For the first time in Chinese Taipei baseball history, the world No. 2 team held on to a lead and won the championship title in one of the highest-level international tournaments. Chinese Taipei defeated Japan, 4-0, in the final of the WBSC Premier12 2024 presented by RAXUS, surpassing their best record from the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, in which they won the silver medal.
“To be honest with you, this (the result) is not something we had anticipated,” said Chieh-Hsien Chen, the captain of Chinese Taipei.
Chen batted .625 with two home runs and 6 RBI during the tournament and was named MVP of the WBSC Premier12 2024 presented by RAXUS.
And after claiming Chinese Taipei’s first ever international title at the senior level on Sunday, the 30-year-old star expressed his optimistic attitude about how his team will stand to benefit and use the win to compete more regularly for international tournament honours in the future.
“From the first day at the camp, our goal has been the same: to believe in each other and to play as a team. We are a strongly bonded team, and no matter what the results are, we take it in as a team,” said Chen after Chinese Taipei clinched the Global Baseball title.
“This championship certainly will promote confidence to our baseball people,” Chen added. “In the past, we weren’t always that confident when we faced those superpower elite teams from the world. From now on, our confidence level will increase as we think we can compete with the best teams in the world.”
Chen, a native of the southern city of Kaohsiung, started his baseball career in grade school. After graduating from junior high school, Chen went to Japan to study and play baseball at Kyousei High School in Okayama. Chen returned to Taiwan after failing to be selected in the NPB draft and joined the amateur Tai Power baseball club.
“When I was in Japan, I learned how to play baseball as a team and not as an individual. I was very impressed by my schoolmates and teammates and how dedicated they are to putting the team first,” said Chen. “If I were younger, I would have made Major League Baseball my goal because I want the world to know about baseball in Taiwan.”
Chen was later drafted by the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions of CPBL in 2016. Issues with defense and injuries during Chen’s first few seasons in pro led to his subpar performance, and it wasn’t until 2020, when his manager Yueh-Ping Lin sent him to the outfield, that he was able to cement his position on the team. With two other outfielders, Chih-Chieh Su and An-Ko Lin, the trio were nicknamed “Ghosts of the Outfield” and has been the core of the Lions lineup since then.
Even Chen started this Premier12 at a slower pace, especially during the exhibition games, in which he did not perform to the expected level. However, as the team captain, Chen was able to adjust quickly and hammered a two-run home run in the first game against Korea before hitting his only other home run in his career defining act in the final, showcasing the typical leadership skills of any captain.
“I believe that the reason I was chosen (by the manager) to be the captain is because he wanted me to do the same thing that I had been doing with the Lions,” Chen said. “I once thought that I was nobody, and I never anticipated that we could win the world championship. From now on, baseball players from Chinese Taipei can stride with their heads and chests up.”
