There is a Japanese person living in Taiwan who has been watching Taiwanese baseball for over 20 years and continues to spread the word about it to Japan. We look back on this while listening to Hidetoshi Komada, a radio personality at a Taiwanese broadcasting station and also a writer.
The final match was a complete victory over Samurai Japan 4-0.
It was a historic victory for Taiwan. This was the first victory in an international competition for top teams, including professionals. In this tournament, they faced each other twice in the pre-final round, with Japan winning both times.
Each country that was placed in the same group as Japan in the opening round aimed for second place, avoiding a competition with Japan, which was the most likely candidate for first place. Taiwan won Group B in 2nd place with 4 wins and 1 loss and faced Japan in the final match of the Super Round. However, the United States defeated Venezuela that day, and Taiwan was confirmed to advance to the finals without waiting for the match against Japan. As a result, the Taiwanese team paid a fine and replaced Lin Yu-ming, who had been the predicted starting pitcher, and replaced him with Chen Bo-chen.
Chen Boqing (Source/Getty Images)
In the final match, which was the third time they faced each other, Japan’s starter was Togo Togo, while Taiwan’s long-awaited ace, 21-year-old Hayashi Lin, faced off. The left-handed pitcher, who belongs to the Diamondbacks in 2A and also pitched in 3A, stood on the big stage in the decisive battle.
Hayashi, who has become a hot topic for his flashy tattoos on both arms, makes full use of his powerful fastball and slider, and uses moderately rough pitches to keep Japan’s batting lineup from getting consecutive hits. Togo also had a pitching battle, but in the top of the 5th inning, Lin Jia-cheng’s solo home run gave Taiwan the lead, and then with one out and 1st and 2nd base, captain Chen Jie-hsien hit a high-scoring three-run home run. He decided the game with a home run. Japan also pitched well with Tomoichiro Sumida, Naomasa Fujihira, and many others, but their batting lineup was unable to score points from Taiwan’s follow-up pitches.
Chen Jiexian (Source/Getty Images)
After Lin Yuan, Zhang Yi and Chen Guanyu provided scoreless relief. Lin Kai-wei pitched as the closer and achieved a dramatic 4-0 shutout victory.
Both Japan and Taiwan continue to withdraw from the national team. What were the pre-war predictions?
The Premier 12 was also after the end of the season, and Samurai Japan had a number of players withdraw from the tournament due to injuries. Munetaka Murakami and Kensuke Kondo were absent, and Kazuma Okamoto, Omi Ito, Naoki Yoshikawa, and Nakamasa Manba withdrew.
The same thing happened in Taiwan, where many people declined the offer. Hide Komada, mentioned above, says this.
“Before the war, Taiwanese media, experts, and fans all thought it would be quite severe.”
Many top-class players, including former major leaguer Zhang Chiku, the country’s best pitcher Gu Lin Rui-hwan, and Phillies affiliate Pan Wen-hui from 2A, withdrew, and of the 28 Taiwanese representatives, Lin Hang-bin and Lin Jiazheng were the only overseas players.
How was the Taiwanese team able to win?
There is no single factor. Mr. Komada also reflected, “There were so many points.” “One of them is thorough measures by scorers and analysts.”
Thorough data analysis and countermeasures
The Taiwanese national team does not have a top-class starting pitcher other than ace Lin Hung-bin and Huang Zipeng, who has a proven track record in international tournaments. Except for the pitching games between the two, it was mandatory to pitch from the early innings.
“We frequently changed the batting order, but what really shined was the pitching between pitchers.He said he was inspired by the MLB World Series.The pitching coach and bullpen coach understood each pitcher’s condition and So, I was able to connect with the best performance.”
Behind this was a thorough analysis of the opposing team. The scorer team was large, with about 20 to 30 people.
“For example, for pitcher Togo in the final, we lined up left-handed batters. He didn’t throw many forks in shallow counts, so we threw away the forks and focused on straights. Chen Jie-xen started from a full count, but he gave up on his breaking balls and in the end, I hit a fastball and hit a home run. The data made it easier to hit the ball.”
Togo (Source/Getty Images)
The match against South Korea was a key point, captain Chen Jie-hseon gained momentum
The big point for Taiwan was “the first game against South Korea,” Komada said.
“Every team has an ace pitching in games other than Japan. Taiwan has home advantage at the Taipei Dome, and the first game is Korea, and the second game is Dominica. It was all about how we could win those two games.”
Lin’s team imposed a limit of “2 games” and “75 pitches.” As a result, he pitched in two important games: the first game against South Korea and the final. In the game against South Korea, Lim Hao-min gave up 2 runs in 4.2 innings. In the batting lineup, Chen Chenwei loaded the bases in the bottom of the second inning, followed by Chen Jiexen’s two-run homer, which quickly took the lead.
“From August to September, it was obvious that Chen Jie-xen was in a slump. He was not included in the starting lineup for the practice match before the tournament. Manager Zeng Hao-kun told him the day before that Chen Jie-xen would be played as No. 3. Apparently, Chen Jiexian was enthusiastic and responded well.
Captain Chen Jie-hsien, who is also the team’s mood maker, achieved excellent results, giving Taiwan a boost.
“When he is given a big stage, he is the type of person who gets fired up and shows his abilities. He is really strong in mind and body. He is proud to be able to wear the uniform of the national team, and it is a great motivation for him.”
They got a big win over rival South Korea, and won the next match against Dominica with Huang Zi-peng. The team quickly came together and the mood improved with the win.
The results of other countries’ teams also favored Taiwan’s advancement to the finals.
“Even in the games we lost, we held on. There was a feeling that ‘Taiwan is different this time.’ The team was very focused and highly motivated.”
Dispelling the shadow of “2013” that followed us until the end
However, as the finals played out in Taiwan’s favor, the words “2013” appeared repeatedly on social media timelines. “I don’t feel safe” and “I think things might turn around again.”
What was on the minds of fans was the 2013 WBC second round match between Japan and Taiwan. After a fierce battle lasting 4 hours and 37 minutes, Japan won 4-3. With Taiwan leading by one point, Samurai Japan’s current manager, Hirokazu Ibata, hit a timely hit to tie the game in the top of the 9th inning.
Hirokazu Ibata (Source/Getty Images)
Wang Jianmin, who was the starter that day and held the Japanese batting lineup scoreless until the sixth inning, is currently serving as the pitching coach for the Taiwanese national team. The main members of this tournament are from the generation that watched the coaches compete on TV while they competed as players.
“I think there were many players who started playing baseball after watching that game.In 2013, it was a struggle for international games, especially after the CPBL match-fixing occurred many times.We supported the league during its toughest times. The people who supported us fought a good fight against Japan.
But winning and losing are completely different. Winning this time is really big for the Taiwanese baseball world.”
Winning will change the way I look at Taiwan. The significance of Premier 12 will also increase. Taiwanese baseball has many players with connections to Japan and is well-received by Japanese baseball fans, but if Taiwanese baseball becomes a stronger rival, it would be a major step forward for baseball as a whole.
“When Hideki Kuriyama, CBO, came to help with the contract for Rui-Lin Furim, he congratulated us on winning the Premier 12 and said, “This is a big victory for Taiwanese baseball, but it’s also great for baseball in Japan, Asia, and the world.” That’s what I said. I really think so.”
Taiwan’s “new generation” represented by ace Lin Yuan
Lin Yumin (Source/Getty Images)
From 2018 to this year, Komada said, “every year there was a monster” among high school students in Taiwan. Lin Yumin is one of them.
“He’s usually a kind person, but he’s very strong on the mound. Especially since he’s been on the national team since U-12, he has a lot of experience in international tournaments even though he’s only 21 years old.”
Apart from respecting Japanese baseball, he is a representative of that generation who doesn’t think Japan can’t beat them.
“I’m pretty used to playing on big stages, and I’ve never experienced anything like getting beaten by Japan or losing badly since I was a kid.”
In 2014, Taiwan won the U-21 World Cup. Furthermore, in 2018, they defeated Japan in the U-18 Asian Championship, and their matches against Japan in the U-18 category continue to be close. Players in their mid-20s now have a different mindset about the game against Japan than before.
The new generation has mainly gone to America and Japan, but I hope that they will continue to make Taiwan even stronger in the future.
Future Asian Baseball Japan and Taiwan will become true friends
In Taiwan, which places great importance on international matches, the country celebrated the Premier 12 championship and gave various support to the V Warriors. The afterglow of the dramatic victory still hasn’t settled down.
Players and experts alike agree, “We hope that this enthusiasm doesn’t become a temporary thing and can be used to further promote baseball.”
Taiwan has a strong under-age group in international tournaments and ranks second in the world rankings. The domestic CPBL was also in its first year at the Taipei Dome, and the number of spectators continued to increase. There are many Japanese coaches in the CPBL, and they have contributed to Taiwanese baseball. The two countries, which are close both physically and psychologically, will continue to be valuable to each other.
“I think the ideal relationship between friends is one where they respect each other and give their best. I would be very happy if that kind of relationship could deepen, and it would be great for the baseball world in both countries.”
