ST Pics....

Taking a look at Wang, Kuo, Tsao, and Hu in their respective big-league camps:

Wang - potential Opening Day starter

Tsao-Kuo stretchin'

Dodger Blue suits Tsao just fine

Non-roster invitee Hu

*Word is that Atlanta Braves signee - P Chen-En Hong and Twins OF Wang-Wei Lin will be playing in Australia this year after attending extended ST in the US.

Tsao Added to 40 Man Roster....

For the Dodgers after passing his physical on Monday. He's officially a Dodger!
As thin as the Rockies' bullpen is, it leaves you scratching your head as to why the Rockies gave up so easily on Tsao, despite investing so much in the young man.

Ching-Lung Hu Scouting Report....

Scout.com named Hu as the 18th best prospect in the Dodgers farm system.
Here's what Bill Shelley had to say about Hu in his scouting report:

Those who have been saying that Hu couldn't hit in the tougher leagues got their chance to cry, "I told you so" when he averaged only .254 with five homers after moving up to AA in 2006. And he didnt' do any better in the Arizona Fall League, either.

His detractors have always maintained this because of his small build. Smallish he is but he's compact, very muscular and does have some juice in his bat. And he actually did hit well in the pre-season World Classic and in the post-season Asian Cup while playing for his native Taiwan.

In the Southern League pitchers had success pounding him inside when he didn't get the bat around quickly enough. He's a gap hitter when right and has adjusted, moving away some to better handle the inside half but he can't get too far away because his arms are short.

With all that he continued to sparkle in the field. He has excellent range, soft hands, and good coordination. His arm is about average. All in all, he was the best at his position in his league so while his hitting did fall off, he's still a candidate to play in the big leagues. And .254 isn't all that bad for a shortstop, anyway.

He should take another step forward in 2007, playing at Las Vegas.

Reunited.....

Tsao and Kuo - Back in the Day

Well I'm sure most of you have heard by now; the LA Dodgers signed Chin-Hui Tsao today. Terms of the deal are conditional pending a physical upon Tsao's return to the US. Tsao will be reunited with one time rival and good friend Hong-Chih Kuo. Despite multiple injuries diminishing the ability of both players, the resilience and dedication shown by both men is a testament to their strong determination and will. Here's to hoping both 25 year olds remain healthy and continue to inspire us all!

Loose Ends....

Kuo and Wang

With just about all of the overseas players back home in Taiwan, it's time for some R & R for these guys before gearing up for the upcoming 2007 season. In the pic above, it's good to see Kuo and Wang reunited - too bad Tsao couldn't be there. As noted by a few of you, Tsao is currently a free agent after being non-tendered by the Rockies.

In other small news, it's good to know that the Boston Red Sox continue to work hard at scouting Taiwan's amateur scene. The Red Sox have definitely shown their commitment to scouting and signing some of the best players from the Pacific Rim - especially these past 2 years.

After a weak 2007 CPBL draft and in an effort to hold onto top domestic amateur talent, the CPBL has decided to include high school players in the draft next year.

Interesting note on foreign players being recognized as international athletes. In essence, there won't be any more incidences where players have problems returning (i.e. Chin-Feng Chen with the Dodgers - while trying to win a roster spot in ST) to the US because of a shortage of player visas.

There were a couple of noteworthy MLB acquisitions that could effect the PT of a few Taiwanese prospects/players:
1)The Mariners acquired 2B/DH Jose Vidro from the Nationals. So in addition to Jose Lopez, Yung-Chi Chen moves further down on the organizational 2B depth chart. However, his offensive skills and defensive versatility - 2B/3B work in his favor.
2)With the signing of Jason Schmidt and Randy Wolf by the Dodgers over the past month, Kuo's status as a 5th starter is up in the air. He could return back to the bullpen and/or make sporadic starts.

Dodgers Lose Game 2....

The Dodgers lost to the Mets 4-1 tonight. Kuo pitched 4.1 innings, giving up 2 earned runs on 4 hits. All in all despite the loss, I thought that Kuo was solid tonight. Mets skipper Willie Randolph had this to say about Kuo, "He was tough again. We just made him pitch a little bit. We had some AB's where we taxed him a little bit."
Kuo, who was clocked in the low 90's/topping out at 94 mph - was hurt by a bout of wildness in the 3rd and 5th innings . A WP by Kuo in the 3rd inning and a leadoff walk in the 5th inning both led to runs scored for the Mets. Grady Little pulled Kuo in the 5th with the bases loaded and trailing 1-0 - he simply couldn't afford to give up any more runs thanks to a dominant performance by 40 year old veteran Tom Glavine (he threw 6 shutout innings). As for Kuo, he had 2 walks (1 intentional to load the bases in the 5th) to go along with 4 K's. Considering the fact that this was Kuo's 6th career ML start in an away game during the postseason with his team down 1-0 in the series - you have to chalk this one up as a valuable learning experience for Kuo. If Kuo can stay healthy, it'll be very exciting to see what kinda numbers he can post as a starter over a full season.

Box/Recap

Kuo/Wang Updates.....

News articles on:
Kuo 1
Kuo 2

Wang 1
Wang 2
Wang 3 *New

A Down Day on Sunday.....

Japan
C.M. Chiang took his first loss of the season as Yomiuri lost to the Hanshin Tigers 4-1. Chiang lasted 5 innings, giving up 10 hits, 4 runs to go along with 1 walk and 2 K's. Chiang also uncorked a wild pitch and hit a batter as well. Box
Lin DNP for the Tigers.

Amateur
The Taiwanese junior NT was eliminated by South Korea in a heartbreaker at the World Junior Championships. Despite outhitting SK 5-2, Taiwan was on the wrong end of a 1-0 game. Taiwan went with 2 pitchers and they dominated the South Korean lineup, giving up only 2 hits all game. Unfortunately for Taiwan, the South Korean pitcher was just as good, blanking Taiwan on a complete game 5 hit shutout. Box Link
Despite a promising start to the tourney, Taiwan's journey is now over. Overall, I'm still proud of their efforts, considering the lack of top talent on the team.

Majors
About the only good thing happening today was Hong-Chih Kuo's dominant pitching performance against the D-Backs. Despite his outstanding performance, Kuo earned a ND. Kuo left the game after the 7th inning in a 1-1 tie thanks to a defensive miscue, a lack of run support, and a questionable call to not send Kuo home from 3rd. Kuo went 7.0 strong innings, giving up 4 hits, 1 run - that was unearned with 3B Betemit's error. He also walked 2 batters, K'd 8 hitters, and doubled and scored a run in the 5th inning. Kuo was consistently in the low 90's with a high of 94 mph. Box/Recap
With the victory, Kuo showed that he belongs in the rotation during the Dodger's stretch run.


Wang's attempt for win #19 will happen on Wednesday against the Baltimore Orioles. Getting the win won't be easy. His mound opponent, Kris Benson, has already won once this year against Wang and the Yankees.