Taiwan vs. the KC Royals???!!!

Well, the above scenario could happen if Taiwan manages to snag the #2 seed out of the Asian regional qualifying bracket. The matchup would be very memorable for the fans of Taiwan, although the Royals are one of the worst teams in the MLB.

Link

Brief news on Wang....

Link

News.....

It has been recently announced that Taiwan will host the Asian qualifying tourney for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Being the host is important to Taiwan's success. The last time Taiwan played host to a major international tourney - the 2001 Baseball World Cup, it placed 3rd - beating Japan.

More news on the draft....

From the Taiwan News Website: Link

Supposedly, Elephants #3 pick, D.J. Yeh is getting attention from the Red Sox organization.

CPBL Draft Results...

As expected, the LA New Bears selected Chin-Feng Chen first overall in the CPBL draft.

The Whales selected RHP Che-Yi Su (on far right in the linked pic) with the 2nd overall pick in the first round.

The rest of the first round selections were as follows:

#3 pick - Elephants: LHP Ding-Jen Yeh
#4 pick - Lions: LHP Pai-Ching Chiang
#5 pick - Cobras: RHP Chia-Hung Chen
#6 pick - Bulls: OF Chien-Jung Su

For the rest of the team's picks, you can go to the CPBL's official website (in Chinese) for further detail.

Happy Holidays!!!!

May all of you have a:

Merry Christmas and a safe and prosperous New Year!!!

WBC News....

MLB article on Wang and Kuo.

Chen in the CPBL????

There is a good possibility that pioneer Chin-Feng Chen may play for the LA New Bears in the CPBL next year. Chen would join an up and coming team that already has slugger Chih-Sheng Lin and new pitching addition Kevin Huang. Chen has not given up on his dreams to play in the Majors, and probably would seek a clause in his contract that would allow him to pursue a ML position if the opportunity arose.

For more, read here.

Lin officially an Eagle....

The Rakuten Eagles have officially signed Y.C. Lin to a contract.

The official site of the Eagles has more info on Lin's signing in Japanese.

Congrats to Lin! Make us proud!!

"You" Da Man!!!

Who's Da Man?!

Future Puppeteer??

Yang with future teammates (4th from right)

The Nippon Ham Fighters officially introduced their draft picks to the public yesterday.

Yang, the top pick for the Fighters, will wear # 24, and have his name emblazoned on the back of his jersey as "You", the Japanese pronounciation of his Chinese character.

The waiting game....

While Japan and Korea have submitted very strong rosters for the WBC, Taiwan is still trying to get clearance for their top 2 pitchers: Wang and Kuo. Because both pitchers have a history of serious arm injuries, the parent clubs are reluctant to release these 2 kids (Read here for more on Wang and his status with the Yanks brass) for participation in the WBC. With injuries to top pitchers Tsao, Chang, and Hsu, the cupboard is pretty bare if the Dodgers and Yankees have their way. Also, the Taiwanese national team has not yet secured the services of top hitter Chin-Feng Chen whose professional career has come to a screeching halt. In past competitions against top pitchers from Korea and Japan, Chen was one of the few bright spots for an anemic offense.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that Wang and Kuo get a chance to shine for their country. I'm sure a strict pitch count will be imposed if they get the green light, but having Wang and Kuo is vital to Taiwan having any shot at beating Japan and Korea.

Hu Chin Lung...

"The Dynamic Duo" - Hu and Chen

Was named by Baseball America as the 10th best prospect in the LA Dodgers organization.

Here's what BA wrote about Hu:
Background: One scout described Vero Beach's double-play combo of Hu and Abreu as "the traveling circus show" because of their penchant for defensive highlights. Hu finished second to Abreu in the Florida State League batting race, then hit .343 for Taiwan at the World Cup tournament following the season.
Strengths: While Abreu is a plus defender, Hu is off the charts. He's slightly undersized but wiry strong with outstanding body control and pure shortstop actions. His range is extraordinary, as are his hands, and his arm and speed are both above average. Hu made an adjustment at the plate, curtailing his leg kick, which improved his balance and prevented him from flying open during his swing. He has surprising pop, uses the whole field, and has a good feel for the strike zone.
Weaknesses: Hu has a tendency to bail on good breaking balls and he needs to become more selective. His small frame doesn't lend considerable room for projection.
The Future: Hu should be a .270 hitter with 10 home runs annually in the big leagues. Ticketed for Double-A, he should reach LA by the end of 2007.

Sayonara Lin????

Y.C. Lin

It looks like the Rakuten Golden Eagles have been busy scouting players in Taiwan. Earlier this fall, Chin-Feng Chen was given a look by the NPB club.


Now, word is the Rakuten Golden Eagles are close to signing lefty specialist Ying-Chieh Lin. Rakuten was also very interested in star rookie pitcher En-Yu Lin, but the Macoto Cobras were reluctant to part with both of their top pitchers. Sounds like only a matter of time before Lin becomes an Eagle!!!

WBC News.....

From the MLB site: Link

Although Taiwan did not officially release it's 60 man roster, it is probably somewhat similar to this earlier post.

Ming-Chieh Hsu and Chin-Hui Tsao will NOT be playing for Taiwan next March due to recovery from injuries.

Odds and Ends.....

OF Lin (Hanshin Tigers)

REUNION of sorts: Hu, Wu, and Chen

With Barry Bonds announcing that he will be participating in the World Baseball Classic, there is a possibility that if Taiwan qualifies as the number two team out of the Asia pool, it would get a chance to face the the legend (assuming the US places in the top 2) in the second round. I'm sure Kuo would savor another shot at redeeming himself against Bonds. It's only the end of November, and I can't wait for March to arrive!!!!


Taiwan's infield of the present and future is bright with Hu at SS, Chen at 2B, and Wu at 1B. All three are under 23 years of age, and Hu and Chen have shown promise both on the offensive and defensive end of the field while playing in the US minor leagues. Wu has still yet to put together a healthy and productive campaign, but he has shown a promising bat. Factor in Yang - the 18 year old SS #1 pick of the Nippon Fighters, and you might have a solid foundation for the next decade.


OF Lin of the Hanshin Tigers is currently working on building his arm strength (throwing off the mound and long toss) to allow him to be more competent defensively in RF. In limited duty with the parent ball club, Lin flashed good wood. However, in order to get more playing time, he must improve his defensive abilities.


The talent level in Taiwan is self-evident and is reflected in the growing number of players signed to play in the US and Japan: As of today - 13 in the US and 7 in Japan. Who's next? Well in an earlier post, En-Yu Lin was mentioned as a possibility. Lefty Y.J. Lin of the Macoto Cobras is also seeking a new employer next year. With respectable numbers and demonstrating that he is one of the top pitchers in the CPBL, Lin hopes to take his game to the next level by playing in Japan. I hope both Lin's get their chance soon.

The Boys are Back in Town!!!!

Taiwan Legend Ming-Tsu Lu(L) with Chien-Ming Chiang(R)

From L to R:Kevin Huang, Chao-Kuan Wu, Chia-An Huang
(Damn, Wu and Huang must be enjoying the All-American diet - fast food!)

From L to R: Ching-Lung Lo, Chi-Hung Cheng, and Kuo-Hui Lo

L to R: Ching-Lung Lo, Chin-Lung Hu, Chien-Ming Wang

Yao-Hsun Yang

In preparation for the Baseball World Classic, a number of overseas players were back in Taiwan for registration. Check out the above pics from UDN.com

Amateur baseball updates.....

This past week, new national winners were crowned for infantile (11-12), high school, and adult - college aged divisions.

In the senior league (college) championships, the National College of Physical Education defeated Jiayi University by a score of 9 to 0.
From this division, names to remember for the future include: NCPE winning pitcher Chia-Chun Tang and Jiayi pitcher Che-Yi Su


In the junior (high school) tourney, PingZhen High School won the championship by defeating Hualien H.S. 5 to 4. Yilan beat Taitung 7 to 4 for third place.
Among the HS kids, names to remember include:
1)Hung-Cheng Lai (P) - throws lefty, HS senior, 5'9"tall, has been clocked at 90 mph, member of junior national team, a good athlete: reputed to have been timed at 11 seconds in the 100m dash, has been scouted by the Boston Red Sox
2)Wei-Da Su (P)
3)Jiang-Cho Chen (P) - 6'0 tall, junior in HS, clocked as fast as 90 mph
4)Chen-Hua Lin (P) - 6'0 tall, throws ~ 85 mph


In the infantile division (11-12 year olds), a team from Yilan defeated a team from Taitung 7-6 to win the championship.
Names to keep an eye out for include: Wen-Chia Song

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Since I'm a huge college football nut (I root for Penn State, but I went to USC and The U - University of Miami), I'm always over on Scout.com checking out the latest news on these programs. The guys over at Scout.com are currently posting all of their premium content for free from now until Sunday the 27th. There are some good reads on Chen: #1 #2, Cheng: #1 #2, Wang: #1 #2, and Hu #1 #2. You can also probably find some stuff on Chen, Tsao, and Kuo out there too. Remember, that most of these links are only good until this Sunday. So don't forget to save or print if you want to archive the content.

Where have you gone Kevin Huang?

Former Red Sox Chun-Chung (Kevin) Huang is finally going to get a chance to revive his baseball career. Huang will be playing with the LA New Bears in the CPBL next season.

After some limited success in the low minors with the Boston Red Sox organization (he made it to A ball), Huang was persuaded by his agent to showcase his wares for some NPB scouts. During this workout, Huang tore his labrum, and has been recovering ever since. The pitching exhibition was in violation of Huang's contract with the Red Sox, who then released Kevin.

That's one helluva lesson for any young man to take - lose your job and potentially have a career-ending injury all happen at the same time.

Despite all this, I'm still rooting for the kid to make a full recovery and succeed in the CPBL.

Misc. News....

En-Yu Lin with his 5 post season CPBL awards
Pic taken from the CPBL official website

Rookie En-Yu Lin of the Cobras won the league MVP/ROY awards. The kid had solid numbers - a league-leading 1.72 ERA, a 12-8 W/L record, and 152K's. Lin also won a golden-glove award for his stellar defense. The 6'2"- 24 year old is hoping to get a shot in Japan, and may follow the footsteps of former CPBL ROY's - Ming-Chieh Hsu of the Seibu Lions and Chung-Yang Tsao formerly of the Chunichi Dragons.

TaiwanNewsOnline Link

The Seibu Lions are thinking of moving Chih-Chia Chang to the bullpen as a reliever next year. The move could prolong the career of Chang, who had his past season derailed by injuries.

Chin-Feng Chen got a look by the Rakuten Eagles organization in the NPB. Word is that Chen didn't fare very well in his workouts - i.e. struggling with hitting off-speed breaking pitches. With his options shrinking, Chen might give it one more shot at the MLB and hope for the best in spring training.