo HR. (Bears 1 - Lions 0)
*Lions Bottom 2nd - Kuo-Ching Kao leads off with a single. Lien-Hung Chen doubles to put runners at 2nd and 3rd. Chih-Kang Kao drives in both runners with a single. (Lions 2 - Bears 1)
*Bears Top 4th - Chih-Sheng Lin leads off with a single. After CFC K's, Kit Pellow singles to put runners on 1st and 2nd. Chih-Tsung Chiang K's. Chin-De Yu singles, driving in a run. (Bears 2 - Lions 2)
*Bears Top 6th - CFC singles. After 2 outs, Chin-De Yu is walked to put runners at 1st and 2nd. Long-Yi Huang singles, driving in a run. (Bears 3 - Lions 2)
*Bears Top 7th - With the bases loaded, Kit Pellow singles - driving in a run. Next batter - Chih-Tsung Chiang singles, driving in two more runs. Chin-De Yu collects a hit, driving in the final run of the inning. (Bears 7 - Lions 2)
*Lions Bottom 7th - With 2 outs, Tilson Brito doubles. Kuo-Ching Kao singles - driving in a run. (Bears 7 - Lions 3)
*Lions Bottom 8th - With 1 out, Chih-Kang Kao singles. After Sen Yang flies out, PH Chin-Tien Shih singles - putting runners on 1st and 2nd. The next batter - Fu-Hao Liu smacks a 3-run HR. (Bears 7 - Lions 6)
END OF SCORING

Andrew Lorraine earned the victory for the Bears - he allowed 2 runs over 6 IP.
Taking the loss for the Lions was Wei-Lun Pan. He allowed 3 runs on 7 hits over 6 IP - to go along with 8 K's and 2 walks allowed.

Game MVP honors went to Bears 2B Chih-Tsung Chiang who was 2-5 with a HR (only extra base hit for the Bears) and 3 RBI's. Other Bears in the lineup: 3B Chih-Wei Shih 2-5/LF Chien-Wei Tsai 1-5/SS Chih-Sheng Lin 1-3/DH CFC 1-4/1B Kit Pellow 2-5 RBI/RF Chin-De Yu 2-4 RBI/CF Long-Yi Huang 1-2 RBI.

For the Lions offense: RF Fu-Hao Liu 1-4 HR 3 RBIs/CF Wu-Hsiung Pan 2-5 double/3B Tilson Brito 1-5 double/1B Kuo-Ching Kao 2-5 RBI/DH Lien-Hung Chen 2-5 double/LF Tai-Chi Kuo 1-5/C Chih-Kang Kao 3-3 double 2 RBI's/2B Sen Yang 1-4/SS Chin-Tien Hsih 1-1.

Game 4 will take place tomorrow matching up Wen-Hsiung Hsu of the Bears against the Lions' Nelson Figueroa.

Monday, October 22, 2007

10/22 AFL Update...

AFL:
Hu was 0-1 as his squad lost 10-1. Box


NT:
Final stats from Australia.

1-3-1 in Australia.....

NT:
The NT dropped the last game of the series against the Perth Heat on Monday. The NT lost 3-1 but received a strong start from En-Yu Lin (Rakuten Eagles) who allowed only 1 run on 1 hit over 5 IP - he also had 8 K's and 5 walks. Fu-Te Ni (CT Whales) followed Lin with 2 scoreless innings, K'ing 4. Taking the loss for the NT was Sung-Wei Tseng (Cleveland Indians) who allowed a 2-run HR in the 8th inning to break a 1-1 tie. Despite the loss, the team outhit its opponent 7-4. Collecting the hits for Taiwan were: Chien-Ming Chang (3-4), Yi-Chuan Lin (1-4 double), Kuo-Hui Lo (1-4), and Chih-Hsien Chiang (2-4 RBI). Box/Play-By-Play

With World Cup play just around the corner, the overall performance of the NT in Australia has to be disappointing. Aside from En-Yu Lin and Fu-Te Ni, the pitching staff was underwhelming. MLB farmhands Kuo-Hui Lo and Chih-Hsien Chiang made a strong statement in Australia with their play, but established CPBL stars CM Peng and TS Chang were virtually non-existent with their bats. The NT will receive a shot in the arm once CH Hsieh (Cobras), CS Yang (Fighters), and CFC/CS Lin/FM Chen (Bears) or WL Pan/KC Kao/WH Pan/CK Kao (Lions) join the team.

The NT will play the NT's of a few countries (majority from group B in the WC) in a final tuneup for the World Cup beginning 10/31:
1)Oct. 31st - vs. Italy
2)Nov. 1st - vs. Australia
3)Nov. 2nd - vs. Cuba
4)Nov. 3rd - vs. Netherlands

Here's a look at Taiwan's upcoming schedule in World Cup play. Taiwan is in group A and will face:
1)Nov. 6th - Italy
2)Nov. 8th - South Africa
3)Nov. 9th - Japan
4)Nov. 10th - Spain
5)Nov. 11th - Mexico
6)Nov. 13th - Panama
7)Nov. 14th - USA
The top 4 teams from group A & B will then advance to the quarterfinals.

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Bears Find Themselves in a 2-Nil Hole.....

2007 Taiwan Series:

Game 2 MVP

The Lions defeated the Bears 7-3 Sunday to take a 2-0 lead in the series. Lions SP Pete Munro picked up the win after allowing 3 runs on 9 hits over 7 IP - he also had 6 K's and 2 walks allowed. Taking the loss for the Bears was Yu-Wei Hsu - he allowed 4 runs on 8 hits over 4 IP. Chin-Feng Chen (1-4, 2 RBI's) managed to give the Bears a brief lead in the first inning after he belted a 2-run blast. The Lions would come back and score 5 runs in the 4th and 5th innings on the strength of HR's by Tai-Chi Kuo (his second of the series - 2-4, 2 RBI's) and game MVP Wu-Hsiung Pan (4-5 with 2 HR's and 5 RBI's! Alongside the Whales Fu-Te Ni, Pan is the other favorite for the CPBL ROY). Here's how the other big names fared: Bears SS Chih-Sheng Lin was 3-5 with a double/Lions sluggers Tilson Brito and Kuo-Ching Kao were both 1-5. Game Recap
The two teams will get Monday off before squaring off on Tuesday in Tainan. The Lions will start ace Wei-Lun Pan while the Bears will counter with Ying-Feng Tsai.


NT:
The Perth Heat used 5 pitchers to combine on a 2-hit near-shutout on Sunday against the Taiwanese NT. Perth won 4-1. Chao-Hang Cheng (Sinon Bulls) was the only NT member to collect a hit and RBI (he was 1-4 with a double). Ying-Chieh Lin (Rakuten Eagles) started the game and gave up 4 runs on 8 hits over 4 IP. Box/Play-By-Play
The last game of the series will take place tomorrow. Cumulative team stats through today.

Saturday, October 20, 2007

Lions Take Game 1...

CPBL:

Game 1 MVP
The Lions won game 1 of the 2007 Taiwan Series 10-2 over the defending champion Bears. Nelson Figueroa pitched 7 strong innings for the Lions, allowing only 2 runs on 7 hits - to go along with 8 K's and 5 walks. Kevin Huang took the loss for the Bears, giving up 5 runs on 9 hits over 5.2 IP. For the Lions offense (rapping out 14 hits), Tai-Chi Kuo hit a solo HR - he was 2-3/Lien-Hung Chen was 2-3 with a double and 2 RBI's/Tilson Brito was 1-5/Kuo-Ching Kao was 1-4. However, the game MVP for the Lions was veteran CF Sung-Hsien Yang who was 3-4 with a double and drove in 3 runs. The only offense mustered by the Bears was a 2-run HR hit by Kit Pellow - he was 2-4. Chin-Feng Chen was 0-2 with 2 walks while Chih-Sheng Lin was 1-3.
Game 2 will take place tomorrow in Kaohsiung and will match up Yu-Wei Hsu of the Bears against Pete Munro of the Lions.


NT:
The NT won its first game in Australia on Saturday. Kuo-Hui Lo hit a key 3-run HR (his 2nd of the series) in the 5th inning to help lead the NT to the 7-4 victory in a 7 inning affair. Lo was 1-4. 3B Yi-Chuan Lin was 2-4 with a RBI/DH Tarzan was 1-2 with a RBI/CF Chien-Ming Chang was 1-3 with a double and a RBI/Chao-Hang Cheng was 2-3 with a double/Chih-Hsien Chiang was 1-3.
Si-Yo Wu (Marines) started the game, allowing 2 runs on 3 hits over 3 IP. Chih-Chia Chang relieved Wu and gave up 1 run on 1 hit over the next 1.1 innings - he walked 3 and K'd 3. Yu-Chieh Shen (Whales) finished up the game, allowing 1 run on 3 hits over the last 2.2 innings.
Box/Play-By-Play


AFL:
Chen and Hu are facing off in the AFL today. Chen is currently 1-1 with a SB while Hu is 0-1 in a scoreless game. Box/Game Log

Friday, October 19, 2007

Friday Scores...

NT:

#11 Liao
(pic from summer of '05)


The NT lost game 2 to the Perth Heat 5-4 on Friday. Ming-Chieh Hsu pitched 7.0 innings, allowing 5 runs (only 1 was earned) on 8 hits. The Taiwanese NT played a sloppy game, committing 4 errors. Again, the bright spots came from US minor leaguers Kuo-Hui Lo, who was 2-4 & Chih-Hsien Chiang who was 1-4 with a double and a RBI. Amateur OF Ying-Chieh Liao was the offensive star of the game. Liao was 2-4, cracking a HR and driving in two. Like fellow amateur Yi-Chuan Lin, Liao has been on the NT for the past few years (both Lin and Liao played on the 2005 NT that traveled to So Cal) - this past summer, he led the NT at the Italian Baseball Week Tourney - hitting .333 with a HR and 5 RBI's. Chia-Chia and Tarzan, the two CPBL veteran stars on this roster, were a combined 0-8 at the plate. Box/Play-By-Play

AFL:
Hu's team lost 2-0 today. Hu was 0-4. Box

CPBL:
The Taiwan series kicks off tomorrow in Kaohsiung. Game 1 will pit Kevin Huang of the Bears against Nelson Figueroa of the Lions.

Olympics:
It seems that several countries are upset at the timing of the wild card entry Olympic Qualifiers taking place in Taiwan next year (March 2007).

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Taiwanese NT in Action...

NT:
The Taiwanese NT played the Perth Heat today. The two teams played to a 5-5 tie. Up 5-3 heading into the 9th inning, Ming-Chieh Hsu (Seibu Lions) blew the save when he allowed 2 runs on 2 hits in the 9th inning. Chih-Lung Huang, the 18 year old starting pitcher for Taiwan, allowed 3 runs on 5 hits over 3 innings - he had 3 K's and 2 walks. Relievers, Fu-Te Ni (CT Whales) and En-Yu Lin (Rakuten Eagles) threw a shutout over the next 5 innings in impressive fashion.
Offensively, the kids playing in the US represented themselves well. Mariners farmhand Kuo-Hui Lo was 2-5 with a RBI and a SB, hitting the game's only HR. BoSox minor leaguer Chih-Hsien Chiang was 2-4 with a walk and a SB. Cleanup hitter Tai-Shan Chang (Sinon Bulls)struggled, as he K'd 3 times in 4 AB's. Chang's two CPBL teammates fared slightly better: Chien-Ming Chang was 1-4 while Chun-Chang Yeh was 2-3 with 2 RBI's. The other CPBL notable, Cheng-Min Peng (Brother Elephants) was 1-5 with a RBI. The 3 amateur starters for Taiwan represented themselves well - LF Chih-Yao Chan was 1-3/3B Yi-Chuan Lin was 1-5 with a double and a RBI/SS Han Lin was 2-5. Box Score/Play-By-Play

AFL:
YC Chen was 0-3 with a walk as his team lost 7-5. Box

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

10/17 AFL Action...

AFL:
*Hu's squad lost 10-5. Hu hit his first HR of the fall, and was 2-5 with 2 RBI's. Hu also committed his first error in the AFL. Box


*Chen DNP for his squad, but his teammate CL Lo got rocked for a loss in today's game. Lo pitched 1.2 innings in relief, allowing 6 runs on 5 hits (including a 3 run HR) - he did have 3 K's and 2 walks. Box


NT:
The Taiwanese NT will play a 5 game series in Australia beginning tomorrow. The Perth Heat will host the event. Coach Kuo is expected to start teenager Chih-Lung Huang in the opening game, and will then have Fu-Te Ni, En-Yu Lin, and Ming-Chieh Hsu close out the game. The batting order will look something like this:

1)Chien-Ming Chang (RF) - Sinon Bulls
2)Chih-Yao Chan (LF) - Amateur
3)Cheng-Min Peng (1B) - Brother Elephants
4)Tai-Shan Chang (DH) - Sinon Bulls
5)Yi-Chuan Lin (3B) - Amateur
6)Kuo-Hui Lo (CF) - Seattle Mariners
7)Chih-Hsien Chiang (2B) - Boston Red Sox
8)Chun-Chang Yeh (C) - Sinon Bulls
9)Han Lin (SS) - Amateur

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Tuesday News...

MLB:
The Dodgers have granted permission for CL Hu and CH Tsao to participate in the Beijing Olympic Qualifiers.

CPBL:
With the worst record in the CPBL (42-57), the Sinon Bulls will have the top pick in the upcoming draft. The most likely #1 pick? See below:
21 year old Yi-Chuan Lin

The young slugger (DOB: 11/11/1985) is on the NT that will represent Taiwan at the 2007 World Cup. The third baseman stands 6 feet tall and weighs 180 pounds (Throws R/Bats L). Lin had a torrid summer, hitting well at the Italian Baseball Week Tourney (.313 BA - 1 HR) & the WPT (hitting .306 and cracking 2 HR's to help lead Taiwan to the silver medal). Lin, playing for the amateur Taiwan Electric Power squad- was also the 2007 Spring League Tournament (in Taiwan) MVP - nearly winning the triple crown with the 2nd highest BA: .436, the most HR's: 6, and the most RBI's: 26 in 94 AB's. Lin represented Taiwan at the 2006 Intercontinental Cup - where Taiwan defeated Japan for third place. Lin made a big splash in his international debut at the 2005 Asian Baseball Championships (Taiwan finished 3rd), where he hit the most HR's in the tourney.
A lot of people expect big things out of the young man in the future.

Preview of the 2007 Taiwan Series.....

Let's take a closer look at the two teams playing for the 2007 CPBL Championship.

The Bears finished the year with a 58-42 record, winning the second half championship.

Here's a look at the Bears batting lineup (not necessarily in this order - stats in red denote league leader):

1)Long-Yi Huang (CF) .281 BA/ 384 AB's/ 12 HR's/ 41 RBI's/ 27 SB's
2)Chin-De Yu (2B) .255 BA/ 184 AB's/ 0 HR's/ 10 RBI's/ 5 SB's
3)Raul Gonzalez (RF) .336 BA/ 113 AB's/ 2 HR's/ 18 RBI's/ 0 SB's
4)Chin-Feng Chen (DH) .382 BA/ 301 AB's/ 26 HR's/ 66 RBI's/ 11 SB's
5)Chih-Sheng Lin (SS) .311 BA/ 289 AB's/ 16 HR's/ 59 RBI's/ 5 SB's
6)Chih-Tsung Chiang (1B) .293 BA/ 249 AB's/ 5 HR's/ 39 RBI's/ 1 SB
7)Chih-Wei Shih (3B) .263 BA/ 399 AB's/ 2 HR's/ 36 RBI's/ 7 SB's
8)Feng-Min Chen (C) .213 BA/ 305 AB's/ 6 HR's/ 35 RBI's/ 2 SB's
9)Hao-Chu Cheng (LF) .246 BA/ 285 AB's/ 4 HR's/ 32 RBI's/ 6 SB's


*Key Bench Players:

1)Chien-Wei Tsai (LF) .254 BA/ 201 AB's/ 1 HR/ 18 RBI's/ 4 SB's
2)Kit Pellow (1B) .286 BA/ 21 AB's/ 1 HR/ 5 RBI's/ 0 SB's


Top Pitchers:

1)Gary Rath 12 W - 5 L/ 3.52 ERA/ 143.1 IP/ 117 K's/ 35 BB's
2)Kevin Huang 9 W - 5 L/ 2.26 ERA/ 83.2 IP/ 73 K's/ 25 BB's/ 12 Saves
3)Yu-Wei Hsu 9 W - 3 L/ 2.70 ERA/ 113.1 IP/ 81 K's/ 30 BB's
4)Mac Suzuki 2 W - 2 L/ 3.86 ERA/ 21.0 IP/ 18 K's/ 7 BB's/ 4 Saves
5)Wen-Hsiung Hsu 5 W - 4 L/ 4.11 ERA/ 107.1 IP/ 71 K's/ 30 BB's

*Starter Ying-Feng Tsai not listed due to being injured for much of the year.


Although the Lions did not win either the first or second half championship, they finished with the best overall record in the league - 58-41.

Here's a look at the Lions lineup (again, not necessarily in this order):

1)Kan-Lin Huang (LF) .337 BA/ 98 AB's/ 1 HR/ 10 RBI's/ 0 SB's
2)Wu-Hsiung Pan (CF) .319 BA/ 360 AB's/ 6 HR's/ 44 RBI's/ 3 SB's
3)Tilson Brito (3B) .313 BA/ 399 AB's/ 33 HR's/ 107 RBI's/ 1 SB
4)Kuo-Ching Kao (1B) .358 BA/ 425 AB's/ 20 HR's/ 89 RBI's/ 0 SB's
5)Lien-Hung Chen (DH) .286 BA/ 266 AB's/ 11 HR's/ 48 RBI's/ 3 SB's
6)Fu-Hao Liu (RF) .338 BA/ 328 AB's/ 9 HR's/ 58 RBI's/ 7 SB's
7)Chih-Kang Kao (C) .294 BA/ 303 AB's/ 5 HR's/ 47 RBI's/ 1 SB
8)Sen Yang (2B) .296 BA/ 341 AB's/ 8 HR's/ 65 RBI's/ 8 SB's
9)Shen-Chieh Hsu (SS) .274 BA/ 62 AB's/ 0 HR's/ 4 RBI's/ 0 SB's


*Key Bench Players:

1)Tai-Chi Kuo (LF) .258 BA/ 186 AB's/ 6 HR's/ 29 RBI's/ 0 SB's
2)Tung-Yi Yang (SS) .218 BA/ 179 AB's/ 1 HR/ 14 RBI's/ 7 SB's
3)Sung-Hsien Yang (LF) .325 BA/ 228 AB's/ 1 HR/ 28 RBI's/ 9 SB's

Top Pitchers:

1)Wei-Lun Pan 16 W - 2 L/ 2.26 ERA/ 123.1 IP/ 79 K's/ 17 BB's
2)Pete Munro 14 W - 7 L/ 2.03 ERA/ 190.1 IP/ 107 K's/ 22 BB's
3)Brian Reith 7 W - 3 L/ 4.17 ERA/ 82.0 IP/ 60 K's/ 17 BB's
4)Nelson Figueroa 4 W - 0 L/ 3.00 ERA/ 30.0 IP/ 21 K's/ 5 BB's
5)Chun-Yang Tsao 4 W - 7 L/ 3.67 ERA/ 68.2 IP/ 31 K's/ 13 BB's/ 8 Saves


*Reliever Yueh-Ping Lin was not listed since he was out for most of the year after having cardiac surgery.

The same two teams met last year in the 2006 Taiwan Series, with the Bears sweeping the Lions in 4. This year during regular season play, the Bears held a slight edge head to head with a 10-8 record against the Lions. In taking a look at how the pitching staffs matched up: Lions ace, Wei-Lun Pan was 3-1 against the Bears. Lions #2 SP Pete Munro was 2-3 with a ND against the Bears. Brian Reith, the Lions #3 SP, was 1-1 against the Bears.

For the Bears, ace Gary Rath was 1-2 against the Lions. The Bears #2 starter, Yu-Wei Hsu was 1-1 against the Lions. Bears reliever and spot-starter Kevin Huang was 1-1 against the Lions.

On paper, the Lions (strong 1/2 punch in Pan and Munro - and a well rounded offensive lineup with the 1-8 hitters) look like they have a pretty good chance at unseating the Bears as the defending CPBL champs. It should be a great series to watch!

Monday, October 15, 2007

10/15 AFL Action...

AFL:
Hu is currently 0-3 as his team is deadlocked in a 3-3 tie in the 6th. Box

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Swept!

CPBL PLAYOFFS:
Lions 13 - Cobras 2: The Lions swept the Cobras in three games and will now move on to the Championship Series which will begin Oct. 20th. The Series will match up the top two teams in the league. The Lions and Bears were #1 and 2 with the best overall records in the CPBL.

Wei-Lun Pan shut down the Cobras and picked up the win after he threw 5 innings, allowing 1 run on 6 hits. Pan's performance this year has been pretty amazing considering the fact that he's been playing with an injured shoulder - hence his short outings. The Lions offense was led by game MVP Kuo-Ching Kao who was 3-4, with a double, a HR, and 5 RBI's. Other Lions: Tilson Brito was 1-3/Tzu-Sung Wang was 4-4 with 2 doubles and a RBI/Tai-Chi Kuo was 2-3 with a HR and 3 RBI's/Lien-Hung Chen was 1-3 with a HR and 3 RBI's. For the Cobras, CH Hsieh hit a solo HR off of WL Pan and was 1-4 with a RBI/Shih-Yang Deng was 2-4 with 2 doubles.


NPB PLAYOFFS:
The Tigers lost 5-3 in game 2 of the playoffs. Lin was 1-1 with a walk. Box


World Cup News:
Here's the official site for the World Cup (in Chinese). Tickets for the event can be bought from here. Taiwan's team roster can be found here.
The competition will field some of the best talent seen in recent years. Check the following links for team USA's roster and Australia's roster. The competition which will be taking place from Nov. 6th through the 18th will overlap the Konami Cup which takes place Nov. 8th through the 11th. There are currently 4 Lions and 3 Bears on the World Cup roster - so either way, the NT will take a hit once the CPBL champion is established.

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Tidbits and Notes.......

NPB Draft:
Well, I missed the 2007 NPB HS draft (great site on baseball in Japan) which happened about a week ago. Heng-Hsiao Kuo's name was conspicuously absent from that list - perhaps lending credence to the rumor that Kuo was hurt this past year (experiencing a loss in velocity). If Kuo is hurt, you can chalk up yet another top pitching Taiwanese HS/junior high prospect that has fallen victim to the injury bug while in Japan. In recent years, only top hitting Taiwanese HS prospects (WC Lin, CS Yang, PY Lee) have succeeded in making it to the NPB or were drafted by the NPB. Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope that Yi-Hao Lin has better luck with his health in Japan.

MLB's Newest Signees:

pics of CH Chen - from Bros Sports

pics of YW Kuo - from Bros Sports

Bros Sports - the sports agency representing Tzu-Kai Chiu, is apparently also representing Che-Hsuan Lin and two of the most recent MLB signees Yen-Wen Kuo and Chun-Hsiu Chen. It looks like both kids are in fall instructional league right now. Check the highlighted links for some more great pics.

Lions Go Up 2-0....

CPBL PLAYOFFS:
The Lions blanked the Cobras 14-0 in game 2 of the opening round of playoffs. The Lions were led by their two import players - SP Pete Munro blanked the opposition over 7 IP, allowing 4 hits, K'ing 6 and walking 2 while game MVP Tilson Brito crushed his 2nd HR of the playoffs and was 2-5 with 4 RBI's. Other Lions: KC Kao was 2-5 with a RBI/Wu-Hsiung Pan was 2-4 with a triple and a RBI/Fu-Hao Liu was 2-5 with a double and a RBI/Sen Yang was 2-3 with a double and 2 RBI's/Tai-Chi Kuo was 1-4 with 2 RBI's/Chin-Tien Shih was 1-1 with a double and 2 RBI's. For the Cobras, CH Hsieh was 1-4 while teammate Yuan-Chia Chen was 2-2. The Lions could wrap up things tomorrow as they throw out ace Wei-Lun Pan out on the mound.


NPB PLAYOFFS:
The Tigers lost to the Dragons 7-0. WC Lin was 0-2. Box


AFL:
Chen was 1-5 as his team won 8-5. Box

Hu is currently 0-1 as his team is down 1-0. Box

Friday, October 12, 2007

Friday News...

CPBL PLAYOFFS:
Lions 9 - Cobras 4: Game 1 of the playoff series between the Cobras and Lions went to the Lions. Lions starter Nelson Figueroa (game MVP) was able to suppress the Cobras offense behind a strong start - allowing only 2 runs on 6 hits over 8 IP - he also had 8 K's and 2 walks allowed. NF received plenty of offensive support from his big guns: Tilson Brito blasted a HR and was 1-4 with 2 RBI's while KC Kao was 2-4 with 2 RBI's. Other Lions hitters included: rookie OF Wu-Hsiung Pan who was 2-4 with a double and a RBI/RF Fu-Hao Liu who was 2-4 with a RBI/DH Lien-Hung Chen was 4-5 with a double and 2 RBI's. For the Cobras, 2B Shih-Yang Deng cracked a HR and was 2-3 with 2 RBI's/SS Shih-Hao Huang hit a HR and was 1-4 with 2 RBI's/CF CH Hsieh was 1-4. Taking the loss for the Cobras was 12 game winner Hsien-Chih Chang who allowed 6 runs (5 earned) on 6 hits over 5 IP - while K'ing 4 and walking 2.



NT:
Japan has announced a preliminary roster for the upcoming Beijing Olympic Qualifiers. The team is stacked (featuring NPB all-stars at every position) - headlined by Yu Darvish.



AFL:
CL Hu made BA's top 20 list in the Pacific League. Here's the scoop by BA: In addition to what was said about Hu on an earlier top 20 list, the scouting report stated that Hu's offensive approach remains unrefined - with a tendency to pull off the ball with an inside-out swing. The report continues on by saying that Hu takes an aggressive approach at the plate, going after the first fastball he can handle. This approach will need to be fixed and BA projects Hu to hit .260 at the ML level (with his current mechanics).

From BA's Q&A today:
Glenn Quagmire from Quahog, RI asks:
What is the ceiling for Chin-Lung Hu? Everything he does seems so smooth and easy, and his power is starting to play (even though he won't admit it). When should he officially replace Furcal at SS? Maybe take over for Kent at 2B? Can he be a star in the majors, or is he just a solid regular?

Matt Eddy: Given how far Hu came with the bat in one season, I'd like to see him do it again. But his glove alone should make him a candidate for regular play.

Matt Eddy: Relax. You've got just one more season of Furcal, and it's a contact year.


On to today's game in the AFL. Hu and Chen's teams squared off with Chen's team winning 8-3. Both Chen and Hu were 2-4 with a walk and were each CS once. CL Lo started for the winning team, although he earned a ND. Lo pitched 2 innings, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits - he had 2 K's. Box/Recap




Thursday, October 11, 2007

Kuo-Ching Kao.....

Pictured on Right - Uni. #4 then - # 68 today

When you take a look at the offensive leaders in the CPBL, CFC, Chia-Chia, Tarzan, and CH Hsieh are all household names who are established stars in the league. KC Kao has quickly added himself to the above list of homegrown offensive talent. Kao had a storied amateur career, representing the country on several NT rosters. Kao participated in the 1999 and 2001 World Port Tournaments, the 2002 Haarlem Baseball Week Tourney & the 2002 World University Baseball Championships. However his most memorable amateur moment came in the 2001 Asian Baseball Championships when he helped lead Taiwan to the gold medal that year. Kao was named the tourney MVP, collecting 2 HR's including a key 2-run shot that helped beat Japan 3-1, and was selected to the all-tourney team at first base.

The President Lions' 4th year player is the hands on favorite to win the 2007 CPBL MVP award. Kao, who turned 29 recently (DOB 10/6/1978), stands 6'2" and weighs 205 pounds according to CPBL stats. The first baseman had a career year, smashing the league record (143) for most hits in a season with 152. He was the only player to rank in the top 5 other than Chin-Feng Chen in the triple crown categories. Kao's .358 BA, 20 HR's, and 89 RBI's (all career highs)- are numbers good enough to qualify for the triple crown in most years (see last year's CPBL leaders here and here). Here's a look at the progression of Kao's career with the Lions:
1)2004 - .239 BA 301 AB's 72 Hits 16 Doubles 2 Triples 12 HR's 34 RBI's
2)2005 - .313 BA 358 AB's 112 Hits 26 Doubles 0 Triples 5 HR's 52 RBI's
3)2006 - .282 BA 291 AB's 82 Hits 16 Doubles 2 Triples 3 HR's 26 RBI's
4)2007 - .358 BA 425 AB's 152 Hits 24 Doubles 1 Triple 20 HR's 89 RBI's

Here's a vid of highlights from his rookie year:


It was a record-breaking year for the Lions: aside from Kao's own record for hits, his teammate Tilson Brito set the league single season mark for HR's at 33 (breaking the former record of 31 held by Luis Iglesias of the now defunct Mercury Tigers in 1996 and the Brother Elephants' Jay Kirkpatrick in 1998); SP Wei-Lun Pan won 16 consecutive decisions without a loss - also a league record. *edited

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

10/10 AFL Update...

AFL:
Yung-Chi Chen cracked his 1st HR in the AFL, going 2-5 with 2 RBI's as his team lost 14-11. Box/Recap

Hu's team won 5-4. Hu was 0-3 with a walk. Box


Other:
Brief blurb on CM Wang

Bears Win 2nd Half Championship...CPBL Leaders FINAL....

CPBL:
Bears 4 - Lions 1: The Bears won the second half CPBL championship behind a strong start from ex-Red Sox farmhand Kevin Huang. Huang allowed 1 run on 5 hits over 5.2 IP. He also K'd 7 and walked 1. The only run given up by Huang was a solo HR to Lions slugger KC Kao - his 20th of the season. KC Kao was 2-4 with a RBI. The all-time season HR record holder - Tilson Brito was 1-4. For the Bears, Chih-Wei Shih was voted game MVP after he hit his 2nd HR of the season and was 3-3 with a double and a RBI. Chih-Sheng Lin hit his 16th HR of the year and was 2-4 with a RBI. CFC was 1-5, while teammate Chin-De Yu was 3-4 with 2 RBI's.

With the win the Bears will now await the winner of the 5 game series between the Cobras and the Lions. Despite winning the first half championship, the Cobras tanked in the second half of the season, finishing last. The Lions should be favored to win the series with a well balanced team. They feature 2 of the best starters in the league with WL Pan and Pete Munro and have plenty of firepower with their 2 big sluggers - Tilson Brito and KC Kao.

Whales 7 - Elephants 1: Whales SP Wei-Ming Chu defeated Elephants starter Yu-Cheng Liao to up his record to 7-2 on the last day of the regular season in the CPBL. Chu threw 6 scoreless innings, allowing 4 hits, K'ing 5 and walking 1. He was the game MVP. Whales 2B Carlos Villalobos was 1-4 with a double and 2 RBI's. For the Elephants, CYC was 1-4 with a RBI while Chia-Chia DNP. With the win, the Whales finished third in the second half of the CPBL - a significant improvement over their last place finish in the first half of the season. Not too shabby considering everything that happened not too long ago.

With the regular season now over, here are the final stats for the CPBL leaders in several categories:

BATTING AVERAGE:
1)Chin-Feng Chen (Bears) .382
2)Cheng-Min Peng (Elephants) .362
3)Kuo-Ching Kao (Lions) .358
4)Chia-Hsien Hsieh (Cobras) .352
5)Fu-Hao Liu (Lions) .338

HOME RUNS:
1)Tilson Brito (Lions) 33
2)Chin-Feng Chen (Bears) 26
3)Cheng-Min Peng (Elephants) 21
4)Kuo-Ching Kao (Lions) 20
5)Tai-Shan Chang (Bulls) 19

RUNS BATTED IN:
1)Tilson Brito (Lions) 107
2)Kuo-Ching Kao (Lions) 89
3)Tai-Shan Chang (Bulls) 80
4)Chia-Hsien Hsieh (Cobras) 79
5)Chin-Feng Chen (Bears) 66

STOLEN BASES:
1)Long-Yi Huang (Bears) 27
2)Chun-Chiang Kao (Whales) 19
3)Chun-Lin Ji (Whales) 19
4)Cheng-Wei Huang (Elephants) 18
5)Yi-Min Wang (Whales) 14

WINS:
1)Wei-Lun Pan (Lions) 16
2)Pete Munro (Lions) 14
3)Gary Rath (Bears) 12
4)Hsien-Chih Chang (Cobras) 12
5)Joey Dawley (Elephants) 10

EARNED RUN AVERAGE:
1)Pete Munro (Lions) 2.03
2)Wei-Lun Pan (Lions) 2.26
3)Iba Tomokazu (Bulls) 2.67
4)Yu-Wei Hsu (Bears) 2.70
5)Lorenzo Barcelo (Whales) 3.10

STRIKE OUTS:
1)Joey Dawley (Elephants) 153
2)Lorenzo Barcelo (Whales) 143
3)Fu-Te Ni (Whales) 125 - *Rookie ( CPBL ROY?)
4)Gary Rath (Bears) 117
5)Alfredo Gonzalez (Bulls) 109

WHIP:
1)Pete Munro (Lions) 1.02
2)Wei-Lun Pan (Lions) 1.16
3)Yu-Wei Hsu (Bears) 1.19
4)Lorenzo Barcelo (Whales) 1.19
5)Fu-Te Ni (Whales) 1.20

Tuesday, October 09, 2007

CPBL Winding Down...

CPBL:
Bears 15 - Lions 4:
With one game remaining on the regular season slate, the Bears moved to a half game back of the Lions with a crucial victory. The same two teams will play again tomorrow to determine the second half champs, but more importantly the winner will get a direct pass to the CPBL Championship Series. The loser will play the Macoto Cobras (CPBL first half champs) in a 5 game playoff series (10/12 to 10/17) to see who will play opposite the second half champs in the Championship Series.

Moving on to the game, the Bears rocked Lions #2 starter - Pete Munro for 9 runs. Led by game MVP Feng-Ming Chen, who hit 2 HR's - giving him 6 on the year and was 2-4 with 6 RBI's, the Bears rapped out 17 hits. CFC was 4-5 with 2 RBI's/Chih-Wei Shih was 3-5 with 2 RBI's/CS Lin was 2-5 with a double and 2 RBI's/Chih-Tsung Chiang was 3-4 with a RBI/Chien-Wei Tsai was 2-4 with a double and a RBI.
The Lions were led by Sen Yang who was 1-1 with 2 walks and 3 RBI's. TB was 0-4 with a RBI while KC Kao was 2-4. Fu-Hao Liu was 3-4 with 2 doubles.

Tomorrow's season finale will match Kevin Huang (Bears) against Brian Reith (Lions).


Elephants 4 - Whales 3: Up 2-1 heading into the 9th inning, the Elephants turned to the usually reliable Travis Minix to close out the game. Minix would blow the save - allowing 2 runs in the 9th and earn a ND for starter Nic Ungs who was impressive, allowing only 1 run on 3 hits over 7 IP. Fortunately for Minix, the Elephants would rally for 2 runs of their own in the bottom of the 9th to earn TM the victory. Game MVP LF Rui-Chang Chen drove in the GW run with a double in his only AB of the game. Other Elephant notables: CYC and Chia-Chia were both 1-4 with a RBI/lead-off man for the Elephants Cheng-Wei Huang was 2-5 with 2 doubles and a RBI. For the Whales, SS Yi-Min Wang was 3-3 with a double and 2 runs scored.


NT News:

In preparation for the World Cup, a few notable overseas players have reported back to Taiwan for training. Check the pics (from Apple Daily) below:

(L to R) KS Lin, SW Tseng, PH Keng, TY Kuo (HC), EY Lin, YC Lin, CC Chang


(L to R) SY Wu, SW Tseng, PH Keng, YC Lin, EY Lin, CC Chang

PH Keng will not be able to travel to Australia for the exhibition series later this month because of a failure to complete his military obligations.


Other:

A great site to check out is MLBTW.net. Although the site is in Chinese, there are some good pics of CH Chiang, CL Lo, and a few others on there. All the stats you could possibly want are featured on the bottom of the site's banner.

***Baseball America has CL Hu ranked as the 12th best prospect in the Southern League. In summary, BA considers Hu's defense to be Gold-Glove caliber; notes that he has gap power and is a slightly above-average runner.*Updated


AFL:
The Arizona Fall League 2007 season got underway today:
*Yung-Chi Chen was 1-3 with a double, a RBI, a walk, and a SB as his team won 3-2. Box/Recap
*Hu's team won 4-3. Hu was 2-4 with a double and a SB. Box/Recap
*Updated

Monday, October 08, 2007

Melt Down.......

MLB:
With 3 days of rest (supposed to improve the performance of sinker ballers like CMW), playing at home, and a chance to redeem himself from Saturday's debacle - those were some of the things that appeared to be working in Wang's favor going into today's game. However,with the series on the line, CMW failed to deliver on Monday night. Wang allowed a leadoff HR to Sizemore and then gave up 2 more singles to plate another run in the first inning. In the second, Wang gave up two consecutive singles to open the inning before hitting a batter to load the bases with no outs. Wang was then promptly pulled by Torre and booed by the home crowd. Mussina would relieve Wang and allow 2 of the inherited runners to score to leave Wang with an ugly, ugly line and worse yet, put his team in a big hole in a crucial game (should the Yankees lose, they would be eliminated from post-seasonal play). The Yankees are currently losing 6-3 in the 7th inning.


CPBL:
Elephants 7 - Bulls 2: Joey Dawley won his 10th game of the season, allowing 2 runs - 1 earned over 6 IP- he had 8 K's and 2 walks allowed. In support of JD, Chia-Chia hit his 21st HR of the year and was 2-3 with 2 RBI's. Game MVP honors went to his teammate 2B Chiang-Ho Chen who hit HR # 2 and was 2-3 with 4 RBI's. Tarzan was 1-2 for the Bulls.

Lions 10 - Bears 2: Wei-Lun Pan won his 16th game of the season in impressive fashion, shutting down the vaunted Bears offense. Pan allowed 1 run on 5 hits over 7 IP - he had 1 K and 3 walks allowed. The Lions cranked out 4 HR's: Tilson Brito hit HR #33 (adding to his league record) and was 3-3 with a double and 3 RBI's; KC Kao hit HR #19 and was 2-5 with 2 RBI's; Lien-Hung Chen hit HR #11 and was 1-5; game MVP Kan-Lin Huang hit his 1st HR of the year and was 3-5 with 3 RBI's. CFC was 1-3 for the Bears.

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

Tuesday News...

MLB:
The opening game of the ALDS between the Indians and Yankees will be broadcast on TBS Thursday at 6:30 EST. The game will match the two staff aces & 19 game winners in CMW and CC Sabathia - should be a great one to watch.



NPB:
The Fighters blasted the Eagles 11-3 behind a 21-hit attack. CS Yang collected 3 of those hits as he was 3-5 with a double and 2 RBI's. Ying-Chieh Lin pitched one inning of relief for the Eagles, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits. Box

The Tigers lost 5-0. WC Lin was 0-3. Box



CPBL:
Lions 8 - Elephants 2: Nelson Figueroa won his 4th game of the season in impressive fashion, throwing a CG. He allowed 2 runs on 7 hits over 9 IP - to go along with 7 K's and 4 walks allowed. Game MVP honors went to Lions slugger Kuo-Ching Kao who was 2-5 with 3 RBI's. Other Lions notables: Tilson Brito was 0-3/Sen Yang was 2-3 with 2 RBI's/Fu-Hao Liu hit his 9th HR of the season and was 2-5 with a RBI. For the Elephants, Chia-Chia and CYC were a combined 0-7.



I'll be taking a much needed break for a few days, so in the mean time feel free to post updates in the comments section.

Monday, October 01, 2007

The Scoop (WMG update....BWC NT announced).....

Amateur:
In an earlier post, WMG sent out a memo stating that it was representing 6 kids from Taiwan - it listed 4 kids on that piece of paper - two 18 year olds & two 17 year olds. I think it's now apparent why the other two kids weren't listed; they are both 15 year olds!
The two remaining WMG clients are:

1)15 year-old 6'1'' RHP Tai-Chen Chen: just graduated from Tong-Shi Jr HS in Chia-Yi County - tops out in the low 80's
2)15 year-old 6'2'' RHP Wei-Yu Chuang : just graduated from An-Shun Jr HS in Tainan City - tops out at 85 mph

Both kids will be attending Taichung Agricultural HS.

The interesting thing about the whole thing is that WMG is supposedly in partnership with the CTBA. The CTBA and the governing body for amateur HS sports have taken a hard-line stance (doling out punishment to the schools involved) in the past when HS players signed with MLB teams prior to their graduation from HS. However what has transpired here between WMG and the CTBA is reminiscent of what happened last year with uber-prospect Yi-Hao Lin who was 15 when he signed with the Yomiuri Giants. The fact that WMG is shopping the two 17 year olds is not a problem; the company is acting within the guidelines set aside by MLB rules: (To be eligible to sign a contract, a player must be 16 years old at the time of signing and turn 17 years old by either 1) September 1 or 2) the end of his first professional season, whichever is later.) . But the fact that WMG is marketing Taiwanese kids who are governed by the CTBA - an organization that detests early signings, it makes you scratch your head and say WTF?! If the CTBA is leading by example, then it has set a precedent for future early signings.




World Cup News:
Head coach TY Kuo has announced his 24-man roster for the upcoming Baseball World Cup. Here it is:

Pitchers (10):
1)Po-Hsuan Keng (Blue Jays)
2)Sung-Wei Tseng (Indians)
3)Ying-Chieh Lin (Eagles)
4)En-Yu Lin (Eagles)
5)Ming-Chieh Hsu (NPB - Lions)
6)Chien-Fu Yang (Bulls)
7)Wei-Lun Pan (CPBL - Lions)
8)Fu-Te Ni (Whales)
9)Yu-Chieh Shen (Whales)
10)Ming-Chieh Hsu (Amateur)

Catchers (3):1)Chun-Chang Yeh (Bulls)
2)Feng-Min Chen (Bears)
3)Chih-Kang Kao (Lions)

Infielders (6):
1)Tai-Shan Chang (Bulls)
2)Kuo-Ching Kao (Lions)
3)Chih-Sheng Lin (Bears)
4)Yi-Chuan Lin (Amateur)
5)Han Lin (Amateur)
6)Chung-Shou Yang (Fighters)

Outfielders (5):
1)Chin-Feng Chen (Bears)
2)Chia-Hsien Hsieh (Cobras)
3)Cheng-Min Peng (Elephants)
4)Wu-Hsiung Pan (Lions)
5)Chih-Yao Chan (Amateur)

Changes to the roster could be expected after the NT plays an exhibition series in Australia later this month.



NPB:
The Tigers beat the Bay Stars 9-7. WC Lin was 1-5. Box

The Lions lost 4-0. MC Hsu pitched 2 innings in relief, allowing 1 run on 3 hits. Box



CPBL:
Bears 5 - Whales 3: Ying-Feng Tsai won his 3rd game of the year and game MVP honors after giving up 1 run on 2 hits over 5 IP. Kevin Huang picked up his 11th save of the season. For the Bears offense: CFC was 0-4 with a walk/CS Lin was 1-4/Raul Gonzalez was 3-5 with 2 RBI's/Chin-Deh Yu was 3-5/Long-Yi Huang was 2-5/Kit Pellow was 0-2 but drove in 2 runs. Whales 1B Chia-Hung Chen was 2-4 with 2 RBI's.

Bulls 5 - Cobras 4: Bulls 2B Chao-Hsing Cheng helped spur a 4-run 7th inning with his 9th HR of the season - he was also 2-4 with a triple and 2 RBI's to garner game MVP honors. Bulls OF Hsien-Ming Yu was also 2-4 with a triple and 2 RBI's - Tarzan was 0-4. For the Cobras, CH Hsieh was 2-3 with a double/Ming-Jen Kuo was 3-5 with a double and a RBI/Su-Chi Zhou was 2-4 with a double.