Lions Move on to the Championship Game!

Asia Series:

FH Liu

Well, the President Lions finally got over the hump and managed to defeat the SK Wyverns 10-4 behind 4 home runs (2 3-run shots from FH Liu, 1 each from Chih-Kang Kao & Lien-Hung Chen), Fu-Hao Liu's 6 RBI, and Yueh-Ping Lin's strong start. Lin allowed 3 runs on 6 hits over 7 IP (6 K's, 1 BB) to pick up the W. He topped out at 92 mph today.*Updated
Box (in Japanese)

The President Lions will get their rematch with the Seibu Lions tomorrow in the championship game. Jiayo!

Speaking of the Seibu squad, they beat the Tianjin Lions 16-2 in a 7 inning game on Saturday. MC Hsu started and allowed 2 runs on 4 hits in 2.1 IP (4 K's, 0 BB's).



4th Inning Scoring Highlights (Lions Scored 5 on Sen Yang's game-tying RBI, followed by Fu-Hao Liu's 3-run blast, then Chih-Kang Kao's solo back-to-back shot):

Lions Fall to Seibu 2-1....

Asia Series:
The President Lions lost a close battle dominated by outstanding pitching from both sides. Seibu starter Takayuki Kishi (the 2008 Japan Series MVP) was the better man as he held the CPBL champs to 1 run on 2 hits over 8 innings (10 K's, 2 BB's). Taking the loss for the P. Lions was starter Wei-Lun Pan (6 innings, 2 runs, 5 H, 4 K's, 2 BB's). Game Recap/Box (in Japanese)
Pan has a history of performing reasonably well against the NPB champs (see last year).

The final round-robin game is set against the undefeated KBO champs (blasted the CBA champs 15-0 in the day's other game) tomorrow. Because of shoulder pain, Luther Hackman (this year's Taiwan Series MVP) will not start. Yueh-Ping Lin is expected to take the mound as the team's starter.

CL Huang Update....

Jerry Sung has been shopping around RHP Chih-Lung Huang. Huang had turned down an offer of ~ $125K from the Rangers (also had an offer for $150K) last year. His velocity was around 86-90 mph in the recent college tournament in Taiwan (similar to his workout in LA earlier this year). In order for Huang to reclaim his status as a top prospect, he needs to regain his velocity, which had touched 94 about 1 1/2 years ago, especially since his height is only 5'9''.

In other collegiate action, Ying-Shan Wang helped lead his team (Fubon Bulls) to a 10-0 win on Thursday. Wang threw 8 shutout innings, allowing only 3 hits and K'ing 5.*Updated

Asia Series:
The Wyverns gained the upper hand on the Seibu Lions with a 4-3 win in their opening game. Read more here.



Wu-Hsiung Pan's game-winning 3-run shot:

Chun-Yu Kuo's game-tying single in the 9th:

Lions Need Late Rally to Top the Tianjin Lions...

Asia Series:
After finding themselves down 4-0 after 4 1/2 innings and 4-3 after 8 1/2 innings, the President Lions needed 4 runs in the bottom of the 9th to beat the CBA champs 7-4. Keyed by OF Wu-Hsiung Pan's walk-off 3-run HR in the bottom of the 9th, the Lions saved themselves from a potentially embarrassing upset. Yi-Cheng Tseng picked up the victory for the Lions while OF Fu-Hao Liu smacked a leadoff HR in the 5th to key a 3-run inning.
Linescore/Box Score (In Japanese)


Miscellaneous:
* What did Ni turn down? Well, the Seattle Mariners were rumored to have offered lefty Fu-Te Ni a $150K signing bonus and the guarantee that he would start the season with their AA affiliate and receive a $50K salary for the whole season. The Chicago Cubs were also rumored to have been interested in Ni.

*The T-Rex's top pick in 2007, OF Chih-Yao Chan will also be going to the showcase in Los Angeles alongside Wang, Chen, and Mai.

*The Oakland A's have claimed IF Yung-Chi Chen off waivers.

*Highlights from today's collegiate tourney action (Hsieh-Hui Cup): Taiwan Coop Bank P Cheng-Lung Lo (former Anchorage Buc in '06) picked up the W as his team won 6-0. Lo K'd 8 and allowed only 1 hit over 5 shutout innings.
'05-'06 junior NT member Hung-Cheng Lai picked up the W after leading his Taiwan Beer team to a 1-0 shutout win over Chiayi University.

*Former Yomiuri Giant Chien-Ming Chiang participated in a NPB tryout on Nov. 11th in Yokosuka for all released NPB players. Should he fail to impress this time around, he plans to attend another tryout on Nov. 26th in Hiroshima.

Misc. Notes....

MT Chen

*Samuel Fu (IBB) is a busy man these days. One of his clients, Taiwan PE college (Fubon Bulls) OF Min-Tzu Chen is coming to Los Angeles for a showcase next week. Check out Chen's blog here/album. Chen (#25) was on the collegiate NT roster this past year that participated in Haarlem (hit .318) and in Czechoslovakia (hit .226). The 18 year old (12-6-89) has good size - 6'2"/198 pounds (B: R/T: R) and is an alumni of Taitung PE HS (Chia-An Huang's alma mater). He has a decent bat with power potential - speed is his best tool *Updated

Another one of his clients, RHP Chia-Rui Mai - Brother Elephants rookie and the club's top pick in the 2007 draft, is going to try out with MLB teams next week.

Joining Mai and Chen in LA will be P Ying-Shan Wang. The 6'1" - 6'2" righty tops out at 91 mph and sits at 86-89 mph.*Updated



*The top overall pick from the 2007 draft, 3B Yi-Chuan Lin has reiterated on his blog that he will not be joining the CPBL.

Whales No More...

CPBL:
*The Chinatrust Whales have officially folded, leaving the league with only 4 teams. All players have been unconditionally released from the organization. Read more here and here.*Updated

Another say sad day for CPBL fans.

*The Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions open the Asia Series on Thursday against the CBA champions - the Tianjin Lions (no All-Star team this year). Expected to start the game for the Lions is Cheng-Feng Lin.

On Friday, the Lions will face the NPB champs - the Seibu Lions.

Saturday's game will match the Lions against the KBO champs - the SK Wyverns.

Schedule/Respective League Champs

The Lions will look to improve on last year's 1-2 showing (9-5 win against the China Stars, 4-2 loss to the Chunichi Dragons, 13-1 loss to the SK Wyverns).

The SK Wyverns and Seibu Lions are the heavy favorites to play in the championship game on Sunday 11/16. Expect Wei-Lun Pan and Luther Hackman to start against the KBO and NPB champs.

MLB:
CMW is home and he says that he will not be available for the WBC in '09.

And Then There Were Four???

The CPBL in all likelihood will lose another team. The Chinatrust Whales are expected to be the second casualty in less than a month (after the T-Rex team was expelled last month). Several Whales players were involved in a gambling scandal last year, that resulted in the expulsion of several star players. There are also suspicions that some Whales players were involved in this year's match-fixing scandal. It's no wonder that multiple top players from the Whales have been linked recently to overseas teams.

New Blood for the Bulls....

SC Yang

HH Tsai


RH Hsieh

The Fubon Bulls (NTCPE) are competing in the current collegiate tourney. The Bulls have added a few big names to their roster, including recent HS grads: RHP Rong-Hao Hsieh, P-IF Sheng-Chih Yang, and RHP - Hsin-Hong Tsai (who was almost a Cubbie). The trio helped the Bulls to a 13-0 win, giving the club its second win of the tourney. Hsieh started and picked up the win (5 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 4 K's). Yang, the one-time MVP of the Asian Youth Championships, was 4-5 with 3 RBI. Tsai relieved Hsieh later in the game.

Some recent notable Bulls alumni include Sung-Wei Tseng (Indians), Chih-Yao Chan & Sheng-Wei Wang (CPBL), and Po-Hsuan Keng & Chi-Hung Cheng (Ex-Blue Jays).

MLB:
CMW is coming home.

Giants Take Game 4...

CPBL - NPB Series:
The Giants nigun team won game 4 of the series 3-0 behind SP Takahiko Nomaguchi's dominating performance (1 hit shutout, 12 K's).

Nomaguchi's only mistake of the night:




CPBL - Other:

PC Chiang

SC Chou

Trying to Get Paid:
Some former T-Rex players (IF Shih-Hao Huang, '08 All-Star MVP OF Ssu-Chi Chou, P Pai-Ching Chiang, Tsung-Hung Chen, OF Chia-Hui Wu, Yu-Hua Lu) are working out for an independent baseball league in Japan.



Amateur:
There's been a Shen-Fu Tsai sighting at the current collegiate tourney (running from the 8th to the 22nd). He launched a HR to help power his team (Taiwan Cooperative Bank) to an 8-0 win yesterday.

Bears Win Game 3 Vs. Giants Nigun Team...

CPBL - NPB Series:
The Bears defeated the Giants minor leaguers 4-3 on Saturday. Carrying the big stick for the Bears was none other than team slugger Chin-Feng Chen, who cracked his first HR of the series and was selected the game MVP.

CFC's Blast:

More Whales in the News...

Chinatrust Whales lefty Yu-Chieh Shen is going to Japan to try out for the Yokohama BayStars this fall, as set up by his Japanese agent.




CPBL - NPB Series:

Lin (L) & Lee (R)

In the second game of the exhibition series, the Bears beat the Giants nigun team 6-3. 17 year old Yi-Hao Lin started and threw 3 innings - he gave up 2 runs on 5 hits and was clocked at 89 mph. 15 year old Yu-Hung Lee relieved Lin in the 4th and gave up 1 run in his inning of work. Lee topped out at 85 mph.

Bears OF Cheng-Yu Chung launched his third HR in two games against 15 year old Lee:


C Feng-Min Chen blasted his second HR in as many nights:

Red Sox farmhand Chih-Hsien Chiang is back home watching big bro Chih-Tsung Chiang play for his team (Bears)

MLB:
Nice read on Kuo

Making it official - Astros sign Lo
Read more

Ni Not Taking Chances....

Chinatrust Whales ace and NT regular Fu-Te Ni, was extended an invitation by the Seattle Mariners to come to spring training. Ni declined, stating that he wanted a guaranteed major league contract. Ni, widely regarded as perhaps the most talented home-grown lefty in the CPBL (led the league in K's this year) is no spring chicken; he turns 26 later this month.

Fu-Te Ni's site



CPBL-NPB Series:
The La New Bears rallied to beat the Yomiuri Giants nigun team 6-5 on Thursday, thanks to OF Cheng-Yu Chung's 2 HR's in the game.

Cheng-Yu Chung's site

Blast #1:


Blast #2 - the GW:


Bears C Feng-Min Chen also launched a 2-run HR in the game:



Young phenoms Yi-Hao Lin and Yu-Hung Lee are expected to pitch on Friday against the Bears.

'08 CPBL Awards....

CPBL Award Winners:

MIP/ERA Leader: Yu-Cheng Liao (L)

ROY: Chi-Wei Lin (R)

League MVP: Mike Johnson (Bears)

Most Improved Player: Yu-Cheng Liao (Elephants)

Rookie of the Year: Chi-Wei Lin (Bulls)

Gold Glovers:

P - Kobayashi Ryokan (Elephants)

C - Yi-Feng Kuo (Elephants)

1B - Cheng-Min Peng (Elephants)

2B - Hung-Sen Chu (Elephants)

3B - Chih-Wei Shih (Bears)

SS - Sheng-Wei Wang (Elephants)

OF - Long-Yi Huang (Bears)

OF - Cheng-Wei Huang (Elephants)

OF - Fu-Hao Liu (Lions)

Best at Each Position:

P - Mike Johnson (Bears)

C - Yi-Feng Kuo (Elephants)

1B - Cheng-Min Peng (Elephants)

2B - Sen Yang (Lions)

3B - Tilson Brito (Lions)

SS - Chih-Sheng Lin (Bears)

OF - Wu-Hsiung Pan (Lions)

OF - Long-Yi Huang (Bears)

OF - Ssu-Chi Chou (T-Rex)

DH - Chin-Feng Chen (Bears)

CPBL - Bears vs. Giants:

Yi-Hao Lin & Yu-Hung Lee on far right

The Yomiuri Giants nigun team is in Taiwan. The team will play the Bears starting tomorrow.

Other:
Contrary to what was reported earlier, Chih-Hsiang Wen will not attend college in the US. He'll either serve in the military or make himself available for the CPBL draft.

Odds and Ends...

* The NYY will send coaches from their Staten Island minor league team to do a baseball clinic in Taiwan in January of next year. Only the top three 1st & 2nd year high school players from each HS will be invited.

*Kevin Huang (ex-La New Bears reliever and BoSox farmhand) is back in the US. He's hoping to continue his professional baseball career in either the US, Mexico, or Canada.

*Ex-Cubbie farmhand Chih-Hsiang Wen is planning to attend college in the US rather than enter the upcoming CPBL draft

*The Yomiuri Giants (consisting of minor league players) will play 2 exhibition games against the La New Bears in Taiwan beginning on 11/5. Young phenoms RHP Yi-Hao Lin & LHP Yu-Hung Lee are on the team's roster.

Two (Seasons) & Out for Po-Yu Lin....

After two seasons with the White Sox organization, RHP Po-Yu Lin was recently released by the club. Lin rarely cracked 90 mph in his brief stint with the Sox.

Behind Luther Hackman's Dominating Performance, Lions Repeat as CPBL Champs!

Game 7 MVP

CPBL Taiwan Series - Game 7:
Lions 4 - Elephants 0: (attendance: 12,000)

WP - Luther Hackman (9 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 4 K's, 2 BB's) - game MVP - second win of the Series

LP - Chia-Rui Mai (3 IP, 2 unearned R, 5 H, 1 K/BB)

Lions lineup:
CF Wu-Hsiung Pan 1-4
DH Lien-Hung Chen 1-4, HR, 2 RBI
1B KC Kao 1-4
3B Tilson Brito 2-3

Elephants lineup:
LF CYC 1-4
SS Sheng-Wei Wang 0-4
RF Kuan-Jen Chen 0-3
DH Chia Chia 0-4
1B Chin-Yong Wang 2-3


*Despite all of the negative implications from the gambling scandal, the crowd came out in full force for the playoffs. The 2008 Taiwan Series set an all-time record for total attendance (with 96,825) by smashing the previous record of 86,696 set in 2003 between the Bulls and Elephants (a Series won in 6 games).

The Lions will now prepare for the Konami Cup taking place Nov. 13th - 16th.

Game Highlights:


*Updated

Elephants Force a Game 7 to Decide Series Winner Tomorrow....

CPBL - Taiwan Series Game 6:

Elephants 5 - Lions 0: (crowd of 12,000)

WP - Matt Perisho (2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 3 K's, 0 BB's)
SP Kobayshi Ryokan was dominant as well, throwing 6 shutout innings (4 H, 7 K's, 1 BB)

LP - Giancarlo Alvarado (7 IP, 1 R, 7 H, 3 K's, 3 BB's)

Elephants lineup:
LF CYC 2-5
RF Kuan-Jen Chen 0-3
DH Chia Chia 0-3
3B Jui-Chen Chen 3-4, 2B, 2 RBI - game MVP
1B Chin-Yong Wang 2-4, 2B, HR, 2 RBI
CF Cheng-Wei Huang 2-4, 2B, RBI

Lions lineup:
LF-CF Wu-Hsiung Pan 0-4
3B Tilson Brito 0-4
1B KC Kao 2-4, 2B
DH Lien-Hung Chen 0-3



Other CPBL - The rabbit hole gets deeper:
There may be more players involved in the T-Rex gambling scandal. Word is that investigators suspect players on the Chinatrust Whales have also been heavily involved in fixing games as well.

Lions One Away From Repeating as Champs.....

CPBL Taiwan Series - Game 5:

Game 5 MVP

Lions 7 - Elephants 4: (In front of a crowd of 12,500, the Lions take a 3-2 Series lead)

WP - Wei-Lun Pan (6.2 IP, 3 R, 9 H, 1 K, 2 BB's) - game MVP - 2nd win of the Series

LP - Yu-Cheng Liao (5 IP, 4 R - 2 ER, 4 H, 1 K, 6 BB's)

Lions lineup:
LF Wu-Hsiung Pan 1-2, RBI
3B Tilson Brito 0-4
1B KC Kao 1-2, RBI
DH Lien-Hung Chen 1-3
RF Fu-Hao Liu 1-2, 2 RBI
C Chih-Kang Kao 1-4, 2B, 3 RBI

Elephants lineup:
LF CYC 3-5, 2B
RF Kuan-Jen Chen 2-4, 2 RBI
DH Chia Chia 2-5, 2 RBI




Lions reliever, Yueh-Ping Lin stirred up the crowd when after getting a key DP, he pumped his fist. That set off the Elephants fans who surrounded the Lions bus after the game and began throwing cans & various objects at the bus, essentially preventing the bus & players from leaving the parking lot. Police had to come and clear the scene. See pic below:

YJ Hsiao Selected by Hanshin Tigers in the First Round....

Yi-Jie Hsiao (Ikketsu Sho) joins current Nippon Ham player - IF Chung-Shou Yang as a first round pick of the NPB draft. Hsiao, a RHP, was the Tigers' first pick in this year's draft.

The Tigers now have two Taiwanese players in their system - Hsiao joins OF Wei-Chu Lin, who was selected by the Tigers in the 7th round of the 2003 draft.

The former Taiwanese youth NT member (on the '01 youth NT that included YF Lin, CA Huang, WY Chen, CM Chiang, & SA Kuo) idolizes current Yokohama star Daisuke Miura.

You can read more about Hsiao here.

Lions Even Series at 2-2 behind Luther Hackman's Dominating Performance....(With Recap of Game 3 as well)

CPBL Taiwan Series - Game 4: (attendance: 12,500)

Game 4 MVP

Lions 5 - Elephants 0:
WP - Luther Hackman (8 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 7 K's, 1 BB) - game MVP

LP - Dan Core (2 IP, 4 R, 5 H, 1 K, 4 BB's) - started game 3

Lions lineup:
CF Sung-Hsien Yang 2-5
LF Wu-Hsiung Pan 1-3, 3 SB
3B Tilson Brito 1-4, RBI
1B KC Kao 1-5, 2B, 2 RBI
DH Lien-Hung Chen 0-3
RF Fu-Hao Liu 2-4, 2B
C Chih-Kang Kao 0-3, RBI

Elephants lineup:
LF CYC 2-4
RF Kuan-Jen Chen 0-4
DH Chia Chia 1-4, 2B
SS Sheng-Wei Wang 1-3




Game 3 Recap (from Tuesday 10/28) - crowd of 18,302!:
Elephants 6 - Lions 5:
WP - Chia-Rui Mai (5 IP, 2 R - 1 ER, 1 H, 3 K's, 4 BB's) - game MVP
Dan Core started and left the game after 1.1 IP (0 R, 1 H, 1 K, 4 BB's)

LP - Giancarlo Alvarado (5 IP, 4 R - 1 ER, 3 H, 5 K's, 6 BB's)

Elephants lineup:
LF CYC 2-3, 2 RBI's
CF Cheng-Wei Huang 1-3, RBI
RF Kuan-Jen Chen 1-4
DH Chia Chia 0-3
SS Sheng-Wei Wang 2-3
C Yi-Feng Kuo 0-2, RBI
3B Chiang-Ho Chen 1-3, 2 RBI

Lions lineup:
RF-CF Wu-Hsiung Pan 1-4
3B Tilson Brito 2-4, HR, RBI
1B KC Kao 0-3
DH Lien-Hung Chen 1-2, HR, 2 RBI
LF Kan-Lin Huang 1-4, RBI


Other:
CSMG has been acquired by Octagon, affecting many of Taiwan's top overseas players.
Story 1
Story 2

Lions Even Up the Series.....

CPBL Taiwan Series - Game 2:

Lions 5 - Elephants 4: (game played in front of 17,523!)

WP - Wei-Lun Pan (8 IP, 4 R, 7 H, 3 K's, 2 BB's) - game MVP (did give up 2 HR's in the 5th inning)
Yueh-Ping Lin picked up the S, throwing a perfect 9th inning

LP - Kobayshi Ryokan (6 IP, 5 R - 4 ER, 8 H, 2 K's, 2 BB's)

Lions lineup:
CF-LF Sung-Hsien Yang 1-5, RBI
RF Wu-Hsiung Pan 0-3
DH Lien-Hung Chen 1-3
3B Tilson Brito 1-4
1B KC Kao 2-3, 3B, 2 RBI
2B Sen Yang 1-3, RBI
LF Tai-Chi Kuo 1-3, RBI

Elephants lineup:
DH CYC 0-4
SS Sheng-Wei Wang 0-3
LF Kuan-Jen Chen 2-4
RF Chia Chia 1-2, 2B
3B Jui-Chen Chen 1-3, RBI
1B Chin-Yong Wang 1-4, HR, RBI
CF Ming-Hsien Lin 1-3, HR, 2 RBI


*Game 3 takes place on Tuesday and will match up starters: Giancarlo Alvarado (Lions) and Dan Core (Elephants)

Elephants On a Roll, Taking Game 1 of the Taiwan Series....

CPBL Taiwan Series - Game 1:

Elephants 9 - Lions 3: (In front of a huge crowd of 12,000, the Elephants won their 4th consecutive post-season game.)

WP - Yu-Cheng Liao (5.1 IP, 2 R - 1 ER, 10 H, 5 K's, 1 BB)

LP - Luther Hackman (6.1 IP, 5 R - 3 ER, 10 H, 7 K's, 2 BB's)

Elephants lineup:
DH CYC 2-5
SS Sheng-Wei Wang 2-5, 2B, RBI - game MVP
LF Kuan-Jen Chen 3-5, 2 2B's, 2 RBI's
RF Chia Chia 2-3
3B Jui-Chen Chen 2-5, RBI
1B Chin-Yong Wang 1-3, HR, 2 RBI's
C Yi-Feng Kuo 1-5, RBI
2B Chiang-Ho Chen 1-4, RBI

Lions lineup:
CF-LF Sung-Hsien Yang 2-3
LF-RF Wu-Hsiung Pan 3-5, 2B, RBI
DH Lien-Hung Chen 3-5, 2B
3B Tilson Brito 0-3, RBI
1B KC Kao 2-4
2B Sen Yang 2-4
C CK Kao 1-3, RBI



NPB:
The Dragons lost 6-2. WY Chen started and earned a ND - allowing 2 runs on 4 hits over 4 IP. Box

Bears Release Kevin Huang.....

*For the second time in his career, RHP Kevin Huang finds himself without a team. The La New Bears released the former Red Sox farmhand after he struggled this past season with injuries and his command. He will have until the 30th of this month to be picked up by another CPBL club.


*Astros signee Chia-Jen Lo threw in a college tournament yesterday. He pitched very well: topping out at 96 mph, while averaging 93-94 mph with good movement. The Red Sox, Royals, Reds, and Braves were there.


*As for all of the T-rex players (not involved in the gambling scandal) & lefty Ying-Chieh Lin (released by the Rakuten Eagles), they will be put into a "special draft" for the other CPBL clubs to draft these players. All of these players' contracts/salaries will then be renegotiated. The one positive to come out of this is that the domestic talent pool in the CPBL won't be as diluted and hopefully, the minor league teams will have a bit more depth to them.


*Ching-Lung Lo has been resigned by the Colorado Rockies.

And Then There Were 5......

CPBL:

Farewell, we hardly knew ye
(dmedia officially purchased the team in 2008)

The T-Rex are history. At least Chia-Hsien Hsieh and promising top pick Chih-Yao Chan will get a new lease on life next year.

Houston Astros Sign Chia-Jen Lo....

CJ Lo

pic from CJ Lo's own album

Per Taiwanese news sources (UDN), the Houston Astros have signed their first Taiwanese baseball player, Chia-Jen Lo. His signing bonus is rumored to be ~ $250K. The Astros beat out the Royals who were said to have offered ~$175K and the Red Sox (rumored to have offered ~$200K). The Angels were also interested as were the Twins at one point in time. The signing is pending on Lo passing his physical, which will take place after he heads over to the US on Nov. 5th.*Updated


Read more about Chia-Jen Lo here.

2008 Taiwan Series Preview....

The Series doesn't begin until the 25th, but let's take a look at some of the numbers surrounding the 2 squads:

-The Lions finished with the best overall regular season record - 67 Wins/33 Losses.
-The Elephants finished with the 3rd best overall record (Behind the Lions and Bears) 52 Wins/42 Losses/4 Draws
-The two teams have met 20 times this year with the Lions dominating the series, winning 16 of the games.

-If you take a brief glance at the regular season league leaders, several Elephants and Lions are represented in the top 5 of several offensive categories:

Power - the Lions have 3 of the top sluggers in the league (Brito, LH Chen, Pan)
Producing Runs - Two Lions were in the top 3 - (Brito, LH Chen)
Average - Peng and KJ Chen of the Elephants were 1-2 in the league BA race
SB - The Elephants dominated this cateogory with the top 4 base stealers in the league

As for starting pitching, the Elephants are headlined by starters Yu-Cheng Liao, Kobayshi Ryokan, and Dan Core. The Lions are led by Wei-Lun Pan, Lou Pote, and Yueh-Ping Lin.

The Lions top performers:

Pitching:
Lou Pote 4.30 ERA/ 13W - 5L/ 127.2 IP/ 95 K's/ 49 BB
Wei-Lun Pan 2.76 ERA/ 12W - 2L/ 111 IP/ 87 K's/ 10 BB
Yueh-Ping Lin 3.87 ERA/ 7W - 4L/ 102.1 IP/ 73 K's/ 43 BB/ 17 S
Chih-Chiang Chang 3.48 ERA/ 6W - 5L/ 111.1 IP/ 61 K's/ 36 BB's

Hitting:
OF Wu-Hsiung Pan .346 BA/ 22 2B/ 4 3B/ 13 HR/ 47 RBI
1B Kuo-Ching Kao .332 BA/ 28 2B/ 2 3B/ 7 HR/ 74 RBI
3B Tilson Brito .330 BA/ 26 2B/ 1 3B/ 24 HR/ 102 RBI
DH Lien-Hung Chen .314 BA/ 22 2B/ 0 3B/ 13 HR/ 65 RBI
2B Sen Yang .305 BA/ 22 2B/ 1 3B/ 1 HR/ 40 RBI
C Kuo-Ching Kao .241 BA/ 6 2B/ 0 3B/ 2 HR/ 28 RBI
OF Tai-Chi Kuo .237 BA/ 13 2B/ 0 3B/ 8 HR/ 41 RBI
OF Fu-Hao Liu .236 BA/ 15 2B/ 3 3B/ 8 HR/ 49 RBI


The Elephants top performers:

Pitching:
Yu-Cheng Liao 2.31 ERA/ 11W - 3L/ 132.2 IP/ 102 K's/ 64 BB
Kobayshi Ryokan 2.66 ERA/ 10W - 6L/ 169 IP/ 110 K's/ 42 BB
Dan Core 3.52 ERA/ 9W - 5L/ 128 IP/ 76 K's/ 42 BB
Chia-Rui Mai 4.43 ERA/ 4W - 6L/ 87.1 IP/ 54 K's/ 24 BB/ 8 S
Chia-Min Tseng 4.26 ERA/ 6W - 6L/ 82.1 IP/ 65 K's/ 46 BB
Yung-Chieh Yeh 3.34 ERA/ 8W - 8L/ 64.2 IP/ 52 K's/ 21 BB
(Dan Core, Chia-Min Tseng, Yu-Cheng Liao, and Chia-Rui Mai each own a victory over the Lions this past season)

Hitting:
1B-OF Cheng-Min Peng .391 BA/ 17 2B/ 0 3B/ 8 HR/ 60 RBI
OF Kuan-Jen Chen .348 BA/ 13 2B/ 7 3B/ 1 HR/ 77 RBI
DH-OF Chih-Yuan Chen .302 BA/ 19 2B/ 3 3B/ 11 HR/ 50 RBI
3B Jui-Chen Chen .267 BA/ 8 2B/ 0 BB/ 0 HR/ 28 RBI
SS Sheng-Wei Wang .257 BA/ 17 2B/ 4 3B/ 2 HR/ 36 RBI
OF Huai-Shan Chen .248 BA/ 5 2B/ 0 3B/ 1 HR/ 32 RBI
OF Cheng-Wei Huang .242 BA/ 9 2B/ 3 3B/ 2 HR/ 30 RBI

Elephants Sweep the Bears....

CPBL Playoff Series - Game 3:
Elephants 10 - Bears 3:

WP - Dan Core (8 IP, 2 R, 4 H, 5 K's, 3 BB's)

LP - Chih-Chia Chang (2.1 IP, 5 R - 4 ER, 6 H, 1 K, 2 BB's)

Game MVP

Elephants lineup:
DH CYC 3-6, 2 RBI's - game MVP
SS Sheng-Wei Wang 2-4
LF Kuan-Jen Chen 1-5, RBI
RF-1B Chia Chia 2-4
3B Jui-Chen Chen 3-5
1B Chin-Yong Wang 2-4, 2B, RBI
2B Chiang-Ho Chen 2-3, 2 2B's, 3 RBI's
CF-LF Ming-Hsien Lin 0-4, RBI

Bears lineup:
3B Chih-Wei Shih 2-4, 2B
SS Chih-Sheng Lin 1-4, 2B
DH CFC 0-4
1B Gary Burnham 0-1
LF Chin-De Yu 1-3, 2 RBI's


The Elephants will now face the Lions in the '08 Taiwan Series, scheduled to begin on the 25th of this month.



NPB Playoffs:
The Tigers evened up the series at 1 game a piece with the Dragons after a 7-3 victory. WY Chen started for the Dragons and earned the L - he allowed 4 runs on 6 hits over 4 IP (4 K's, 1 BB, 1 HR allowed). WC Lin came in and PH - he was 1-1. Box

Bears on the Brink of Elimination....

CPBL Playoff Series Game 2:
Elephants 4- Bears 3: (In front of a huge crowd of 13,109 fans)

WP - Yung-Chieh Yeh (1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 K's, 1 BB)
SP Kobayshi Ryokan earned a ND - 5.1 IP, 3 R, 6 H, 4 K's, 3 BB's

LP - Wen-Hsiung Hsu (8 IP, 4 R, 10 H, 4 K's, 0 BB's)

Elephants lineup:
DH CYC 1-4, 2B
SS Sheng-Wei Wang 2-4
LF Kuan-Jen Chen 2-4, RBI
RF Chia Chia 1-4
C Yi-Feng Kuo 2-4, 2B
2B-3B Chiang-Ho Chen 2-4
CF Ming-Hsien Lin 1-3, HR (GW 2-run HR in the 7th), 2 RBI's - game MVP off the bench

Game 2 MVP

Bears lineup:
SS Chih-Sheng Lin 1-3, 2B
DH CFC 2-3, RBI
1B Gary Burnham 1-2
3B Chih-Wei Shih 0-2
LF-RF Cheng-Yu Chung 0-4, RBI
C Feng-Min Chen 2-4, 2B, RBI



Expected game 3 starters for the 2 squads are: Chih-Chia Chang for the Bears and Dan Core for the Elephants.



MLB:
Update on Wang


NPB Playoffs:
The Tigers lost game 1 to the Dragons 2-0. WC Lin was 1-3. Box/Recap
Wei-Yin Chen is expected to start for the Dragons in game 2.

Chia Chia Blasts 3 as Elephants Take Game 1.....

CPBL Playoff Series - Game 1:

Chia Chia - Busting Loose with 3 Bombs!

Elephants 7 - Bears 1:

WP - Yu-Cheng Liao (7 IP, 1 R, 3 H, 5 K's, 2 BB's)

LP - Mike Johnson (3.2 IP, 6 R - 4 ER, 7 H, 0 K's, 1 BB)

Elephants lineup:

DH CYC 0-4

SS Sheng-Wei Wang 2-4, RBI

LF Kuan-Jen Chen 1-5, 2B, RBI

RF Chia Chia 4-4, 3 HR's (Hit a HR in his first 3 AB's - a CPBL record for consecutive HR's in the playoffs), 4 RBI's - game MVP

3B Jui-Chen Chen 2-5

2B Chiang-Ho Chen 2-4

CF Cheng-Wei Huang 2-3, RBI

Bears lineup:

SS Chih-Sheng Lin 1-3, 2B

DH CFC 0-4

1B Gary Burnham 0-3

C Feng-Min Chen 1-3, HR, RBI

Ricky Stone Update....

In a follow up to an earlier post on former CPBL player Ricky Stone, there is now an official website up and running in regards to the auction supporting this worthy cause. Any help, whether it be donating items, monetary support, purchasing items from the auction, or just words of encouragement would be greatly appreciated by the Stone family.


CBPL:
The Playoff Series kicks off tomorrow between the Bears and Elephants. 20 game winner Mike Johnson is expected to start for the Bears while the Elephants are expected to counter with ace Yu-Cheng Liao.

Expected starting lineups:

Bears:
1)RF Chien-Wei Tsai
2)CF Long-Yi Huang
3)SS Chih-Sheng Lin
4)DH Chin-Feng Chen
5)1B Gary Burnham
6)3B Chih-Wei Shih
7)2B Chih-Tsung Chiang
8)LF Hao-Chu Tseng
9)C Feng-Min Chen

Elephants:
1)DH Chih-Yuan Chen
2)SS Sheng-Wei Wang
3)LF Kuan-Jen Chen
4)RF Cheng-Min Peng
5)3B Jui-Chen Chen
6)1B Chin-Yung Wang
7)C Yi-Feng Kuo
8)2B Chiang-Ho Chen
9)CF Cheng-Wei Huang


NPB:
En-Yu Lin was clocked at 90 mph recently. Hopefully he can make a full recovery in time for the WBC.

Phillies Move on to the WS......

MLB:
The Dodgers lost a do-or-die game 5 to the Phillies 5-1 on Wednesday, sending the boys from Philly to their first WS appearance since '93.
HC Kuo pitched a scoreless 9th inning. Box

Backs Against the Wall...

MLB:
The Dodgers find themselves in a 3-1 hole in the NLCS after losing a heart-breaking game 4 to the Phillies 7-5 on Monday. The Phillies rallied for 4 runs in the 8th (on 2 two-run bombs) to overcome a 5-3 deficit.

Kuo made his second appearance of the series, allowing 1 run on 1 hit over an inning to go along with 2 K's. (In all fairness to Kuo, he gave up a leadoff single to Ryan Howard in the 8th before getting pulled. Two batters later, Shane Victorino would crack a HR off of reliever Cory Wade to plate 2 runs with Kuo being charged with the run Howard scored.)
Box

Nice read on Kuo from BA

Sunday Briefing...

NPB:
The Dragons lost to the Tigers 4-1. WY Chen started for the Dragons, throwing only 2 scoreless/hitless innings. WC Lin was 0-1, coming in the game late. Box


CPBL:
T-Rex star Chia-Hsien Hsieh will undergo left elbow surgery on Tuesday.

CPBL Roundup...

CPBL:
The Bears won the CPBL 2008 second half season championship - although the Lions (first half champs) had the best overall record, earning the right to face the winner of the #2 and 3 squads (Bears and Elephants) in this year's Taiwan Series.

2nd half final records:
1)Bears 33-16-1
2)Lions 33-17 0.5 GB
3)Elephants 28-19-1 4 GB
4)Whales 19-31 14.5 GB
5)Bulls 18-32 15.5 GB
6)T-Rex 16-32 16.5 GB

Final Regular Season Stats:
BA:
1)Cheng-Min Peng (Elephants) .391
2)Kuan-Jen Chen (Elephants) .348
3)Wu-Hsiung Pan (Lions) .346
4)Tai-Shan Chang (Bulls) .344
5)Chih-Wei Shih (Bears) .332
*CFC hit .367 but did not have enough qualifying PA's

RBI:
1)Tilson Brito (Lions) 102
2)Kuan-Jen Chen (Elephants) 77
3)Kuo-Ching Kao (Lions) 74
4)Chin-Feng Chen (Bears) 70
5)Tai-Shan Chang (Bulls) 65

HR:
1)Tilson Brito (Lions) 24
2)Chia-Hsien Hsieh (T-Rex) 17
3)Chin-Feng Chen (Bears) 16
4)Lien-Hung Chen (Lions) 13
5)Wu-Hsiung Pan (Lions) 13

SB:
1)Sheng-Wei Wang (Elephants) 24
2)Cheng-Min Peng (Elephants) 23
3)Cheng-Wei Huang (Elephants) 18
4)Chih-Yuan Chen (Elephants) 17
5)Long-Yi Huang (Bears) 13

Wins:
1)Mike Johnson (Bears) 20
2)Lou Pote (Lions) 13
3)Wei-Lun Pan (Lions) 12
4)Yu-Cheng Liao (Elephants) 11
5)Kobayshi Ryokan (Elephants) 10

Saves:
1)Jermaine Van Buren (Bears) 20
2)Yueh-Ping Lin (Lions) 17
3)Yong-Chih Kuo (Bulls) 11
4)Chia-Rui Mai (Elephants) 8
5)Hung-Ren Huang (Whales) 5

ERA:
1)Yu-Cheng Liao (Elephants) 2.31
2)Mike Johnson (Bears) 2.45
3)Kobayshi Ryokan (Elephants) 2.66
4)Wei-Lun Pan (Lions) 2.76
5)Wen-Hsiung Hsu (Bears) 2.89

K's:
1)Fu-Te Ni (Whales) 132
2)Kobayashi Ryokan (Elephants) 110
3)Chi-Wei Lin (Bulls) 109
4)Mike Johnson (Bears) 107
5)Yu-Cheng Liao (Elephants) 102



NPB:
The Tigers lost 5-4. WC Lin was 2-3 with a double. Box

Friday Recap...

CPBL:
Bears 5 - Bulls 4:
WP - Mike Johnson (20-2, 8 IP, 3 R, 5 H, 4 K's, 1 BB) - first 20 game winner since 2000

LP - Yong-Chih Kuo (1-2, 2.1 IP, 3 R, 3 H, 1 K, 3 BB's)
SP Fu-Jen Shen earned a ND (5.1 IP, 2 R, 6 H, 1 K, 2 BB's)

Bears lineup:
RF Chien-Wei Tsai 1-5, 2B, RBI
SS Chih-Sheng Lin 1-2
DH CFC 1-3
1B Gary Burnham 1-3, RBI
2B Chih-Tsung Chiang 2-4, 2 RBI's - game MVP
C Feng-Min Chen 1-3, RBI

Bulls lineup:
SS Chung-Nan Lin 2-4, RBI
CF-RF Chien-Ming Chang 0-4
3B Tarzan 2-4, HR #11, 2 RBI's
DH Chung-Yi Huang 1-3, 2B, RBI


Elephants 4 - Whales 1:
WP - Kobayashi Ryokan (10-6, 6 IP, 1 R, 7 H, 3 K's, 3 BB's) - game MVP

LP - Wei-Ming Chu (4-5, 5 IP, 2 R, 5 H, 3 K's, 2 BB's)

Elephants lineup:
DH Kuan-Jen Chen 1-4, 3B, RBI
1B Chia Chia 1-3
CF Cheng-Wei Huang 2-3
1B Chin-Yong Wang 1-1, RBI - off the bench

Whales lineup:
SS Chia-Yuan Chang 2-4, HR #1, RBI
3B Wilton Veras 3-4
1B Chia-Hsien Tseng 2-4


NPB:
The Tigers lost 4-3. WC Lin was 1-3. Box

Dark Days Ahead for the CPBL....

CB

YC Chen

KF Chen

More on the recent scandal. Three players on the team have been suspended including: P Cory Bailey, C Ko-Fan Chen, and OF Yuan-Chia Chen. Bailey has denied the allegations. The two Chen's were once on the '97 junior national team that finished second to Cuba in the junior world championships - that team included Chien-Ming Wang and Chin-Hui Tsao.



MLB:
HC Kuo, on the Dodgers NLCS roster, threw one scoreless inning in the team's 3-2 loss to the Phillies today. Wrap/Box

More Corruption in the CPBL....& Toot Toot Returns...

CPBL:
Bears 12 - Elephants 5:
WP - Yu-Wei Hsu (5-4, 5 IP, 5 R, 8 H, 4 K's, 1 BB)

LP - Chia-Min Tseng (6-6, 2.1 IP, 6 R - 5 ER, 3 H, 2 K's, 5 BB's)

Bears lineup:
CF Long-Yi Huang 2-3, 2B, RBI
SS Chih-Sheng Lin 1-3, HR #11, 3 RBI's
DH CFC 0-2
1B Gary Burnham 3-4, HR #10, 2 RBI's
2B Chih-Tsung Chiang 1-2, 2B, RBI
3B Chung-Yu Tsai 1-2, RBI
C Feng-Min Chen 2-3, 3 RBI's - game MVP
DH Chung-Wei Pan 0-2, RBI - off the bench

Elephants lineup:
DH Kuan-Jen Chen 2-4
SS Sheng-Wei Wang 3-4, 2B, 3B, 3 RBI's
3B Jui-Chen Chen 2-3, 2 RBI's
1B Chia Chia 0-2
1B Chin-Yong Wang 2-2, 2B - off the bench


Lions 10 - Bulls 7:
WP - Wei-Lun Pan (12-2, 5 IP, 7 R - 5 ER, 12 H, 3 K's, 1 BB)

LP - Ming-Chin Tsai (2-7, 1 IP, 2 R, 4 H, 1 K, 1 BB)
SP Chien-Fu Yang earned a ND - 5.2 IP, 7 R - 5 ER, 7 H, 3 K's, 4 BB's

Lions lineup:
LF Wu-Hsiung Pan 2-2, 2B
3B Tilson Brito 3-5, 2B, HR #24, 3 RBI's
1B KC Kao 2-4, 2 2B's, 4 RBI's - game MVP
RF Fu-Hao Liu 1-4, 2B, RBI
DH Po-Chao Yang 1-3, 3B, RBI
2B-3B Chin-Dian Shih 2-5, RBI

Bulls lineup:
SS Chung-Nan Lin 2-4
LF Hsien-Ming Yu 1-5, 3B, RBI
RF-CF Chien-Ming Chang 1-5
3B Tarzan 2-5, RBI
1B Kuo-Long Hsu 2-2
2B Chih-Wei Chen 2-4, 2 2B's, 2 RBI's
C Chun-Chang Yeh 1-4, RBI

*The 2008 CPBL Playoff Series is set: the La new Bears will face the Brother Elephants in a 5 game tilt beginning October 17th and running through the 22nd.

*Wondering why the T-Rex are in dead last in the second half of the season (second to last overall?) Well aside from the lack of talent on the team, UDN is reporting that the d-media front office and owner worked in conjunction with the mafia to buy the T-Rex and have been throwing games. They have made more than 10 million NT from this scandal. T-Rex players were forced to cooperate after being bribed or threatened by the d-media front office/mafia. Hopefully this isn't the proverbial last straw that broke the camel's back - horrible, horrible news for the CPBL.



MLB:
Good news on Kuo. We may see him pitch in the NLCS.

Getting to Know Yi-Jie Hsiao....

YJ Hsiao

As reported by UDN, Yi-Jie Hsiao - a RHP attending college in Japan (5'11'', 187 pounds) might be the next Taiwanese player selected in the upcoming NPB draft (Tu-Hsuan Lee - also known as Ping-Yen Lee on the blog was the last Taiwanese kid selected in the NPB draft). He has good movement of his fastball, has an average velocity of 86-90, while topping out at 92 mph. In the recent college tournament in Japan, he threw a 13 inning CG shutout (175 pitches) and in less than 24 hours, threw another 11 inning CG, although he earned a loss in that game. Unbelievably, he threw 331 pitches in less than 48 hrs! RHP Hsiao is a cousin of Taiwan Power SS Po-Ting Hsiao, who has drawn interest from the Detroit Tigers.

Hsiao Vid

Bears 9-Game Winning Streak Snapped....Despite CFC's Return...

CPBL:
Elephants 8 - Bears 2:
WP - Dan Core (9-5, 6 IP, 2 R, 6 H, 2 K's, 3 BB's)


LP - Wen-Hsiung Hsu (10-4, 5 IP, 3 R - 0 ER, 6 H, 1 K, 3 BB's)


Elephants lineup:
DH Kuan-Jen Chen 4-6, 2 2B's - game MVP
SS Sheng-Wei Wang 1-4, RBI
3B Jui-Chen Chen 2-2, 2B
1B Chia Chia 1-1, RBI
RF Huai-Shan Chen 3-5, 3 RBI's
LF Ming-Hsien Lin 2-5
C Yi-Feng Kuo 1-5, RBI
1B Chin-Yung Wang 1-2, 2B, RBI - off the bench


Bears lineup:
RF Chien-Wei Tsai 2-3
SS Chih-Sheng Lin 1-4
DH CFC 2-2, RBI
1B Gary Burnham 0-2
CF Long-Yi Huang 1-3, HR #12, RBI



Bulls 1 - Lions 0:
WP - Chi-Wei Lin (9-8, 9 IP, 0 R, 5 H, 7 K's, 2 BB's) - game MVP


LP - Aaron Fultz (2-2, 1 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 0 K's/BB's)
SP Giancarlo Alvarado earned a ND (7 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 10 K's, 0 BB's)


Bulls lineup:
DH Chien-Ming Chang 1-3
3B Tarzan 0-3
CF Hua-Wei Tseng 1-3, RBI


Lions lineup:
DH Lien-Hung Chen 0-4
3B Tilson Brito 1-4, 2B
1B KC Kao 0-4
SS Tzu-Sung Wang 2-3

The NT's New HC.....

CPBL:
Lions 6 - Bulls 4:
WP - Chih-Chiang Chang (6-5, 5 IP, 3 R - 2 ER, 7 H, 2 K's, 4 BB's)

LP - Wilton Chavez (1-5, 1.1 IP, 4 R - 3 ER, 1 H, 1 K, 4 BB's)

Lions lineup:
LF Tai-Chi Kuo 1-4, 2B, RBI
DH Lien-Hung Chen 3-5, HR #13, 2 RBI's - game MVP
3B Tilson Brito 0-5
1B KC Kao 1-3
SS Ching-He Chuang 1-1, 2B, 2 RBI's


Bulls lineup:
LF-C Da-Hung Cheng 2-4
RF Chien-Ming Chang 1-5
3B Tarzan 0-5, RBI
2B Chih-Wei Chen 4-5, 3B, RBI
SS Chung-Nan Lin 1-3, RBI



Current CPBL Standings:
1)Bears 31-15-1
2)Lions 31-16 0.5 GB
3)Elephants 26-18-1 4 GB
4)Whales 19-30 13.5 GB
5)Bulls 17-29 14 GB
6)T-Rex 16-32 16 GB



The Playoff Series (Best of 5) is scheduled to begin on October 17th, with the winner advancing to the Taiwan Series (Best of 7) - scheduled to start on October 25th. The CPBL champs will then participate in the Konami Cup - Nov.13th - 16th.




NT:

Coach Yeh

Chih-Hsien Yeh has been tabbed as the NT's HC for the next few years. He'll lead the way in next year's WBC, the World Cup in Sept. '09, and the 2010 Asian Games.



Coach Yeh was the 2007 TSEA Coach of the Year - leading the NT to Gold at the '06 Asian Games in Doha, and 3rd at the Intercontinental Cup in '06.

He was also the coach of the amateur NT that toured So Cal in '05 and almost the same roster that played in the '05 World Cup.




Like the Bulls, the La new Bears are also considering withholding their players from participating in the '09 WBC. This would have a devastating effect on the NT - Can you imagine slugger Chin-Feng Chen, IF Chih-Sheng Lin, RHP Chih-Chia Chang, RHP Wen-Hsiung Hsu, C Feng-Min Chen, & IF Chih-Wei Shih not being on the team?!

NPB:
The Tigers lost 3-1. WC Lin was 0-1. Box

MLB:

Update on Kuo

No Bull(s) in the WBC...

CPBL:
Elephants 1 - Bulls 0:
WP - Chia-Rui Mai (4-6, 2 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 K's/BB's)
SP Yu-Cheng Liao threw 4 shutout innings, allowing 3 hits, while K'ing 3 and walking 2

RP Chun-Yang Tsao (former NPB'er) earned the save and game MVP honors

LP - Wen-Ping Yu (7-6, 6 IP, 1 R, 5 H, 1 K, 1 BB)

Elephants lineup:
LF CYC 0-1
DH Kuan-Jen Chen 2-3
1B-RF Chia Chia 2-4, RBI

Bulls lineup:
DH Chien-Ming Chang 2-4
3B Tarzan 0-2

Lions 7 - T-Rex 4:
WP - Chun-Jung Pan (3-0, 5 IP, 4 R, 7 H, 1 K, 0 BB's)

LP - Pai-Ching Chiang (3-4, 4.2 IP, 6 R, 7 H, 3 K's/BB's)

Lions lineup:
DH Lien-Hung Chen 2-5, HR #12, 3 RBI's - game MVP
3B Tilson Brito 1-4, HR #23, RBI
1B KC Kao 1-5
RF Fu-Hao Liu 1-4, HR #8, 2 RBI's
SS Ching-He Chuang 1-2, HR #2, RBI

T-Rex lineup:
3B Wei Kao 1-4, RBI
1B Chih-Hsien Chiang 1-4, 2B
2B Shih-Hao Huang 1-3, 2B, RBI
SS Ming-Jen Kuo 2-4, 2B, 2 RBI's


*Other - The Sinon Bulls will not be permitting any members from the team to participate in the 2009 WBC, citing this year's poor team performance (last in the first half, second to last in the second half of the season) - resulting from key players being overly fatigued from NT duties over the past 2 years . This means NT regulars - OF Chien-Ming Chang, C Chun-Chang Yeh, and RHP Chien-Fu Yang will not be available for the competition. Veteran star Tai-Shan Chang is already unavailable because of his banned substance suspension.


NPB:
The Dragons lost 3-0. WY Chen earned the loss after giving up 2 runs (2 solo shots) on 5 hits over 7 IP. Box

The Tigers won 8-3. WC Lin was 0-2 with a BB. Box


MILB:
Chen-Chang Lee is back in Taiwan after completing his time in the Fall IL - he fared well in limited appearances in Arizona - 3 IP, 3 K's, 1 R, 1 Save.


MLB:
Briefs on Kuo and Hu

Bears Stay Hot Behind C3's Strong Start....

CPBL:
Bears 3 - Whales 0:
WP - Chih-Chia Chang (3-4, 7 IP, 0 R, 5 H, 5 K's, 2 BB's) - game MVP

LP - Steve Watkins (6-13, 6.1 IP, 2 R, 9 H, 4 K's, 2 BB's)

Bears lineup:
DH Gary Burnham 2-5, 2 2B's, RBI
SS Chih-Sheng Lin 1-3
1B Chung-Wei Pan 2-4, RBI
C Feng-Min Chen 1-4, RBI

Whales lineup:
2B Yi-Min Wang 2-3
1B Chia-Hsien Tseng 2-3


Lions 7 - T-Rex 3:
WP - Aaron Fultz (2-1, 8 IP, 3 R, 8 H, 6 K's, 0 BB's)

LP - Cory Bailey (9-7, 7 IP, 7 R, 10 H, 3 K's, 0 BB's)

Lions lineup:
CF Sung-Hsien Yang 3-5, RBI - game MVP
DH Lien-Hung Chen 1-4, RBI
3B Tilson Brito 0-4
1B KC Kao 1-4
RF Fu-Hao Liu 2-4, RBI
2B Sen Yang 1-3, RBI
C Chih-Kang Kao 1-4, HR #2, RBI
SS Tzu-Sung Wang 1-4, RBI

T-Rex lineup:
3B Wei Kao 1-4, 2B, RBI
1B Chia-Hsien Hsieh 2-4, 2B, HR #17, RBI
DH Jose Leon 2-4, 2B, RBI
C Ko-Fan Chen 2-4


NPB:
WC Lin was 0-1 as the Tigers played to a 2-all tie. Box

Bears Win 8th in a Row (without CFC)......

CPBL:
Bears 4 - Whales 3:

WP - Mike Johnson (19-2, 7 IP, 0 R, 7 H, 4 K's, 2 BB's) - game MVP (the first to win 19 since 2001)

LP - Nerio Rodriguez (1-2, 6 IP, 3 R - 2 ER, 5 H, 8 K's, 0 BB's)

Bears lineup:

3B Chih-Wei Shih 2-4, 2B, RBI

SS Chih-Sheng Lin 2-4, RBI

DH Gary Burnham 0-4

1B Chung-Wei Pan 1-4, HR #6, RBI

Whales lineup:

3B Wilton Veras 2-4

RF Chun-Hsiung Lu 2-4

2B-SS Yi-Min Wang 2-4, 2B

C Yi-Wei Lee 1-1, HR #4, 3 RBI's - off the bench

Elephants 7 - Bulls 2:

WP - Kobayashi Ryokan (9-6, 6.2 IP, 2 R - 0 ER, 9 H, 5 K's, 0 BB's)

LP - Chien-Fu Yang (4-14, 5.1 IP, 7 R - 5 ER, 10 H, 5 K's, 1 BB) (Has lost 7 games in a row)

Elephants lineup:

DH CYC 1-5

LF Kuan-Jen Chen 1-4, RBI

1B Chia Chia 3-5, RBI - game MVP

3B Jui-Chen Chen 2-3, RBI

RF Huai-Shan Chen 1-4, RBI

CF Cheng-Wei Huang 2-4, 2B, HR #2, RBI

C Jui-Chang Chen 0-4, RBI - off the bench

Bulls lineup:

SS Chung-Nan Lin 2-4, 2B

DH Chien-Ming Chang 1-4

3B Tarzan 0-4

1B Kuo-Long Hsu 3-4

C Chun-Chang Yeh 1-2, 2B, RBI


MLB:
Yet another Kuo update - he may be ready for the NLCS, should the Dodgers advance that far.

Thursday Scores/Lin Released....

CPBL:
T-Rex 2 - Whales 1:

WP - Chih-Chung Yen (2-2, 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 K's, 1 BB)

SP John Webb earned a ND - (7 IP, 1 R, 5 H, 5 K's, 3 BB's)

LP - Fu-Te Ni (5-12, 8.1 IP, 2 R, 9 H, 8 K's, 1 BB)

T-Rex lineup:

1B Chia-Hsien Hsieh 1-4

DH Jose Leon 2-4, HR #4, RBI - game MVP (hit walk-off GW HR in the bottom of the 9th)

CF Yuan-Chia Chen 2-3

2B Shih-Hao Huang 1-3, RBI

RF Chia-Hui Wu 2-3

Whales lineup:

SS Chia-Yuan Chang 2-3

CF Tai-Yung Kuo 2-4

3B Wilton Veras 1-4, HR #7, RBI

Lions 8 - Elephants 3:

WP - Giancarlo Alvarado (1-0, 6 IP, 2 R, 5 H, 5 K's, 1 BB) - game MVP

LP - Chia-Min Tseng (6-5, 2 IP, 5 R, 2 H, 0 K's, 4 BB's)

Lions lineup:

CF Sung-Hsien Yang 2-3

LF Wu-Hsiung Pan 2-4, 3B, HR #13, 3 RBI's

DH Lien-Hung Chen 3-5, 2B, RBI

3B Tilson Brito 1-4, RBI

1B KC Kao 1-4

RF Fu-Hao Liu 0-2, RBI

SS Ching-He Chuang 2-4

Elephants lineup:

LF Ming-Hsien Lin 1-4, RBI

DH Kuan-Jen Chen 1-4, RBI

1B Chia Chia 0-4

RF Huai-Shan Chen 2-4

2B Hung-Sen Chu 2-4

CF Cheng-Wei Huang 1-2, RBI


NPB:
The Rakuten Eagles released lefty Ying-Chieh Lin. He will now most likely return to Taiwan and rejoin his former team - the dmedia T-Rex
*Updated

Dilemma for the Bulls/Giants Release Chiang.......

CPBL:
Bears 7 - Bulls 4:

WP - Yu-Wei Hsu (4-4, 7 IP, 4 R, 5 H, 5 K's, 2 BB's)

LP - Chih-Wei Lin (8-8, 5.1 IP, 5 R - 2 ER, 8 H, 1 K, 2 BB's)

Bears lineup:
CF Long-Yi Huang 2-5, 2B, RBI
DH Gary Burnham 2-5, 2B
LF Hao-Chu Tseng 2-4, RBI
C Feng-Min Chen 1-3, RBI
1B Hsiao-Wei Huang 0-2, RBI
1B Chung-Wei Pan 1-2, 2B, 2 RBI's - off the bench/game MVP

Bulls lineup:
DH Tarzan 3-4, RBI
RF Hsun-Wei Lin 1-4, 2B, RBI
1B Chung-Yi Huang 1-2, HR #3, 2 RBI's - off the bench

Lions 3 - Elephants 1:
WP - Luther Hackman (5-1, 7 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 5 K's, 1 BB)

LP - Dan Core (8-5, 6.2 IP, 2 R, 5 H, 3 K's, 4 BB's)

Lions lineup:
DH Lien-Hung Chen 2-4, HR #11, 2 RBI's - game MVP
3B Tilson Brito 2-4
1B KC Kao 1-3, HR #7, RBI

Elephants lineup:
DH CYC 0-3
RF Kuan-Jen Chen 2-4
1B Chia Chia 1-3
SS Sheng-Wei Wang 2-4, RBI

SEPTEMBER MVP's:

Pitcher: Mike Johnson (Bears)

Hitter: Chia Chia (Elephants)

*CPBL 2007/2008 #1 pick Yi-Chuan Lin told the media that he does not want to play for the Sinon Bulls (the team that picked him with the first overall pick in the draft). Lin is expected to finish his military service in Feb. of next year - at which time contract negotiations can begin between Lin and the Bulls. Lin's reasons for his statements are based on the fact that he doesn't feel that he'll have a good future & stability with the Sinon Bulls and the CPBL. He would rather play baseball for an amateur baseball club - Taiwan Power (the country's electricity company), which would have a lifetime guaranteed salary of at least 40,000 NT per month with possible promotions within the company after retirement from baseball.
Lin's album - with him in Bulls regalia

MLB:

Kuo Update - No blood clots in his throwing arm


NPB:
The Yomiuri Giants released RHP Chien-Ming Chiang. Per Chiang, his delivery was modified multiple times by the coaching staff - and as a result he couldn't regain his feel for pitching with the new delivery. He will likely return to Taiwan and play in the CPBL.
*Updated