*Kao-Yuan HS won the 2011 Wood Bat Tourney, defeating Ping-Zhen HS 8-1 in the final. Tzu-Wei Lin was the man for Kao-Yuan, not only leading the tourney in slugging, OBP, and BA, but also throwing some key innings in relief for his squad.
Shi-Yuan defeated Ku-Pao 1-0 to earn 3rd in the tourney behind SP Chih-Wei Hu's dominating 1 hit shutout. Hu, whose fastball approached 150 kph, K'd 12 in the process.
*Immediately following the national WBT, the top two counties/cities in Taiwan -Taoyuan (composed of kids from Ping-Zhen HS) and Kaohsiung City (made up of kids from Kao-Yuan, San-Min, and San-Hsin HS) competed against a select Korean All-Star team (with several top junior prospects) and a team from Japan - Japan Meiji-Jingu. These four teams faced off in the 2011 E. Sun Cup International AAA Baseball Tourney. Taoyuan earned the tourney championship with a 2-1 record, losing only to South Korea (South Korea and Japan also had 2-1 records). Kaohsiung City went 0-3 in the tournament.
As for how the top Taiwanese kids fared in the tourney:
-IF Tzu-Wei Lin played only against Japan (due to the flu) and was 1-3 with a BB and RBI.
-P Ren-He Tseng threw 6.2 IP against South Korea, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 6 hits. He had 6 K's, 1 BB in a no-decision for him.
-P Jung-Hung Sen took a look a loss against South Korea (0 IP, 2 R, 3 H, 0 K's/BB's).
* The 2011 CPBL draft just concluded. The Sinon Bulls selected P Chen-Hua Lin with the top pick.
Other first round picks included:
>Elephants - P Yu-Ching Lin
>Monkeys - P Wang-Yi Lin (former Red Sox farmhand)
>Lions - P Chih-Lung Huang (former Giants farmhand)
P Yen-Feng Lin was the 5th overall pick (first pick of the second round) of the Bulls. Lin played in the Phillies and Marines (NPB) minor league system.
*Dai-Kang Yang was selected to the 2011 Player's Choice Best 9 in the Pacific League as a RF.
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Thursday, December 08, 2011
2011 Wood Bat Tourney
The 2011 Wood Bat Tourney is underway. 37 HS teams are partaking in the annual tourney. Some of the top names to watch include the usual suspects: Tzu-Wei Lin, Jung-Hung Sen, and Ren-He Tseng.
Lin was recently named the 2010 world junior player of the year by the IBAF. The Kao-Yuan product is hands down the top HS prospect in the country. Formerly linked to the Yankees, he is currently being watched by reps from a lot of MLB squads including the Yankees, Red Sox, D-Rays, Twins, Indians, A's, Braves, Mariners, Pirates, Rangers, and Cubs in the tourney. Many are speculating that his signing bonus will exceed the $400 K offer from the Yankees, potentially making him one of the highest non-pitcher signings from Taiwan (CFC signed for $680 K in '99 while CH Lin signed for $400 K in '07).
As for Sen, he pitched 2 scoreless innings yesterday for Ping-Zhen, K'ing 3 and topped out at 91 mph.
Tseng is currently pitching for San-Min (Chih-Hsien Chiang's alma mater). He's also been clocked in the 150's (kph). Tseng was earlier linked to the A's this year. He was on this year's junior NT and faced South Korea in the Asian Championships. Over 9+ innings, he allowed 4 runs (only 2 were earned) on 5 hits. He also K'd 8 in the 4-3, 10 inning loss.
*Speaking of the A's. They (local scout - Adam Hislop) are reportedly to be aggressively pursuing an undersized LHP (tops 88) at Qiang-Shu HS in Taipei City.
*RHP Chen-Hua Lin had a workout with the Softbank Hawks back in November.
This was arranged via the CTBA. There may be an offer for a developmental contract but nothing is definitive yet.
*The Orix Buffaloes are pursuing Lions middle relief man Ming-Chieh Hsu.
Lin was recently named the 2010 world junior player of the year by the IBAF. The Kao-Yuan product is hands down the top HS prospect in the country. Formerly linked to the Yankees, he is currently being watched by reps from a lot of MLB squads including the Yankees, Red Sox, D-Rays, Twins, Indians, A's, Braves, Mariners, Pirates, Rangers, and Cubs in the tourney. Many are speculating that his signing bonus will exceed the $400 K offer from the Yankees, potentially making him one of the highest non-pitcher signings from Taiwan (CFC signed for $680 K in '99 while CH Lin signed for $400 K in '07).
As for Sen, he pitched 2 scoreless innings yesterday for Ping-Zhen, K'ing 3 and topped out at 91 mph.
Tseng is currently pitching for San-Min (Chih-Hsien Chiang's alma mater). He's also been clocked in the 150's (kph). Tseng was earlier linked to the A's this year. He was on this year's junior NT and faced South Korea in the Asian Championships. Over 9+ innings, he allowed 4 runs (only 2 were earned) on 5 hits. He also K'd 8 in the 4-3, 10 inning loss.
*Speaking of the A's. They (local scout - Adam Hislop) are reportedly to be aggressively pursuing an undersized LHP (tops 88) at Qiang-Shu HS in Taipei City.
*RHP Chen-Hua Lin had a workout with the Softbank Hawks back in November.
This was arranged via the CTBA. There may be an offer for a developmental contract but nothing is definitive yet.
*The Orix Buffaloes are pursuing Lions middle relief man Ming-Chieh Hsu.
Sunday, December 04, 2011
HS Pitching Prospect: Jung-Hung Sen
Rong (Jung)-Hung Sen, a 17 year old RHP at Ping-Zhen HS was clocked at a high of 93 mph in the recent Care Cup (Aboriginal Tourney). The kid is garnering attention from local scouts.
He led his team to the final of the Care Cup, which his team won 12-0. Sen also was the winning pitcher for Ping-Zhen HS in the championship game of the Tung-Kao Cup (completed in September). He was selected the top pitcher in the tourney (2W-0L, 0.00 ERA).
Sen has been on a roll. He was also selected the top pitcher in the Yu-Shan Cup completed in June. He helped lead Taoyuan County to the championship. Sen has been on the scene for quite some time. He's represented Taiwan in the 2009 Pony Baseball League World Series. He was also selected to the 2010 Youth National Team.
Despite solid velocity, he will need to work on his secondary pitches and his command.
***Military Dodger: Culture University RHP/OF Cheng-Yu Hung gained a significant amount of weight (as big as 113 kg) in an effort to skip his military obligations.
***CL Hu is playing in the inaugural ABL All Star game.
Thursday, December 01, 2011
News Updates
*Indians farmhand Chen-Chang Lee was named the organization's minor league pitcher of the year.
*The Red Sox and Mariners have added Che-Hsuan Lin and Chih-Hsien Chiang to their 40 man roster.
*Over in Taiwan, in the recently completed collegiate tourney, a few pitchers were clocked in the low 90's:
Lefty Sheng-Hsiung Huang topped out at 93 mph
Righty Rui-Jing Weng topped out at 90 mph
19 year old righty Chun-Lin Kuo helped lead his squad to the tourney championship, pitching a shutout and K'ing 9 in the process. He was also clocked at 93 mph in the game. Kuo was impressive earlier last month against the MLB All-Star traveling squad.
Righty Hung-Chieh Shih hit 91 mph.
*Nippon Ham Fighters OF Dai-Kang Yang fired his rep - Octagon and is now represented by Sports Biz.
*Cubs minor leaguer RHP Yao-Lin Wang and Yankees farmhand INF/OF Fu-Lin Kuo may have to serve in the military if called upon as their agent misunderstood the rules and had both players drop out of college. Without student status, they will need to serve in the military if called upon. The CTBA and Octagon are pointing fingers at each other over this gaffe.
*Update on Kuo-Hui Lo's injury status
*The Red Sox and Mariners have added Che-Hsuan Lin and Chih-Hsien Chiang to their 40 man roster.
*Over in Taiwan, in the recently completed collegiate tourney, a few pitchers were clocked in the low 90's:
Lefty Sheng-Hsiung Huang topped out at 93 mph
Righty Rui-Jing Weng topped out at 90 mph
19 year old righty Chun-Lin Kuo helped lead his squad to the tourney championship, pitching a shutout and K'ing 9 in the process. He was also clocked at 93 mph in the game. Kuo was impressive earlier last month against the MLB All-Star traveling squad.
Righty Hung-Chieh Shih hit 91 mph.
*Nippon Ham Fighters OF Dai-Kang Yang fired his rep - Octagon and is now represented by Sports Biz.
*Cubs minor leaguer RHP Yao-Lin Wang and Yankees farmhand INF/OF Fu-Lin Kuo may have to serve in the military if called upon as their agent misunderstood the rules and had both players drop out of college. Without student status, they will need to serve in the military if called upon. The CTBA and Octagon are pointing fingers at each other over this gaffe.
*Update on Kuo-Hui Lo's injury status
*The Samsung Lions won the 2011 Asia Series.
*Kai-Wen Cheng and Yi-Hao Lin earned some recognition for their 2011 performances in the NPB minors.
*Kai-Wen Cheng and Yi-Hao Lin earned some recognition for their 2011 performances in the NPB minors.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
News and Notes
*Giants Ni-gun lefty Yu-Hung Lee was released by the Giants.
His former ni-gun teammate, Yi-Hao Lin has impressed enough to be considered for a closer role with the parent team next year.
*Speaking of Yi-Hao Lin, he was very impressive against the MLB All-Star travel squad. Lin was one of a few pitchers to put up a 0.00 ERA (3 IP, 3 Ks, 1 H, 1 BB) against some top talent from the MLB.
Other NT pitchers to impress against the ML All-Stars include:
1)Yao-Lin Wang - In 2 games, had a 3.60 ERA, K'ing 4, walking 6 in 5 IP.
2)Fu-Te Ni - In his sole appearance, allowed only 1 run on 2 hits over 3.1 IP (2.70 ERA)
3)Chun-Lin Kuo - This 19 year old blanked the MLB hitters he faced in his only appearance of the Series. He had 3 K's, 0 BB's, 0 hits allowed in 2.1 IP. (0.00 ERA)
4)Kai-Wen Cheng - Although he allowed 4 runs on 7 hits (including a HR) in 4 IP, he did K 7 MLB hitters.
The top hitter for the NT was not surprisingly, Che-Hsuan Lin.
CH Lin hit .417 (5/12) with 2 XBH (doubles) and 2 RBI.
His other heralded teammate, Chun-Hsiu Chen hit .250 (4-16) with 1 XBH (double), RBI, and 2 runs scored.
Other MLB farmhands such as Pin-Chieh Chen (2-4 with a double) and Chih-Fang Pan (1-4, 2B, RBI) showed promise at the plate, but did not get many opportunities. It was frustrating watching guys like IF Wei-Ting Lin get more PAs (0 for 7 at the plate with 6 K's).
Aside from CH Lin, 1B Chih-Pei Huang had a .294 BA (5/17).
*Dragons lefty Wei-Yin Chen had a nice start against the Hawks in game 1 of the Japan Series. Matched against T. Wada, another top lefty in the NPB, Chen earned a ND, but K'd 11 in the process (8 IP, 1 R, 4 H). View his outing on YouTube here.
There is a lot of speculation about Chen making the jump to the MLB after the season. (Google Wei-Yin Chen in the news section)
*Chin-Lung Hu is currently playing in Australia (Adelaide Bite)
His former ni-gun teammate, Yi-Hao Lin has impressed enough to be considered for a closer role with the parent team next year.
*Speaking of Yi-Hao Lin, he was very impressive against the MLB All-Star travel squad. Lin was one of a few pitchers to put up a 0.00 ERA (3 IP, 3 Ks, 1 H, 1 BB) against some top talent from the MLB.
Other NT pitchers to impress against the ML All-Stars include:
1)Yao-Lin Wang - In 2 games, had a 3.60 ERA, K'ing 4, walking 6 in 5 IP.
2)Fu-Te Ni - In his sole appearance, allowed only 1 run on 2 hits over 3.1 IP (2.70 ERA)
3)Chun-Lin Kuo - This 19 year old blanked the MLB hitters he faced in his only appearance of the Series. He had 3 K's, 0 BB's, 0 hits allowed in 2.1 IP. (0.00 ERA)
4)Kai-Wen Cheng - Although he allowed 4 runs on 7 hits (including a HR) in 4 IP, he did K 7 MLB hitters.
The top hitter for the NT was not surprisingly, Che-Hsuan Lin.
CH Lin hit .417 (5/12) with 2 XBH (doubles) and 2 RBI.
His other heralded teammate, Chun-Hsiu Chen hit .250 (4-16) with 1 XBH (double), RBI, and 2 runs scored.
Other MLB farmhands such as Pin-Chieh Chen (2-4 with a double) and Chih-Fang Pan (1-4, 2B, RBI) showed promise at the plate, but did not get many opportunities. It was frustrating watching guys like IF Wei-Ting Lin get more PAs (0 for 7 at the plate with 6 K's).
Aside from CH Lin, 1B Chih-Pei Huang had a .294 BA (5/17).
*Dragons lefty Wei-Yin Chen had a nice start against the Hawks in game 1 of the Japan Series. Matched against T. Wada, another top lefty in the NPB, Chen earned a ND, but K'd 11 in the process (8 IP, 1 R, 4 H). View his outing on YouTube here.
There is a lot of speculation about Chen making the jump to the MLB after the season. (Google Wei-Yin Chen in the news section)
*Chin-Lung Hu is currently playing in Australia (Adelaide Bite)
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Indians Sign Shao-Ching Chiang
Per BA, the Indians inked RHP Shao-Ching Chiang, marking the 5th time that the club has invested in a player from Taiwan.
Indians Prospect Insider has a nice read on Chiang.
Indians Prospect Insider has a nice read on Chiang.
Chiang signed for about $250K and is represented by his HS (Ku-Pao) Manager Ming-Tang Tsai.
He also passed his physical despite having a slight labrum issue.
He was on the 2011 Junior NT that placed 3rd in the Asian Championships, primarily DH'ing. He hit .181 with a double, a triple, and a RBI.
Vitals:
DOB - 11/10/93
H: 185 cm
W: 75 kg
T:R
B:R
He made his debut in the US on the 13th.
***The Braves released RHP Wei-Chen Huang and C Meng-Hsiu Tsai.
***The Braves released RHP Wei-Chen Huang and C Meng-Hsiu Tsai.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
The Price is Right for Wang and the Pirates
*The Pirates were finally able to ink lefty Wei-Chung Wang, albeit at a significantly reduced signing bonus (original offer was $350 K). The kid's agent didn't want him to sign, but Wang ultimately wanted to to play in the US. He will also fly out to the US on the 12th and have an elective Tommy John surgery performed on his throwing appendage. Props to the Pirates for giving Wang a chance and props to Wang for recognizing the long-term ramifications of his decision. God-speed in his recovery.
*The Yomiuri Giants released RHP Chih-Lung Huang.
*The senior NT disappointed in the World Cup, but managed to win its last 2 games in round 1 play.
*The Yomiuri Giants released RHP Chih-Lung Huang.
*The senior NT disappointed in the World Cup, but managed to win its last 2 games in round 1 play.
Thursday, August 04, 2011
Palomino World Series: Lynnhaven 5 - Taiwan 4
"Lynnhaven 5, Taiwan 4. It was another nail biter for Lynnhaven fans with Lynnhaven’s first lead of the game not coming until the final out of the game. Taiwan jumped ahead with their first two batters of the game scoring. Lynnhaven scored 1 in the bottom of the 1st when Ryan Cook singled in Butt who had walked and advanced to second on Terrell Joyce’s single. Taiwan added 2 more in the 3rd with 4 singles, a sac and a fielder’s choice. In the bottom of the 3rd, Lynnhaven narrowed the gap with a single run; Joyce singled to right and scored on Cook’s triple to right center. The score remained 4-2 until the bottom of the 5th when Joyce hit a booming solo home run to left field to make the score 4-3. Lynnhaven tied the game in the bottom of the 6th. Adam Posey led off with a double to left center and scored on Greg Tomchick’s single up the middle. In the bottom of the 7th, Butt walked on a full count, advanced to 2nd on Nick Thompson’s single down the 3rd base line, advanced to 3rd on Joyce’s fly out to right center field and scored on Posey’s sac fly to left field. Rian Ellis pitched the complete game to earn the win, allowing only 1 base runner after the 3rd inning." The team will now have to win tomorrow against Puerto Rico or else their trip to the US will be cut short.
***CH Chiang is now with the Mariners organization. From Peter Gammons:
One scout said, "I had 'marginal prospect' in on [Chih-Hsien Chiang] last summer, and this July, I had him in as an everyday big leaguer. Everything changed." It had to do with managing diabetes. The Mets wanted Chiang in a deal for Carlos Beltran; the Mariners insisted on him in the Bedard deal.
***CMW lost his second start against the Braves.
***Taiwan won the Asia-Pacific Regionals and will rep A-P at the Pony League World Series.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Nan-Ying Roster
| 號 | 背號 | 姓名 | 守位 | 出生年月日 | 身高 | 體重 | 投 | 打 | 備註 |
| 01 | 1 | 宋家豪 | P | 1992-09-06 | 186 | 88 | R | L | 南英商工 |
| 02 | 2 | 林以哲 | C | 1994-01-25 | 172 | 73 | R | R | 南英商工 |
| 03 | 3 | 陳維豪 | IF | 1993-03-21 | 175 | 85 | L | L | 南英商工 |
| 04 | 4 | 陳玉恭 | IF | 1993-02-20 | 172 | 60 | R | L | 南英商工 |
| 05 | 5 | 謝榮展 | IF | 1992-09-07 | 181 | 76 | R | L | 南英商工 |
| 06 | 6 | 林家煌 | OF | 1992-09-15 | 173 | 70 | R | R | 南英商工 |
| 07 | 7 | 林書逸 | OF | 1993-05-20 | 176 | 70 | R | L | 南英商工 |
| 08 | 8 | 林志豪 | OF | 1992-10-01 | 177 | 73 | R | L | 南英商工 |
| 09 | 9 | 陳逸軒 | OF | 1994-02-11 | 174 | 65 | R | L | 南英商工 |
| 10 | 10 | 吳柏毅 | C | 1993-04-07 | 172 | 70 | R | R | 南英商工 |
| 11 | 11 | 黃偉仁 | P | 1993-05-11 | 171 | 64 | L | L | 善化高中 |
| 12 | 12 | 鐘振嘉 | IF | 1993-04-18 | 168 | 70 | R | R | 南英商工 |
| 13 | 13 | 黃威銓 | IF | 1993-04-15 | 176 | 76 | R | R | 南英商工 |
| 14 | 14 | 方敏任 | P | 1992-09-14 | 177 | 75 | R | R | 南英商工 |
| 15 | 15 | 詹子賢 | P | 1994-02-24 | 183 | 85 | R | R | 南英商工 |
| 16 | 16 | 謝柏賢 | P | 1993-05-17 | 182 | 73 | L | L | 南英商工 |
| 17 | 17 | 辛柏霖 | P | 1993-02-04 | 177 | 65 | L | L | 南英商工 |
| 18 | 18 | 黃子鵬 | P | 1994-03-19 | 181 | 70 | R | L | 南英商工 |
1)Chia-Hao Sung - Sadaharu Oh Cup MVP; top fb 145 kph; cousin of Wen-Hua Sung (on this year's "AA" NT)
2)Yi-Tze Lin
3)Wei-Hao Chen
4)Yu-Kung Chen
5)Jung-Chan Hsieh - (Rong)Jung-Hao Hsieh's lil bro
6)Chia-Huang Lin
7)Shu-Yi Lin
8)Chih-Hao Lin
9)Yi-Hsuan Chen
10)Po-Yi Wu
11)Wei-Jen Huang - only non Nan-Ying player on roster
12)Tsen-Jia Tsung - on the '04 LLWS NT roster
13)Wei-Chuan Huang
14)Min-Jen Feng
15)Chi-Hsien Chan - topped out at 146 kph in the past
16)Po-Hsien Hsieh
17)Po-Lin Hsin
18)Tse-Peng Huang
Despite churning out the likes of Hong-Chih Kuo, Chin-Lung Hu, Che-Hsuan Lin, Pin-Chieh Chen, Fu-Lin Kuo, Kai-Wen Cheng, etc., in the past, there's not a lot of star power on this year's Nan-Ying squad. Righty Chia-Hao Sung is arguably the most talented player on this team. Nonetheless, it's exciting to get an opportunity to see the Nan-Ying program here in the US.
See the squad in person next week. Jiayo!
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Nan-Ying Coming to So Cal/CMW Back to the Bigs...
***After two+ years of physical and mental anguish, CMW will finally make his return to the Majors with a Friday start against the Mets. In a season marred by injuries and disappointments to several players, you can't but help root for CMW to do well.
***Congrats to the World "A" LL Champs! The national team beat Cuba in a rematch during the championship game. RHP Wei-En Tseng earned the W in the championship game, won tourney MVP honors, was the top RHP, and was an All-Star at 1B.
***Laying Claim to having the world's best Little Leaguers? Taiwan will have an opportunity to win two more world titles at the "A" level. Ching-Tang LL blitzed the field (outscoring opponents 85-19) in the Asia-Pacific Tourney and will be the A-P reps in Williamsport. Here is the team's schedule in PA.
In Pony Baseball, a team from Taoyuan will rep Asia in the Bronco World Series. This team outscored its opponents 92-3 (toughest game was the semis against Japan: 3-2 win). See the schedule here.
***Here's the schedule for the Junior League World Series. In Pony Baseball, a rep from Taiwan will need to win the Asia-Pacific Regionals in China going on July 29th - August 4th to advance to the Pony World Series.
***Nan-Ying HS will represent Taiwan in the Palomino World Series. The World Series will be held here in Los Angeles from August 4th through the 8th. I'll try to make it out with my kids for a few games. Come to support the team and hope to see you guys there.
***Nice read on Che-Huan Lin. It must be nice to have a howitzer for an appendage!
What else does Chih-Hsien Chiang have to prove in AA ball to get a promotion? The kid is killing Eastern League pitching.
CH Chen having a quiet but solid year in AA.
Yao-Ling Wang - best player in Boise?
***The MLBAAP is under way in the land down under. Kuo-Hua Lo and Jin-De Jhang are doing well in their debut.
***Mixing Biz and Pleasure? Interesting media news on Fu-Te Ni - He announced on his blog that he got married but he did not mention his wife's name. It is widely known that Ni has been dating his baseball agent (a female rep from Octagon) which is probably why he chose not to mention her name.
***CPBL All-Star Festivities: HR Derby Champ / All-Star Game Result
***The Senior NT finished second to Cuba at the WBC. Cuba brought its "A" squad this time around. 1 win in 3 tries against the Cubans with essentially a roster made up of NT trainees ain't too shabby. IF Po-Ting Hsiao was impressive in the tourney.
***Congrats to the World "A" LL Champs! The national team beat Cuba in a rematch during the championship game. RHP Wei-En Tseng earned the W in the championship game, won tourney MVP honors, was the top RHP, and was an All-Star at 1B.
***Laying Claim to having the world's best Little Leaguers? Taiwan will have an opportunity to win two more world titles at the "A" level. Ching-Tang LL blitzed the field (outscoring opponents 85-19) in the Asia-Pacific Tourney and will be the A-P reps in Williamsport. Here is the team's schedule in PA.
In Pony Baseball, a team from Taoyuan will rep Asia in the Bronco World Series. This team outscored its opponents 92-3 (toughest game was the semis against Japan: 3-2 win). See the schedule here.
***Here's the schedule for the Junior League World Series. In Pony Baseball, a rep from Taiwan will need to win the Asia-Pacific Regionals in China going on July 29th - August 4th to advance to the Pony World Series.
***Nan-Ying HS will represent Taiwan in the Palomino World Series. The World Series will be held here in Los Angeles from August 4th through the 8th. I'll try to make it out with my kids for a few games. Come to support the team and hope to see you guys there.
***Nice read on Che-Huan Lin. It must be nice to have a howitzer for an appendage!
What else does Chih-Hsien Chiang have to prove in AA ball to get a promotion? The kid is killing Eastern League pitching.
CH Chen having a quiet but solid year in AA.
Yao-Ling Wang - best player in Boise?
***The MLBAAP is under way in the land down under. Kuo-Hua Lo and Jin-De Jhang are doing well in their debut.
***Mixing Biz and Pleasure? Interesting media news on Fu-Te Ni - He announced on his blog that he got married but he did not mention his wife's name. It is widely known that Ni has been dating his baseball agent (a female rep from Octagon) which is probably why he chose not to mention her name.
***CPBL All-Star Festivities: HR Derby Champ / All-Star Game Result
***The Senior NT finished second to Cuba at the WBC. Cuba brought its "A" squad this time around. 1 win in 3 tries against the Cubans with essentially a roster made up of NT trainees ain't too shabby. IF Po-Ting Hsiao was impressive in the tourney.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
More News....(Updated 7/14)
*LHP Wei-Chung Wang (Octagon) failed his physical with the Pirates due to an ulnar collateral ligament tear that will require Tommy John surgery; his contract was voided.
***UPDATED 7/14 - Some new info on Wang: Word is that the $350 K offer was rescinded by the Pirates due to the physical, however the Pirates still wanted to sign him (albeit at a lower price) and give him an opportunity. The snag? His agent rejected the offer. Hmmm, if true, the kid passed on an opportunity to at least have his elbow taken care of by a US orthopedic surgeon.
*A few ML teams including the Indians are after former Ku-Pao HS RHP/OF Chih-Yu Lin.
*The Pirates have released OF Chi.
*The Reds have released LHP Tzu-Kai Chiu.
*Reds prospect P Po-Cheng Chi is out for the season with an elbow injury.
*Astros minor leaguer CJ Lo hurt his elbow again in Florida.
*Ex-Cubs farmhand RHP Tzu-An Wang is represented by L3 agency.
*The Cubs have moved 2B Pin-Chieh Chen to CF, with good results.
*Hanshin RHP Kai-Wen Cheng was called up to the 1st team, after 35 consecutive scoreless innings with the ni-gun team.
*CPBL President Lions RHP Wei-Lun Pan has an ulnar collateral ligament injury and is out indefinitely.
*CPBL Elephants RHP En-Yu Lin still has not made progress from his labrum surgery.
*CPBL Elephants RHP Sung-Wei Tseng has lost velocity and his feel for pitching, as he is struggling while playing for the minor league team.
*Nice read on Red Sox prospect CH Chiang.
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***UPDATED 7/14 - Some new info on Wang: Word is that the $350 K offer was rescinded by the Pirates due to the physical, however the Pirates still wanted to sign him (albeit at a lower price) and give him an opportunity. The snag? His agent rejected the offer. Hmmm, if true, the kid passed on an opportunity to at least have his elbow taken care of by a US orthopedic surgeon.
*A few ML teams including the Indians are after former Ku-Pao HS RHP/OF Chih-Yu Lin.
*The Pirates have released OF Chi.
*The Reds have released LHP Tzu-Kai Chiu.
*Reds prospect P Po-Cheng Chi is out for the season with an elbow injury.
*Astros minor leaguer CJ Lo hurt his elbow again in Florida.
*Ex-Cubs farmhand RHP Tzu-An Wang is represented by L3 agency.
*The Cubs have moved 2B Pin-Chieh Chen to CF, with good results.
*Hanshin RHP Kai-Wen Cheng was called up to the 1st team, after 35 consecutive scoreless innings with the ni-gun team.
*CPBL President Lions RHP Wei-Lun Pan has an ulnar collateral ligament injury and is out indefinitely.
*CPBL Elephants RHP En-Yu Lin still has not made progress from his labrum surgery.
*CPBL Elephants RHP Sung-Wei Tseng has lost velocity and his feel for pitching, as he is struggling while playing for the minor league team.
*Nice read on Red Sox prospect CH Chiang.
*New Pirate Chin-De Chang flashing his Black and Yellow Pride:
Chang goes by Jhin-De Jhang.
*Taiwan will most likely face South Korea tomorrow in the AP Regional Championship game. Winner heads to Williamsport.
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
Chiang - Eastern League Player of the Month
***Red Sox prospect Chih-Hsien Chiang has had one helluva season so far. In addition to earning an invite to the Futures World All-Star team, he's also been selected to the Eastern League All-Star team (Chun-Hsiu Chen was also on the roster, but will not play due to injury), and was just picked the Eastern League Player of the Month for June.
Read more about Chiang here, from Soxprospects.com.
***Other minor leaguers off to good starts include:
CC Lee - recently promoted to AAA (impressive K/9-BB ratio)
***IN THE NPB: After a hot start with the Fighters, DK Yang has cooled down considerably. He's currently at .268 with 2 HRs and 15 RBI. The good news is that he is still starting for the Fighters in the OF and is frequently in the lead-off spot.
Dragons LHP Wei-Yin Chen is still trying to find his groove after working his way back from an early season injury. He's currently 2-6, but does have a 2.73 ERA.
***The Minnesota Twins have signed RHP Kuo-Hua Lo (former San-Hsin HS star).
***Shi-Yuan HS RHP Lee-Wei Chiang will potentially require elbow surgery (TJ).
***Mariners prospect Yao-Wen Chang had shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum.
***Kao-Yuan HS IF Tzu-Wei Lin was clocked at 3.7 s going from home to first in the recent Yu-Shan Cup. As a LHH, that still puts Lin in some elite company (80 category with Ichiro).
***Stiff jail sentences were handed out to former CPBL/national team stars Chih-Chia Chang and Chih-Yuan Chen for their involvement in the CPBL game-fixing scandal.
***With all of the not-so-good news about Kuo and Hu (bad bouts of the Yips), Chien-Ming Wang seems to be on the right path in resurrecting his career.
***Taiwan will defend its title at the Junior League World Series in Taylor, Michigan. Taiwan won the Asia-Pacific Regionals, defeating Hong Kong 24-1, the Philippines 25-2, and Indonesia 22-0 in the preliminary rounds. The team then blanked the Philippines in the A-P championship game 24-0. Starting pitcher Chuan-Yu Hsu was the star, earning the W after blanking the opponents over 3 IP with 5 K's. He also had 4 hits.
***The inaugural IBAF "A" World Championship kicks off on Friday.
Taiwan will face:
1)7/8 - vs. Cuba
2)7/9 - vs. Ecuador
3)7/10 - vs. Japan
4)7/11 - vs. Lithuania
5)7/14 - vs. Brazil
6)7/15 - vs. Hong Kong
The boys will need to finish in the top 2 of their group in order to advance to the semifinals taking place 7/16. The championship and consolation games will take place 7/17. Mexico and Korea are in the other pool group and in an interesting side note, there is NO US representative.
***The Taiwanese LL reps will also attempt to make their way back to Williamsport. The team plays in the Asia-Pacific Regionals beginning July 9th. The team is in pool A with Singapore, Indonesia, Australia, Thailand, and New Zealand. Pool B heavyweight South Korea is grouped with host Guam, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and CNMI.
SCHEDULE:
1)7/9 - vs. Australia
2)7/10 - vs. New Zealand
3)7/11 - vs. Singapore
4)7/12 - vs. Thailand
5)7/13 - vs. Indonesia
Again, the team will need to finish in the top 2 of its pool to play in the semis on the 14th of July.
The championship and consolation games will take place on 7/15.
Read more about Chiang here, from Soxprospects.com.
***Other minor leaguers off to good starts include:
CC Lee - recently promoted to AAA (impressive K/9-BB ratio)
PC Chen - hitting at a .356 clip (scouting report)
FL Kuo - has 2 HRs in his first 9 games of the season
***IN THE NPB: After a hot start with the Fighters, DK Yang has cooled down considerably. He's currently at .268 with 2 HRs and 15 RBI. The good news is that he is still starting for the Fighters in the OF and is frequently in the lead-off spot.
Dragons LHP Wei-Yin Chen is still trying to find his groove after working his way back from an early season injury. He's currently 2-6, but does have a 2.73 ERA.
***The Minnesota Twins have signed RHP Kuo-Hua Lo (former San-Hsin HS star).
 |
| Wei-Chung Wang |
***The Pirates inked C Chin-De Chang for ~ $250 K while LHP Wei-Chung Wang received ~ $350 K. Reportedly, it was unclear if Wang would be able to pass his physical due to elbow issues. Nonetheless, Wang did represent the Taiwanese national team at the World Port Tournament. Taiwan won its first ever WPT title, defeating Cuba (did not send its top squad) 3 times in the tourney. Han Lin was the tourney MVP, MPP, and the top hitter.
The senior NT will now participate in the World Baseball Challenge.
The senior NT will now participate in the World Baseball Challenge.
***Shi-Yuan HS RHP Lee-Wei Chiang will potentially require elbow surgery (TJ).
***Mariners prospect Yao-Wen Chang had shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum.
***Kao-Yuan HS IF Tzu-Wei Lin was clocked at 3.7 s going from home to first in the recent Yu-Shan Cup. As a LHH, that still puts Lin in some elite company (80 category with Ichiro).
***Stiff jail sentences were handed out to former CPBL/national team stars Chih-Chia Chang and Chih-Yuan Chen for their involvement in the CPBL game-fixing scandal.
***With all of the not-so-good news about Kuo and Hu (bad bouts of the Yips), Chien-Ming Wang seems to be on the right path in resurrecting his career.
***Taiwan will defend its title at the Junior League World Series in Taylor, Michigan. Taiwan won the Asia-Pacific Regionals, defeating Hong Kong 24-1, the Philippines 25-2, and Indonesia 22-0 in the preliminary rounds. The team then blanked the Philippines in the A-P championship game 24-0. Starting pitcher Chuan-Yu Hsu was the star, earning the W after blanking the opponents over 3 IP with 5 K's. He also had 4 hits.
***The inaugural IBAF "A" World Championship kicks off on Friday.
Taiwan will face:
1)7/8 - vs. Cuba
2)7/9 - vs. Ecuador
3)7/10 - vs. Japan
4)7/11 - vs. Lithuania
5)7/14 - vs. Brazil
6)7/15 - vs. Hong Kong
The boys will need to finish in the top 2 of their group in order to advance to the semifinals taking place 7/16. The championship and consolation games will take place 7/17. Mexico and Korea are in the other pool group and in an interesting side note, there is NO US representative.
***The Taiwanese LL reps will also attempt to make their way back to Williamsport. The team plays in the Asia-Pacific Regionals beginning July 9th. The team is in pool A with Singapore, Indonesia, Australia, Thailand, and New Zealand. Pool B heavyweight South Korea is grouped with host Guam, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and CNMI.
SCHEDULE:
1)7/9 - vs. Australia
2)7/10 - vs. New Zealand
3)7/11 - vs. Singapore
4)7/12 - vs. Thailand
5)7/13 - vs. Indonesia
Again, the team will need to finish in the top 2 of its pool to play in the semis on the 14th of July.
The championship and consolation games will take place on 7/15.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Multiple Signings and Other News (2011 LL/Youth/Junior NTs Announced)...
1)The Pittsburgh Pirates signed two kids: slugger C Chin-De Chang and LHP Wei-Chung Wang. Their effort this time around is more commendable after signing three questionable kids last time around.
***The 2011 "AAA" Junior NT has been anounced:
PITCHERS (6):
1)Keng-Sheng Lee (RHP/1-15-93/182 cm, 80 kg/Tops 143 KPH/'09 Youth NT)
2)Yan-Chang Lee (RHP/11-7-93/178 cm, 78 kg/Tops 144 KPH)
3)Ren-He Tseng (RHP/10-3-94/182 cm, 84 kg/Tops 152 KPH/Drew interest from A's)
4)Chao-Wei Yu (RHP/4-16-93/175 cm, 67 kg/Tops 144 KPH/'09 Youth NT)
5)Chih-Wei Hu (RHP/11-4-93/184 cm, 96 kg/Tops 147 KPH/'09 Youth NT/'09 Pony League WS)
6)Chih-Lung Yang (RHP/4-7-93/190 cm, 85 kg/Tops 145 KPH/'06 LL NT)
CATCHERS (2):
1)Tse-Yang Peng (T:R,B:R/9-1-93/183 cm, 88 kg)
2)Wei-Ming Huang (T:R,B:R/11-10-93/171 cm, 61 kg)
INFIELDERS (6):
1)Che-Chieh Su (T:R,B:L/7-28-94/170 cm, 65 kg)
2)Tsung-Hsien Lee (T:R,B:R/6-29-94/173 cm, 68 kg/2011 Yu-Shan Cup MVP)
3)Hao-Wei Chang (T:R,B:R/12-13-94/176 cm, 78 kg)
4)Tze-Wei Lin (2010 AAA World Championships MVP/Formerly connected to the Yankees)
5)Yuan-Kai Lu (T:R,B:R/8-16-93/179 cm, 85 kg)
6)Hung-Sheng Yang (2010 AAA World Championships All-Star at 2B)
OUTFIELDERS (4):
1)Tze-Chun Hsu (T:R,B:R/1-5-94/172 cm, 56 kg)
2)Kuo-Lin Lo (Kuo-Hui Lo's younger bro)
3)Shao-Ching Chiang (T:R,B:R/11-10-93/188 cm, 82 kg/Also a RHP, tops out at 148 kph/2011 Yu-Shan Cup HR King)
4)Wen-Chia Sung (T:R,B:L/12-1-93/180 cm, 75 kg)
This team will represent Taiwan at the 9th Asian "AAA" Championships in Yokohama, Japan. The tourney will run from 8/28/11 to 9/2/11.
***The 2011 "AA" Youth NT Roster:
PITCHERS (6):
1)Chia-Wei Yang
2)Wen-Hua Sung (Former '09 LLWS Star)
3)Chia-Ming Tu (2010 Youth NT/'08 Bronco World Series Star)
4)Yi-Hsin Huang
5)Yu-Cheng Chang (Chin-De Chang's lil' bro)
6)Yu-Pu Wang
CATCHERS (2):
1)Min-Hao Chiang
2)Wei-Tai Tsai
INFIELDERS (6):
1)Yu-Hsiang Keng
2)Lee Lin
3)Kuo-HaoWu
4)Wei-En Chen
5)Chun-Yu Pan
6)Wei-Chien Chang
OUTFIELDERS (4):
1)Ming-Yu Peng (already stands 183 cm, ran an 11.84 100M as an 8th grader)
2)Tse-Chun Wang
3)Chin-Che Chien
4)Tse-Chuan Liu
This team will participate in the 2011 World Youth Championships in Lagos de Moreno, Mexico. The tourney will be held from August 19th to the 28th. This should be a fun team to follow with its prospect-laden roster.
*The 2011 "A" NT:
PITCHERS (7):
1)Tse-Yang Chen
2)En-Chieh Yang
3)Yu-Lun Chang
4)Wei-En Tseng
5)Wei-Hsiang Chen
6)Chao-Yu Yeh
7)Mai-Ko Chu
CATCHERS (2):
1)Chun-Yu He
2)Yi-Chieh Kao
INFIELDERS (5):
1)Kuan-Wei Chiu
2)Ta-Yu Chiu
3)Tsu-Yuan Lo
4)Hsiang-Chih Chang
5)Tse-Chieh Lin
OUTFIELDERS (4):
1)Yi-Cheng Wang
2)Chao-Ching Wen
3)Hsueh-Chao Tsung
4)Ping-Yi Chou
The inaugural little league level world championship takes place in Taipei, Taiwan from July 8 - 17.
OTHER:
*The Cubs released RHP Tzu-An Wang.
*Kao-Yuan HS SS Tzu-Wei Lin reportedly fired Octagon as his rep.
*L3-Dave Stewart has signed RHP Yao-Wen Chang and RHP Po-Cheng Chi as their clients.
*Chih-Hsien Chiang has been tearing the cover off the ball in AA ball. I smell a potential 2011 All-Star Future Games invitation?
*Update on Hong-Chih Kuo
*MLB coming to Taiwan in November
 |
| Chin-De Chang |
***The 2011 "AAA" Junior NT has been anounced:
PITCHERS (6):
1)Keng-Sheng Lee (RHP/1-15-93/182 cm, 80 kg/Tops 143 KPH/'09 Youth NT)
2)Yan-Chang Lee (RHP/11-7-93/178 cm, 78 kg/Tops 144 KPH)
3)Ren-He Tseng (RHP/10-3-94/182 cm, 84 kg/Tops 152 KPH/Drew interest from A's)
4)Chao-Wei Yu (RHP/4-16-93/175 cm, 67 kg/Tops 144 KPH/'09 Youth NT)
5)Chih-Wei Hu (RHP/11-4-93/184 cm, 96 kg/Tops 147 KPH/'09 Youth NT/'09 Pony League WS)
6)Chih-Lung Yang (RHP/4-7-93/190 cm, 85 kg/Tops 145 KPH/'06 LL NT)
CATCHERS (2):
1)Tse-Yang Peng (T:R,B:R/9-1-93/183 cm, 88 kg)
2)Wei-Ming Huang (T:R,B:R/11-10-93/171 cm, 61 kg)
INFIELDERS (6):
1)Che-Chieh Su (T:R,B:L/7-28-94/170 cm, 65 kg)
2)Tsung-Hsien Lee (T:R,B:R/6-29-94/173 cm, 68 kg/2011 Yu-Shan Cup MVP)
3)Hao-Wei Chang (T:R,B:R/12-13-94/176 cm, 78 kg)
4)Tze-Wei Lin (2010 AAA World Championships MVP/Formerly connected to the Yankees)
5)Yuan-Kai Lu (T:R,B:R/8-16-93/179 cm, 85 kg)
6)Hung-Sheng Yang (2010 AAA World Championships All-Star at 2B)
OUTFIELDERS (4):
1)Tze-Chun Hsu (T:R,B:R/1-5-94/172 cm, 56 kg)
2)Kuo-Lin Lo (Kuo-Hui Lo's younger bro)
3)Shao-Ching Chiang (T:R,B:R/11-10-93/188 cm, 82 kg/Also a RHP, tops out at 148 kph/2011 Yu-Shan Cup HR King)
4)Wen-Chia Sung (T:R,B:L/12-1-93/180 cm, 75 kg)
This team will represent Taiwan at the 9th Asian "AAA" Championships in Yokohama, Japan. The tourney will run from 8/28/11 to 9/2/11.
***The 2011 "AA" Youth NT Roster:
PITCHERS (6):
1)Chia-Wei Yang
2)Wen-Hua Sung (Former '09 LLWS Star)
3)Chia-Ming Tu (2010 Youth NT/'08 Bronco World Series Star)
4)Yi-Hsin Huang
5)Yu-Cheng Chang (Chin-De Chang's lil' bro)
6)Yu-Pu Wang
CATCHERS (2):
1)Min-Hao Chiang
2)Wei-Tai Tsai
INFIELDERS (6):
1)Yu-Hsiang Keng
2)Lee Lin
3)Kuo-HaoWu
4)Wei-En Chen
5)Chun-Yu Pan
6)Wei-Chien Chang
OUTFIELDERS (4):
1)Ming-Yu Peng (already stands 183 cm, ran an 11.84 100M as an 8th grader)
2)Tse-Chun Wang
3)Chin-Che Chien
4)Tse-Chuan Liu
This team will participate in the 2011 World Youth Championships in Lagos de Moreno, Mexico. The tourney will be held from August 19th to the 28th. This should be a fun team to follow with its prospect-laden roster.
*The 2011 "A" NT:
PITCHERS (7):
1)Tse-Yang Chen
2)En-Chieh Yang
3)Yu-Lun Chang
4)Wei-En Tseng
5)Wei-Hsiang Chen
6)Chao-Yu Yeh
7)Mai-Ko Chu
CATCHERS (2):
1)Chun-Yu He
2)Yi-Chieh Kao
INFIELDERS (5):
1)Kuan-Wei Chiu
2)Ta-Yu Chiu
3)Tsu-Yuan Lo
4)Hsiang-Chih Chang
5)Tse-Chieh Lin
OUTFIELDERS (4):
1)Yi-Cheng Wang
2)Chao-Ching Wen
3)Hsueh-Chao Tsung
4)Ping-Yi Chou
The inaugural little league level world championship takes place in Taipei, Taiwan from July 8 - 17.
OTHER:
*The Cubs released RHP Tzu-An Wang.
*Kao-Yuan HS SS Tzu-Wei Lin reportedly fired Octagon as his rep.
*L3-Dave Stewart has signed RHP Yao-Wen Chang and RHP Po-Cheng Chi as their clients.
*Chih-Hsien Chiang has been tearing the cover off the ball in AA ball. I smell a potential 2011 All-Star Future Games invitation?
*Update on Hong-Chih Kuo
*MLB coming to Taiwan in November
Saturday, April 16, 2011
4/16 MLB/NPB Stats Run Down
Here's a snapshot as to how the kids are doing overseas:
MLB:
HC Kuo (Dodgers)- 0-0, 3.38 ERA, 2.2 IP, 1 ER, 4 K's, 4 BB's
CL Hu (Mets)- .125 BA, 2 R, 1 H, 0 2B/3B/HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
MILB:
FT Ni (AAA Toledo) - 2-0, 3.38 ERA, 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 6 K's, 2 BB's
HW Chen (AA Tennessee) - 0-1, 6.75 ERA, 4 IP, 3 ER, 5 K's, 2 BB's
CH Chen (AA Akron) - .276 BA, 3 R, 8 H, 1 2B, 0 3B/HR, 4 RBI, 0 SB
CC Lee (AA Akron) - 0-1, 4.91 ERA, 3.2 IP, 2 ER, 3 K's, 2 BB's
CH Chiang (AA Portland) - .200 BA, 3 R, 4 H, 2 2B, 0 3B/HR/RBI, 1 SB
CH Lin (AA Portland) - .192 BA, 3 R, 5 H, 0 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR/RBI, 2 SB
KH Lo (AA Jackson) - DL
SA Kuo (A+ Modesto) - 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 2 IP, 0 ER, 3 K's, 0 BB's
TK Chiu (A+ Bakersfield) - 0-0, 5.79 ERA, 4.2 IP, 3 ER, 3 K's, 3 BB's
WW Lin (A Beloit) - .083 BA, 2 R, 1 H, 0 2B/3B/HR/RBI/SB
NPB:
MC Hsu (Lions)- 1-0, 1.93 ERA, 4.2 IP, 1 ER, 1 K/BB
DK Yang (Fighters)- .267 BA, 2 R, 4 H, 0 2B/3B/HR/RBI/SB
WC Lin (Tigers)- .500 BA, 1 R, 2 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 0 SB
Nigun:
TH Lee (Hawks) - .339 BA, 6 R, 19 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 9 RBI, 1 SB
YH Yang (Hawks) - 2-2, 3.67 ERA, 27 IP, 11 ER, 24 K's, 12 BB's
SF Tsai (Marines) - .238 BA, 2 R, 5 H, 1 2B, 0 3B/HR/RBI/SB
YF Lin (Marines) - 0-0, 6.75 ERA, 1.1 IP, 1 ER, 0 K's, 2 BB's
WY Chen (Dragons) - 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 3 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 1 K, 0 BB's
KW Cheng (Tigers) - 0-0, 2.50 ERA, 18 IP, 5 ER, 14 H, 14 K's, 1 BB
I. Shoh (Tigers) - 2-1, 2.11 ERA, 21.1 IP, 5 ER, 13 H, 12 K's, 6 BB's
CL Huang (Giants) - 0-1, 4.26 ERA, 6.1 IP, 3 ER, 5 H, 1 K, 3 BB's
YH Lin (Giants) - 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 9.2 IP, 0 ER, 5 H, 12 K's, 1 BB, 6 SV
IC Wang (BayStars) - 1-0, 1.86 ERA, 9.2 IP, 2 ER, 7 H, 5 K's, 1 BB
MLB:
HC Kuo (Dodgers)- 0-0, 3.38 ERA, 2.2 IP, 1 ER, 4 K's, 4 BB's
CL Hu (Mets)- .125 BA, 2 R, 1 H, 0 2B/3B/HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
MILB:
FT Ni (AAA Toledo) - 2-0, 3.38 ERA, 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 6 K's, 2 BB's
HW Chen (AA Tennessee) - 0-1, 6.75 ERA, 4 IP, 3 ER, 5 K's, 2 BB's
CH Chen (AA Akron) - .276 BA, 3 R, 8 H, 1 2B, 0 3B/HR, 4 RBI, 0 SB
CC Lee (AA Akron) - 0-1, 4.91 ERA, 3.2 IP, 2 ER, 3 K's, 2 BB's
CH Chiang (AA Portland) - .200 BA, 3 R, 4 H, 2 2B, 0 3B/HR/RBI, 1 SB
CH Lin (AA Portland) - .192 BA, 3 R, 5 H, 0 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR/RBI, 2 SB
KH Lo (AA Jackson) - DL
SA Kuo (A+ Modesto) - 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 2 IP, 0 ER, 3 K's, 0 BB's
TK Chiu (A+ Bakersfield) - 0-0, 5.79 ERA, 4.2 IP, 3 ER, 3 K's, 3 BB's
WW Lin (A Beloit) - .083 BA, 2 R, 1 H, 0 2B/3B/HR/RBI/SB
NPB:
MC Hsu (Lions)- 1-0, 1.93 ERA, 4.2 IP, 1 ER, 1 K/BB
DK Yang (Fighters)- .267 BA, 2 R, 4 H, 0 2B/3B/HR/RBI/SB
WC Lin (Tigers)- .500 BA, 1 R, 2 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 0 SB
Nigun:
TH Lee (Hawks) - .339 BA, 6 R, 19 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 9 RBI, 1 SB
YH Yang (Hawks) - 2-2, 3.67 ERA, 27 IP, 11 ER, 24 K's, 12 BB's
SF Tsai (Marines) - .238 BA, 2 R, 5 H, 1 2B, 0 3B/HR/RBI/SB
YF Lin (Marines) - 0-0, 6.75 ERA, 1.1 IP, 1 ER, 0 K's, 2 BB's
WY Chen (Dragons) - 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 3 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 1 K, 0 BB's
KW Cheng (Tigers) - 0-0, 2.50 ERA, 18 IP, 5 ER, 14 H, 14 K's, 1 BB
I. Shoh (Tigers) - 2-1, 2.11 ERA, 21.1 IP, 5 ER, 13 H, 12 K's, 6 BB's
CL Huang (Giants) - 0-1, 4.26 ERA, 6.1 IP, 3 ER, 5 H, 1 K, 3 BB's
YH Lin (Giants) - 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 9.2 IP, 0 ER, 5 H, 12 K's, 1 BB, 6 SV
IC Wang (BayStars) - 1-0, 1.86 ERA, 9.2 IP, 2 ER, 7 H, 5 K's, 1 BB
Saturday, March 05, 2011
Spring Happenings.....
MLB:
*Che-Hsuan Lin is in big league camp. He's currently hitless this spring. Here's a 2011 profile preview.
*Chun-Hsiu Chen is also in big league camp. He's currently 0-4 with 2 RBI this spring.
*Chin-Lung Hu receiving praise for his defense. He was 1-2 with a SB at the plate today.
*So far, so good for Fu-Te Ni.
*Hong-Chih Kuo "feels great." He threw live BP today.
*Chien-Ming Wang topped out at 87 mph recently, but reported soreness after one inning.
*Chia-Jen Lo is in minor league minicamp.
NPB:
*Wei-Yin Chen is currently out with a groin pull.
*MC Hsu threw 2 scoreless innings today.
*DK Yang was 1-3 with a RBI.
*WC Lin: 2-4, 2 RBI
HS-Taiwan:
*Ku-Pao won the inaugural HS (Basebal) Super Bowl, defeating long time nemesis Nan-Ying 7-0 in the championship game on 2/25. Chih-Yu Lin from Ku-Pao was the tourney MVP with a .444 BA and 8 RBI. The tourney featured the top 8 teams from the Elite Cup.
*Che-Hsuan Lin is in big league camp. He's currently hitless this spring. Here's a 2011 profile preview.
*Chun-Hsiu Chen is also in big league camp. He's currently 0-4 with 2 RBI this spring.
*Chin-Lung Hu receiving praise for his defense. He was 1-2 with a SB at the plate today.
*So far, so good for Fu-Te Ni.
*Hong-Chih Kuo "feels great." He threw live BP today.
*Chien-Ming Wang topped out at 87 mph recently, but reported soreness after one inning.
*Chia-Jen Lo is in minor league minicamp.
NPB:
*Wei-Yin Chen is currently out with a groin pull.
*MC Hsu threw 2 scoreless innings today.
*DK Yang was 1-3 with a RBI.
*WC Lin: 2-4, 2 RBI
HS-Taiwan:
*Ku-Pao won the inaugural HS (Basebal) Super Bowl, defeating long time nemesis Nan-Ying 7-0 in the championship game on 2/25. Chih-Yu Lin from Ku-Pao was the tourney MVP with a .444 BA and 8 RBI. The tourney featured the top 8 teams from the Elite Cup.
Wednesday, February 02, 2011
Kuo Comes to Terms with Dodgers...
The Dodgers inked Hong-Chih Kuo to a one year deal for $2.725 million. He also has the opportunity to earn an additional $675 K in bonuses. Kuo will make nearly the same amount as he earned cumulatively from 2005-2010.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Ku-Pao: 2011 Elite Cup Champs
HS Baseball:
Finals (1/31):
*Ku-Pao won the 2011 Elite Cup championship with a 9-2 win over Shi-Yuan. Ping-Hsueh Chen came on in relief to pick up the W for Ku-Pao. Chen threw 8.1 innings, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits, while K'ing 13. Ku-Pao won its first Elite Cup since 2006 and in the process, earned 500 K NT. Runner-Up Shi-Yuan earned 300 K NT.
*Ping-Zhen earned 3rd in the tourney with a 10-0 victory over Mei-Ho. Ping-Zhen HS picked up 200 K NT in prize money.
*Tourney Awards - a Ku-Pao Sweep
MVP: Ping-Hsueh Chen (Ku-Pao)
Top Pitcher: Ping-Hsueh Chen (Ku-Pao) - 2 W's, 15.1 IP, 0 ER, 25 K's
HS YangHR King: Hung-Sheng Yang (Ku-Pao) - 1
Top BA: Chih-Yu Lin (Ku-Pao) - .500
RBI King: Chih-Yu Lin (Ku-Pao) - 7
Semifinals (1/30):
*Ku-Pao held on to defeat Ping-Zhen 9-8 in 10 innings in one semifinal. Ku-Pao slugger Hung-Sheng Yang led the way by cracking a 2-run home run in the 2nd inning and was 2-4 with 3 RBI.
*Shi-Yuan moved on to the finals by shutting out Mei-Ho 4-0. Shi-Yuan starter Chih-Wei Hu was the star with a CG 3 hit shutout. Hu K'd 9 and walked 6 while topping out at 143 kph.
WBC Update:
Taiwan will host the 2013 WBC Qualifying Round in November of next year.
Finals (1/31):
*Ku-Pao won the 2011 Elite Cup championship with a 9-2 win over Shi-Yuan. Ping-Hsueh Chen came on in relief to pick up the W for Ku-Pao. Chen threw 8.1 innings, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits, while K'ing 13. Ku-Pao won its first Elite Cup since 2006 and in the process, earned 500 K NT. Runner-Up Shi-Yuan earned 300 K NT.
*Ping-Zhen earned 3rd in the tourney with a 10-0 victory over Mei-Ho. Ping-Zhen HS picked up 200 K NT in prize money.
*Tourney Awards - a Ku-Pao Sweep
PH Chen
MVP: Ping-Hsueh Chen (Ku-Pao)
Top Pitcher: Ping-Hsueh Chen (Ku-Pao) - 2 W's, 15.1 IP, 0 ER, 25 K's
HS Yang
CY Lin
Top BA: Chih-Yu Lin (Ku-Pao) - .500
RBI King: Chih-Yu Lin (Ku-Pao) - 7
Semifinals (1/30):
*Ku-Pao held on to defeat Ping-Zhen 9-8 in 10 innings in one semifinal. Ku-Pao slugger Hung-Sheng Yang led the way by cracking a 2-run home run in the 2nd inning and was 2-4 with 3 RBI.
*Shi-Yuan moved on to the finals by shutting out Mei-Ho 4-0. Shi-Yuan starter Chih-Wei Hu was the star with a CG 3 hit shutout. Hu K'd 9 and walked 6 while topping out at 143 kph.
WBC Update:
Taiwan will host the 2013 WBC Qualifying Round in November of next year.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Elite Cup: Final Four Finalized
HS Baseball:
*Mei-Ho defeated San-Hsin 4-1 to move on the semifinals of the Elite Cup.
*In a highly anticipated match up of traditional HS power houses, Ku-Pao routed Nan-Ying 10-0 behind starter Ping-Hsueh Chen. Chen threw 7 shutout innings, allowing only 3 hits, while K'ing 12. Nan-Ying ace Chia-Hao Sung was roughed up for 7 runs (6 earned) on 12 hits in 6+ innings. Chen touched 91 mph (146 kph).
Some other top guns in the tourney:
1)Kuo-Hua Lo (San-Hsin) 144 kph
2)Ming-Hung Lin (Cheng-Kung) 144 kph
3)Chih-Wei Hu (Shi-Yuan) 143 kph
*Shi-Yuan beat Cheng-Kung 6-2 to advance in the tourney.
*Ping-Zhen won 8-2 over San-Min HS.
Tomorrow's semifinal matchups include:
Ping-Zhen vs. Ku-Pao
Mei-Ho vs. Shi-Yuan
MLB:
Chin-Lung Hu was officially introduced by the Mets. There is a large Taiwanese contingency in nearby Flushing, NY. The NY Media labeled Hu as a "4A" player, a label that befell Chin-Feng Chen.
ASIA:
The Asia Series will resume this year in Taiwan - Nov. 11th to be specific.
*Mei-Ho defeated San-Hsin 4-1 to move on the semifinals of the Elite Cup.
*In a highly anticipated match up of traditional HS power houses, Ku-Pao routed Nan-Ying 10-0 behind starter Ping-Hsueh Chen. Chen threw 7 shutout innings, allowing only 3 hits, while K'ing 12. Nan-Ying ace Chia-Hao Sung was roughed up for 7 runs (6 earned) on 12 hits in 6+ innings. Chen touched 91 mph (146 kph).
Some other top guns in the tourney:
1)Kuo-Hua Lo (San-Hsin) 144 kph
2)Ming-Hung Lin (Cheng-Kung) 144 kph
3)Chih-Wei Hu (Shi-Yuan) 143 kph
*Shi-Yuan beat Cheng-Kung 6-2 to advance in the tourney.
*Ping-Zhen won 8-2 over San-Min HS.
Tomorrow's semifinal matchups include:
Ping-Zhen vs. Ku-Pao
Mei-Ho vs. Shi-Yuan
MLB:
Chin-Lung Hu was officially introduced by the Mets. There is a large Taiwanese contingency in nearby Flushing, NY. The NY Media labeled Hu as a "4A" player, a label that befell Chin-Feng Chen.
ASIA:
The Asia Series will resume this year in Taiwan - Nov. 11th to be specific.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Elite Cup Update...
HS Baseball: Elite Cup
-Action from the 25th:
*San-Min eliminated Kao-Yuan 2-1 in extra innings to move on to the Elite Eight. Yi-Hsiang Lin started for San-Min (6.2 IP, 1 R, 4 H, 9 K's, 1 BB) and had the GW sacrifice hit in the bottom of the 10th. Ren-He Tseng closed out the game for San-Min (3.2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 6 K's, 2 BB's). For Kao-Yuan, Tzu-Wei Lin was 2-4 with a BB.
* Nan-Ying also moved on to the Elite Eight with a 7-0 win over Da-Li HS. Nan-Ying starter Po-Hsien Hsieh was dominant, throwing a CG shutout. He allowed only 1 hit, while K'ing 4 and walking 2.
*Ku-Pao is also in the final 8 after shutting out Hsin-She HS 7-0. Ku-Pao coach Tsai noted that P Chun-Lung Chang has an opportunity to play overseas in Japan. Also, two-way player Shao-Ching Chiang has a strong desire to play in the US. Chiang closed out the game for Ku-Pao, throwing one perfect inning, and was 3-4 at the plate with a 2B, BB, and 2 RBI.
*Chang-Yi defeated Ren-Yi HS 6-4.
*Ping-Zhen advanced with a 7-1 victory over Tung-Shih HS.
*Chung-Dao defeated Chiayi HS 5-4 in extra innings.
-Action from the 26th:
*San-Hsin defeated Chung-Dao 6-3 to advance. Kuo-Hua Lo picked up the W for San-Hsin.
*Mei-Ho shut out Chang-Yi 4-0 to advance to the Elite Eight.
*Cheng-Kung beat Shan-Hua 5-0 to continue in the tourney.
*Shi-Yuan advanced with a 7-4 victory over Hualien PE.
-The quarterfinals of the tourney will take place on the 29th:
Mei-Ho vs. San-Hsin
Ku-Pao vs. Nan-Ying
Shi-Yuan vs. Cheng-Kung
San-Min vs. Ping-Zhen
CPBL:
*Sung-Wei Tseng may be the opening day starter for the Elephants.
*RHP En-Yu Lin's recovery has been slow; his shoulder still doesn't feel well after throwing at 35 M.
*C Kun-Sheng Lin has reported to the Bulls' camp.
NPB:
*Dragons lefty Wei-Yin Chen received a hefty raise for 2011. He'll receive 170 million yen (~2.07 million USD) in 2011, plus the opportunity to bonus an additional 50 million yen based on performance incentives.
-Action from the 25th:
*San-Min eliminated Kao-Yuan 2-1 in extra innings to move on to the Elite Eight. Yi-Hsiang Lin started for San-Min (6.2 IP, 1 R, 4 H, 9 K's, 1 BB) and had the GW sacrifice hit in the bottom of the 10th. Ren-He Tseng closed out the game for San-Min (3.2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 6 K's, 2 BB's). For Kao-Yuan, Tzu-Wei Lin was 2-4 with a BB.
* Nan-Ying also moved on to the Elite Eight with a 7-0 win over Da-Li HS. Nan-Ying starter Po-Hsien Hsieh was dominant, throwing a CG shutout. He allowed only 1 hit, while K'ing 4 and walking 2.
*Ku-Pao is also in the final 8 after shutting out Hsin-She HS 7-0. Ku-Pao coach Tsai noted that P Chun-Lung Chang has an opportunity to play overseas in Japan. Also, two-way player Shao-Ching Chiang has a strong desire to play in the US. Chiang closed out the game for Ku-Pao, throwing one perfect inning, and was 3-4 at the plate with a 2B, BB, and 2 RBI.
*Chang-Yi defeated Ren-Yi HS 6-4.
*Ping-Zhen advanced with a 7-1 victory over Tung-Shih HS.
*Chung-Dao defeated Chiayi HS 5-4 in extra innings.
-Action from the 26th:
*San-Hsin defeated Chung-Dao 6-3 to advance. Kuo-Hua Lo picked up the W for San-Hsin.
*Mei-Ho shut out Chang-Yi 4-0 to advance to the Elite Eight.
*Cheng-Kung beat Shan-Hua 5-0 to continue in the tourney.
*Shi-Yuan advanced with a 7-4 victory over Hualien PE.
-The quarterfinals of the tourney will take place on the 29th:
Mei-Ho vs. San-Hsin
Ku-Pao vs. Nan-Ying
Shi-Yuan vs. Cheng-Kung
San-Min vs. Ping-Zhen
CPBL:
*Sung-Wei Tseng may be the opening day starter for the Elephants.
*RHP En-Yu Lin's recovery has been slow; his shoulder still doesn't feel well after throwing at 35 M.
*C Kun-Sheng Lin has reported to the Bulls' camp.
NPB:
*Dragons lefty Wei-Yin Chen received a hefty raise for 2011. He'll receive 170 million yen (~2.07 million USD) in 2011, plus the opportunity to bonus an additional 50 million yen based on performance incentives.
Monday, January 24, 2011
The Cultural Divide?
*A journalist from UDN, Lou (Chin-Pin Lo) has voiced his displeasure with some of the "foreign" scouts at the recently completed Wood Bat Tourney. Lo noted that some of the foreign scouts parked themselves inside the VIP boxes and were inconsiderate, noting that one foreign scout was smoking inside the VIP box while scouting the HS games. Read more here.
*ELITE CUP:
-Mei-Ho HS advanced to the Sweet 16 after defeating Taitung PE 6-4. Mei-Ho OF Chan-Chia Liu hit well in the game and got rave reviews from Indians' coaches (Bruce Fields and Gary Thurman). Liu was on the 2008 NT that represented the country at the 5th Junior Nankyu Baseball World Championships. Liu won the most outstanding player award in the tourney and hit a HR in helping lead the NT to the title.
-Cheng-Kung HS eliminated Yang-Ming HS with a 5-2 victory. Yang-Ming HS head coach Tu-Hung Lee has stated his wishes for better recruits while Cheng-Kung's head coach Kao has complained of a lack of budget for the baseball program.
-HS Wood Bat Champs Kao-Yuan advanced to the field of 16 with a 12-2 win over Yang-Der HS. Tzu-Wei Lin (double, triple) and Tzu-Hao Chen (3 hits, 3 RBI) led the way for Kao-Yuan.
-Other winners on the day included Shi-Yuan, Tung-Shih, Ping-Zhen, Hualien PE, & Shan-Hua.
*ELITE CUP:
-Mei-Ho HS advanced to the Sweet 16 after defeating Taitung PE 6-4. Mei-Ho OF Chan-Chia Liu hit well in the game and got rave reviews from Indians' coaches (Bruce Fields and Gary Thurman). Liu was on the 2008 NT that represented the country at the 5th Junior Nankyu Baseball World Championships. Liu won the most outstanding player award in the tourney and hit a HR in helping lead the NT to the title.
-Cheng-Kung HS eliminated Yang-Ming HS with a 5-2 victory. Yang-Ming HS head coach Tu-Hung Lee has stated his wishes for better recruits while Cheng-Kung's head coach Kao has complained of a lack of budget for the baseball program.
-HS Wood Bat Champs Kao-Yuan advanced to the field of 16 with a 12-2 win over Yang-Der HS. Tzu-Wei Lin (double, triple) and Tzu-Hao Chen (3 hits, 3 RBI) led the way for Kao-Yuan.
-Other winners on the day included Shi-Yuan, Tung-Shih, Ping-Zhen, Hualien PE, & Shan-Hua.
News and Notes....
HS Baseball:
WBT:
*Kao-Yuan won the HS Wood Bat Tourney, winning 2 out of 3 against Ping-Zhen HS. The championship was Kao-Yuan's first Wood Bat championship (KY HS had won 5 previous tourneys when aluminum bats were still being used).
Kao-Yuan beat Ping-Zhen in game 1 5-2. Kao-Yuan starter RHP Wei-Chieh Huang didn't become an official roster player until this tourney; he was a non-scholarship/practice squad player previously.
Ping-Zhen won game 2 behind starter LHP Ming-Chieh Lu's 8 K's (1 R, 7.1 IP).
In the third and decisive game, Kao-Yuan came out on top with a 1-0 win over Ping-Zhen. Kuo-Lin Lo had the game-winning hit while Tzu-Wei Lin preserved the win, closing out the game with 3.1 scoreless innings. After last summer's spectacular showing in the World Junior Championships, Tzu-Wei Lin has found better success on the mound than at the plate since his return to home from Canada.
*Ku-Pao beat San-Hsin 3-0 for the bronze medal in the WBT. San-Hsin ace RHP Kuo-Hua Lo (5 IP- 7 hits) didn't pitch well; Ku-Pao RHP Chun-Lung Chang pitched well (CG - 12 K's, 0 BB's) but did not show good velocity, stating that he was focusing on his control. Chang had also been losing weight (from 98kg to 85kg over a period of several months), leading some scouts to attribute that to his drop in velocity (topped out at 138-140 kph in 3rd place game, was previously consistently over 145 kph).
*Nan-Ying defeated Shi-Yuan 3-1 to earn 5th in the tourney. Nan-Ying RHP Chia-Hao Sung K'd 5 in 3 IP
of relief. Shi-Yuan starter RHP Chih-Wei Hu 8 IP K'd 5 walked 1 in the loss.
*Hsin-She earned 7th place after a 3-0 win over San-Min.
Elite Cup:
*The tourney kicked off yesterday (23rd) with a record 32 teams participating. The Elite Cup, based on its single elimination format, will award the champions 500 K NT.
*Nan-Ying eliminated Taichung Gao-Nong 4-2 behind RHP Chia-Hao Sung's CG (5 H, K'd 8). Sung said that he's tired - he's had 4 CG since late December.
*Ku-Pao won behind RHP Yu-Fan Wen, who became a side-armer not long ago, to move on to the Sweet 16.
*The Atlanta Braves worked out San-Min HS LHP Yi-Hsiang Lin
*The A's are interested in RHP Ren-He Tseng (tops 140 kph) per San-Min HS head coach Che-Sheng Chen.
CPBL:
*The Sinon Bulls are trying not to have any foreign players this year; RHP Chien-Fu Yang turned down
a tryout with Chunichi.
*Bears/Monkeys C Hung-Yu Lin has been working on his ability to throw out baserunners.
*Former NPB'er Sheng-Hsiung Chuang has been working with the Bears/Monkeys pitchers.
MLB/MILB:*Che-Hsuan Lin is scheduled to return to the US on the 31st of this month to attend the Red Sox spring training camp.
*Chia-Jen Lo will report to mini-camp on February 20th.
*The Indians are high on C Chun-Hsiu Chen; he's been in camp since mid-January.
NPB:*Shen-Fu Tsai is on his way to Japan. Despite not receiving a signing bonus from the Marines, Tsai's contract is incentive laden (his ikusei contract is reported to be worth 2.4 million yen). He will wear the number 125.
*Giants RHP Kai-Wen Cheng has been practicing at home with the Lions, alongside other overseas ballplayers - Ching-Lung Lo and fellow Nan-Ying alumni: Che-Hsuan Lin, Fu-Lin Kuo, and Yen-Wen Kuo.
*All three Taiwanese Hanshin Tigers players (Wei-Chu Lin, Kai-Wen Cheng, Yi-Chieh Hsiao) are on the team's first team squad for spring training.
*The Yokohama Baystar are interested in playing exhibition games in Taiwan.
WBT:
*Kao-Yuan won the HS Wood Bat Tourney, winning 2 out of 3 against Ping-Zhen HS. The championship was Kao-Yuan's first Wood Bat championship (KY HS had won 5 previous tourneys when aluminum bats were still being used).
Kao-Yuan beat Ping-Zhen in game 1 5-2. Kao-Yuan starter RHP Wei-Chieh Huang didn't become an official roster player until this tourney; he was a non-scholarship/practice squad player previously.
Ping-Zhen won game 2 behind starter LHP Ming-Chieh Lu's 8 K's (1 R, 7.1 IP).
In the third and decisive game, Kao-Yuan came out on top with a 1-0 win over Ping-Zhen. Kuo-Lin Lo had the game-winning hit while Tzu-Wei Lin preserved the win, closing out the game with 3.1 scoreless innings. After last summer's spectacular showing in the World Junior Championships, Tzu-Wei Lin has found better success on the mound than at the plate since his return to home from Canada.
*Ku-Pao beat San-Hsin 3-0 for the bronze medal in the WBT. San-Hsin ace RHP Kuo-Hua Lo (5 IP- 7 hits) didn't pitch well; Ku-Pao RHP Chun-Lung Chang pitched well (CG - 12 K's, 0 BB's) but did not show good velocity, stating that he was focusing on his control. Chang had also been losing weight (from 98kg to 85kg over a period of several months), leading some scouts to attribute that to his drop in velocity (topped out at 138-140 kph in 3rd place game, was previously consistently over 145 kph).
*Nan-Ying defeated Shi-Yuan 3-1 to earn 5th in the tourney. Nan-Ying RHP Chia-Hao Sung K'd 5 in 3 IP
of relief. Shi-Yuan starter RHP Chih-Wei Hu 8 IP K'd 5 walked 1 in the loss.
*Hsin-She earned 7th place after a 3-0 win over San-Min.
Elite Cup:
*The tourney kicked off yesterday (23rd) with a record 32 teams participating. The Elite Cup, based on its single elimination format, will award the champions 500 K NT.
*Nan-Ying eliminated Taichung Gao-Nong 4-2 behind RHP Chia-Hao Sung's CG (5 H, K'd 8). Sung said that he's tired - he's had 4 CG since late December.
*Ku-Pao won behind RHP Yu-Fan Wen, who became a side-armer not long ago, to move on to the Sweet 16.
*The Atlanta Braves worked out San-Min HS LHP Yi-Hsiang Lin
*The A's are interested in RHP Ren-He Tseng (tops 140 kph) per San-Min HS head coach Che-Sheng Chen.
CPBL:
*The Sinon Bulls are trying not to have any foreign players this year; RHP Chien-Fu Yang turned down
a tryout with Chunichi.
*Bears/Monkeys C Hung-Yu Lin has been working on his ability to throw out baserunners.
*Former NPB'er Sheng-Hsiung Chuang has been working with the Bears/Monkeys pitchers.
MLB/MILB:*Che-Hsuan Lin is scheduled to return to the US on the 31st of this month to attend the Red Sox spring training camp.
*Chia-Jen Lo will report to mini-camp on February 20th.
*The Indians are high on C Chun-Hsiu Chen; he's been in camp since mid-January.
NPB:*Shen-Fu Tsai is on his way to Japan. Despite not receiving a signing bonus from the Marines, Tsai's contract is incentive laden (his ikusei contract is reported to be worth 2.4 million yen). He will wear the number 125.
*Giants RHP Kai-Wen Cheng has been practicing at home with the Lions, alongside other overseas ballplayers - Ching-Lung Lo and fellow Nan-Ying alumni: Che-Hsuan Lin, Fu-Lin Kuo, and Yen-Wen Kuo.
*All three Taiwanese Hanshin Tigers players (Wei-Chu Lin, Kai-Wen Cheng, Yi-Chieh Hsiao) are on the team's first team squad for spring training.
*The Yokohama Baystar are interested in playing exhibition games in Taiwan.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Hong-Chih Kuo Set to Be Highest Paid Taiwanese Player in 2011...
MLB:
*HC Kuo has been offered a one year contract for $2.55 million by the Dodgers; he's asking for $3.075 million. Regardless, he'll receive a well-deserved raise in 2011.
Dragons RHP Wei-Yin Chen is expected to make ~ 150 million yen ($1.8 million USD) in 2011 with his club.
*Astros GM Wade has said that CJ Lo is behind progress in his development. Lo was out for much of last year after suffering a partial tear of his UCL.
CPBL:
*The Monkeys and slugger Chih-Sheng Lin have agreed to a 5 year deal worth 24.12 million NT (~$830,000) with an additional 5.88 million NT (~$202,000) in bonus incentives. The contract is the third richest in CPBL history (behind CFC's 2 three year contracts - '06-'08 worth 30 million NT, and '09-'11 worth 30.03 million NT).
*The Lions are expecting the presence of Yung-Chi Chen to boost attendance for the upcoming year.
*The Elephants are currently looking for a foreign pitcher.
*Several Dodgers minor league coaches are assisting the Bulls during their ST.
Other:
*The government's amateur city teams (industrial league) have significant financial issues and may fold.
*Taitung Agricultural HS will build a dorm on the baseball field.
*In a bit of good news, the way the junior NT is selected may be overhauled. Rather than utilizing the current method of having tourney winners make up the majority of the NT roster, the new selection process will include a trial process in which all potential players will be evaluated during games/training.
HS WBT:
Quarterfinals -
*RHP Kuo-Hua Lo helped lead San-Hsin into the final four.
*IF Tzu-Wei Lin had a double and a triple in leading Kao-Yuan into the final 4.
*Ku-Pao RHP Shao-Ching Chiang was impressive in relief as he touched 91 mph and also had 2 triples in leading his team to final 4. A lot of scouts were on hand to check out the quarterfinal matchup between San-Min LHP Yi-Hsiang Lin vs Ku-Pao RHP Ping-Hsueh Chen. Lin touched 87 mph while RHP Chen topped out at 91 mph.
Semifinals-
*Kao-Yuan defeated San-Hsin 8-5 to move on to the finals.
*Ping-Zhen upset the defending champs - Ku-Pao 3-1 behind RHP Keng-Sheng Lee, on the '09 youth NT, in the other semi. Ku-pao also had several defensive lapses, committing four errors in the field.
*In the consolation matches:
Shi-Yuan beat San-Min 4-2 while Nan-Ying defeated Hsin-She 5-4. Shi-Yuan and Nan-Ying will play each other for 5th place while San-Min and Hsin-She will duke it out for 7th place.
*HC Kuo has been offered a one year contract for $2.55 million by the Dodgers; he's asking for $3.075 million. Regardless, he'll receive a well-deserved raise in 2011.
Dragons RHP Wei-Yin Chen is expected to make ~ 150 million yen ($1.8 million USD) in 2011 with his club.
*Astros GM Wade has said that CJ Lo is behind progress in his development. Lo was out for much of last year after suffering a partial tear of his UCL.
CPBL:
*The Monkeys and slugger Chih-Sheng Lin have agreed to a 5 year deal worth 24.12 million NT (~$830,000) with an additional 5.88 million NT (~$202,000) in bonus incentives. The contract is the third richest in CPBL history (behind CFC's 2 three year contracts - '06-'08 worth 30 million NT, and '09-'11 worth 30.03 million NT).
*The Lions are expecting the presence of Yung-Chi Chen to boost attendance for the upcoming year.
*The Elephants are currently looking for a foreign pitcher.
*Several Dodgers minor league coaches are assisting the Bulls during their ST.
Other:
*The government's amateur city teams (industrial league) have significant financial issues and may fold.
*Taitung Agricultural HS will build a dorm on the baseball field.
*In a bit of good news, the way the junior NT is selected may be overhauled. Rather than utilizing the current method of having tourney winners make up the majority of the NT roster, the new selection process will include a trial process in which all potential players will be evaluated during games/training.
HS WBT:
Quarterfinals -
*RHP Kuo-Hua Lo helped lead San-Hsin into the final four.
*IF Tzu-Wei Lin had a double and a triple in leading Kao-Yuan into the final 4.
*Ku-Pao RHP Shao-Ching Chiang was impressive in relief as he touched 91 mph and also had 2 triples in leading his team to final 4. A lot of scouts were on hand to check out the quarterfinal matchup between San-Min LHP Yi-Hsiang Lin vs Ku-Pao RHP Ping-Hsueh Chen. Lin touched 87 mph while RHP Chen topped out at 91 mph.
Semifinals-
*Kao-Yuan defeated San-Hsin 8-5 to move on to the finals.
*Ping-Zhen upset the defending champs - Ku-Pao 3-1 behind RHP Keng-Sheng Lee, on the '09 youth NT, in the other semi. Ku-pao also had several defensive lapses, committing four errors in the field.
*In the consolation matches:
Shi-Yuan beat San-Min 4-2 while Nan-Ying defeated Hsin-She 5-4. Shi-Yuan and Nan-Ying will play each other for 5th place while San-Min and Hsin-She will duke it out for 7th place.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
WBT: Power Surge and the Elite Eight...
HS Wood Bat Tourney:
*The final field of 8 HS squads has been determined.
In the Quarterfinals:
Ping-Zhen plays Shi-Yuan
San-Hsin plays Nan-Ying
Ku-Pao plays San-Min
Kao-Yuan plays Hsin-She
*Chia-Ming Cheng of Shi-Yuan HS will focus exclusively on pitching. The lefty was on the 2009 youth NT as an IF.
*IF Hung-Sheng Yang of Ku-Pao leads the tourney with 2 home runs. This comes as no surprise as Yang was a member of the 2010 world junior championship squad. He led the world junior tourney with 12 RBI while also leading the team with 2 HR while hitting at a .346 clip. He was the tourney All-Star selection at 2B. Yang's well-scouted teammate Po-Rong (Jung) Wang, has also cracked a HR in the tourney.
There's been 9 home runs hit in the tourney so far, 8 of which came in the same park (Chung Cheng University ballpark in Chiayi), leading some to argue that the wind has had something to do with the power surge.
CPBL:*Former Lions 2B Sen Yang is considering legal action to try and get back his salary.
Other:Where have you gone Chia-An Huang?
*The final field of 8 HS squads has been determined.
In the Quarterfinals:
Ping-Zhen plays Shi-Yuan
San-Hsin plays Nan-Ying
Ku-Pao plays San-Min
Kao-Yuan plays Hsin-She
*Chia-Ming Cheng of Shi-Yuan HS will focus exclusively on pitching. The lefty was on the 2009 youth NT as an IF.
*IF Hung-Sheng Yang of Ku-Pao leads the tourney with 2 home runs. This comes as no surprise as Yang was a member of the 2010 world junior championship squad. He led the world junior tourney with 12 RBI while also leading the team with 2 HR while hitting at a .346 clip. He was the tourney All-Star selection at 2B. Yang's well-scouted teammate Po-Rong (Jung) Wang, has also cracked a HR in the tourney.
There's been 9 home runs hit in the tourney so far, 8 of which came in the same park (Chung Cheng University ballpark in Chiayi), leading some to argue that the wind has had something to do with the power surge.
CPBL:*Former Lions 2B Sen Yang is considering legal action to try and get back his salary.
Other:Where have you gone Chia-An Huang?
Friday, January 14, 2011
Shen-Fu Tsai to the Lotte Marines...
*IF Shen-Fu Tsai has signed with the Chiba Lotte Marine(s). Tsai had worked out with the team back in November. Tsai will join fellow Taiwanese player Yen-Feng Lin in Chiba.
*HS WBT:
-In a media interview with NYY scout Ken Su, Su noted that progress is being made in the amateur ranks, especially at the HS level. The progress was attributed to the special camps/training with MLB personnel over these past few years. Currently in the HS Wood Bat Tourney (the field has been narrowed down to 16 teams), 4 home runs have been hit in the preliminary matches. In the past two wood bat tourneys, no home runs had left the yard.
-
Remember Chia-An Huang? Well, his younger brother (#25) is currently making a name for himself after a nice outing against Kao-Yuan HS. Sheng-Chieh Huang, despite taking the loss against Kao-Yuan, K'd 7 in 5.2 innings and was clocked around ~ 87 mph. The 17 year old, who stands in at 6'1" attends Ta-Cheng HS in Miaoli.*Edited
-Gao-Nong slugger Chin-De Chang is likely to sign after HS. Aside from Chang, RHP Kuo-Hua Lo of San-Hsin HS is the other top name in the tourney. Both are expected to garner MLB signing bonus offers in the 150-200 K range per media speculation. Other names mentioned as ones to keep an eye on included: San-Min HS LHP Yi-Hsiang Lin, Ku-Pao HS INF Po-Rong (Jung) Wang, Gao-Nong HS RHP 6'5" Che-Wei Kao, and Kao-Yuan HS RHP/OF Kuo-Lin Lo, the younger brother of Mariners farmhand Kuo-Hui Lo.
*CPBL News:
-Chih-Sheng Lin is not in good standings with his CPBL club.
-CPBL ST is underway.
-Former Red Sox farmhand Chia-Chu Chen is now training with the Lamigo Monkeys; he will serve in the military this summer and then make himself eligible for the CPBL draft after finishing his military service.
*HS WBT:
-In a media interview with NYY scout Ken Su, Su noted that progress is being made in the amateur ranks, especially at the HS level. The progress was attributed to the special camps/training with MLB personnel over these past few years. Currently in the HS Wood Bat Tourney (the field has been narrowed down to 16 teams), 4 home runs have been hit in the preliminary matches. In the past two wood bat tourneys, no home runs had left the yard.
-
Remember Chia-An Huang? Well, his younger brother (#25) is currently making a name for himself after a nice outing against Kao-Yuan HS. Sheng-Chieh Huang, despite taking the loss against Kao-Yuan, K'd 7 in 5.2 innings and was clocked around ~ 87 mph. The 17 year old, who stands in at 6'1" attends Ta-Cheng HS in Miaoli.*Edited
-Gao-Nong slugger Chin-De Chang is likely to sign after HS. Aside from Chang, RHP Kuo-Hua Lo of San-Hsin HS is the other top name in the tourney. Both are expected to garner MLB signing bonus offers in the 150-200 K range per media speculation. Other names mentioned as ones to keep an eye on included: San-Min HS LHP Yi-Hsiang Lin, Ku-Pao HS INF Po-Rong (Jung) Wang, Gao-Nong HS RHP 6'5" Che-Wei Kao, and Kao-Yuan HS RHP/OF Kuo-Lin Lo, the younger brother of Mariners farmhand Kuo-Hui Lo.
CW Kao
KL Lo
*CPBL News:
-Chih-Sheng Lin is not in good standings with his CPBL club.
-CPBL ST is underway.
-Former Red Sox farmhand Chia-Chu Chen is now training with the Lamigo Monkeys; he will serve in the military this summer and then make himself eligible for the CPBL draft after finishing his military service.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Amateur Updates..
HBT:
*The NYY are pursuing Ku-Pao HS INF Po-Rong (Jung) Wang, who is an above average runner
CPBL:*Lions RHP Wei-Lun Pan's new salary will be 530 K NT/month ($18,150 USD/month); the contract is just pending his signature.*Elephants Manager Chen is encouraging LHP Fu-Te Ni to return to the CPBL. Chen feels that Ni's fastball and breaking pitches won't be effective vs. MLB hitters. Ni is a non-roster invitee to the Tigers' ST camp.
*There's been some drastic measures passed to help curb the rigging of games in Taiwan. A player could get up to 10 years in jail.
*Taiwan is willing to host the Asian Series this year in an effort to revive the tournament.
*Lamigo Monkeys slugger Chih-Sheng Lin still hasn't reported to ST camp; he's waiting to hear back from the Cleveland Indians.
*Sinon Bulls RHP Chien-Fu Yang may get a tryout with the Chunichi Dragons.
*The Bulls signed their 4th round pick: C Kun-Sheng Lin to a ~ 2.5 million NT signing bonus (~$86 K USD).
MLB:Mets GM Sandy Alderson on Chin-Lung Hu:
With the remainder of the bench, I presumed -- I believe correctly -- that Chin-lung Hu’s role would be as a backup middle infielder, not directly in the second base competition. Is that correct?
“I think that’s the likely result. I think we view him as a very capable defensive shortstop, and provides us some insurance there, as well as at second base -- maybe late-inning defense at second, given what we have there at the moment, and foreseeably what we will have there at beginning of spring training. I think that’s the likely role for him. We’ll let spring training play out.”
*C Tse-Yang Peng from Ping-Zhen HS and IF Sung-Yuan Niu of Shi-Yuan HS both hit HR's in the current HS Wood Bat Tourney. Peng was the 2006 Bronco League World Series HR derby champ; while Niu (pictured below from '08) was on the 2008 Pony League World Series NT squad.
*Also from the tourney, Ku-Pao HS RHP Ping-Hsueh Chen topped out at 91 mph and RHP Shao-Ching Chiang was consistently at 90-91 mph.
*The NYY are pursuing Ku-Pao HS INF Po-Rong (Jung) Wang, who is an above average runner
*Shi-Yuan HS RHP Lee-Wei Chiang is still nursing an arm injury; he has been heavily pursued by the NYY since he was in JR HS.
CPBL:*Lions RHP Wei-Lun Pan's new salary will be 530 K NT/month ($18,150 USD/month); the contract is just pending his signature.
*There's been some drastic measures passed to help curb the rigging of games in Taiwan. A player could get up to 10 years in jail.
*Taiwan is willing to host the Asian Series this year in an effort to revive the tournament.
*Lamigo Monkeys slugger Chih-Sheng Lin still hasn't reported to ST camp; he's waiting to hear back from the Cleveland Indians.
*Sinon Bulls RHP Chien-Fu Yang may get a tryout with the Chunichi Dragons.
*The Bulls signed their 4th round pick: C Kun-Sheng Lin to a ~ 2.5 million NT signing bonus (~$86 K USD).
MLB:Mets GM Sandy Alderson on Chin-Lung Hu:
With the remainder of the bench, I presumed -- I believe correctly -- that Chin-lung Hu’s role would be as a backup middle infielder, not directly in the second base competition. Is that correct?
“I think that’s the likely result. I think we view him as a very capable defensive shortstop, and provides us some insurance there, as well as at second base -- maybe late-inning defense at second, given what we have there at the moment, and foreseeably what we will have there at beginning of spring training. I think that’s the likely role for him. We’ll let spring training play out.”
Sunday, January 09, 2011
KY Chen Links Self with Yokohama.....
*The La New Bears are now the Lamigo Monkeys.
*The Bears/Monkeys signed their first round pick - IF Yen-Wen Kuo. Kuo will make 130 K NT/month (~$4,400 USD/month) with the potential to earn nearly 1 million NT in bonus incentives.
*The SK Wyverns have supposedly cooled on RHP Wei-Lun Pan.
Thursday, January 06, 2011
Kuan-Yu Chen To Sign With BayStars...
*Here's some more details about Chen's contract with the BayStars. He will receive a ~ $210K signing bonus and earn $60K USD annually.
Per his agent, Ku-Pao HS head coach Ming-Tang Tsai, Chen's contract states 2 things: 1)his team can't modify his delivery unless Chen agrees and 2)anytime the national team needs him, the BayStars must let him participate.
*Hong-Chih Kuo is expected to earn ~ $2.1 to 2.5 million for this upcoming season.
*A baseball player from Taoyuan Agricultural HS was booted off the team after testing positive (via urine analysis) for the drug ketamine.
*Softbank Hawks LHP Yao-Hsun Yang is also seeking a similar path to the US ala Wei-Yin Chen of the Dragons. Yang wants to be a free agent so that he can have the opportunity to play on the world's biggest stage, in the majors.
Per his agent, Ku-Pao HS head coach Ming-Tang Tsai, Chen's contract states 2 things: 1)his team can't modify his delivery unless Chen agrees and 2)anytime the national team needs him, the BayStars must let him participate.
*Hong-Chih Kuo is expected to earn ~ $2.1 to 2.5 million for this upcoming season.
*A baseball player from Taoyuan Agricultural HS was booted off the team after testing positive (via urine analysis) for the drug ketamine.
*Softbank Hawks LHP Yao-Hsun Yang is also seeking a similar path to the US ala Wei-Yin Chen of the Dragons. Yang wants to be a free agent so that he can have the opportunity to play on the world's biggest stage, in the majors.
Wednesday, January 05, 2011
Lefty Kuan-Yu Chen to the BayStars?
The BayStars were also interested in Chen's amateur teammate Yu-Ching Lin.
*In other NPB news, the Orix BlueWave are interested in CPBL veteran star Bulls RHP Chien-Fu Yang. Yang was the most impressive NT pitcher at the Asian Games.
*In the final poll for 2010, the IBAF has Taiwan in the 5th spot, behind world leaders: Cuba, US, South Korea, and Japan.
*Taiwan defended its Asian "A" little league level championship (5-peat) with a 4-1 win over Japan in the championship game. Chun-An Wu cracked a HR for the NT.
*A team from Kyoto, Japan won the Chu-Lo Cup (12 and under) tourney in Taiwan.
*Former Taiwanese little league star, Tung-Jung Wu (now at National Physical Ed U. in Taiwan) has a partial ligament tear in his elbow.
*CPBL NEWS:
-The President Lions released IF Sen Yang and P Yi-Cheng Tsai.
-The Elephants will pay CPBL rookies Sung-Wei Tseng 160 K NT/month and Chi-Hung Cheng 135 K NT/month.
-The Sinon Bulls may be sold to the Ta-Rong Cargo Delivery/Moving Corp?
-Lions C Chih-Kang Kao and Elephants C Chun-Chang Yeh are spending their own money to train at the Indians' ST camp beginning 1/17 for a month.
*Here's a great series on Taiwanese HS players in Japan with the aim of playing in the sacred Koshien Tournament:
*Life After Baseball?
-Former pitcher Shih-Kui Huang, who is now the pitching coach at Chinese Cultural University, is the only coach with a PhD degree from the US currently in Taiwanese baseball.
-At 25, former Yomiuri Giant and NT RHP Chien-Ming Chiang is out of baseball and currently working in a jewelry store.
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