Lined up in their uniforms and ready for action, they size up their opponents before shaking hands and fighting it out on the softball field.
Every weekend tens of thousands of Taiwanese flock to scattered fields outside Taipei central in search of diamonds, friendly competition, a barbecue and some Taiwan beer.
Though baseball claims to be the country's game, softball is played by far more people and can fairly call itself the nation's national pastime -- after watching TV and shopping.
PHOTO: JULES QUARTLY, TAIPEI TIMES
Fishing, baseball, soccer, even basketball are small-time sports in comparison.
Terry Chung (鍾德雄) of the Chinese Slow-Pitch Softball Association said, "Taiwan is the second-largest country in the world [in softball] next to the US. We are very involved in its development."
Over 6,000 softball clubs are officially registered and the association estimates there are around 10,000 teams in total with up to 250,000 "regular" players.
PHOTO: JULES QUARTLY, TAIPEI TIMES
Softball's popularity in Taiwan can be traced back 125 years to a boat club in Chicago, Illinois, where the game is said to have been conceived.
Age of empires
Just as the colonies of the former British empire took to cricket, so too have countries within the US' sphere of influence adopted baseball and it's offspring, softball.
PHOTO: JULES QUARTLY, TAIPEI TIMES
US businessmen led the development of the game in Taiwan, which caught on in the 1950s when US influence was -- arguably -- at its peak, Chung said.
"Softball has grown in a similar way that it did in the US, gathering to enjoy the game as a social function, to drink a beer and have a barbecue."
It was built up as businesses, politicians and even government departments sponsored teams to develop loyalties and connections.
It helped that softball in its rawest form was cheap and simple, though it has now become organized and can be expensive. It's also relatively easy to play compared with baseball.
A 95mph (153km) fastball will travel 60ft 6 inches (18.4m) in four tenths of a second and to hit the ball at all will test the limits of human-reaction time.
The eye-body-brain coordination to be able to do this three times out of ten constitutes major leagues talent.
"Every kid has dreams of playing baseball and softball is the reality when you grow up," Chung said. "Not everyone can be a baseball star but slowpitch [softball] gives everyone the chance to play ball."
A softball is nearly twice as large as a baseball and in the slow-pitch version of the game -- which is the main variant in Taiwan -- the thrower will send the ball up in a high and gentle arc so that it will land on the plate.
Otherwise the rules are much the same: There are ten players, three strikes, seven innings, hit the ball and run around the bases without being tagged.
Rick France of the Budweiser Kings, Taiwan's only team of foreigners, said, "The big difference is that baseball is a pitching game and softball's a hitting game."
Baseball is for athletes, but softball is for everyone with basic hand-eye co-ordination and the atavistic desire to hit a ball and chase it. It's an occasion for male bonding and mild exercise.
Warrior instincts
"For many men, it's this outlet on Sundays that keeps them sane, that fulfills their warrior instincts," France said.
Teams take to the field dressed in full kit, with team colors and names on their backs, cleated up and raring to go.
They arrive, often early in the morning, to get a chance of playing either in a tournament or in rotation with other teams. Sometimes there is so little space and so much softball that a team will not get a game.
Players range in age from around 20 to 50 and arrive in an assortment of shapes and sizes, often chewing betel nut and sometimes swigging on Whisbih or something stronger.
The game may be for amateurs, but it's often taken seriously and the clunk of aluminum on leather is mixed with the sound of cheers, jeers and occasional flashpoints.
Local leagues cover the country and national tournaments can attract up to 1,000 teams. Though softball is not big business, cash prizes for winning teams can be up to NT$60,000 and used to be higher.
With pride and money on the line competition can be fierce and many teams will bring in ringers for key games, though this is officially denied.
Occasionally they are former pro players from the Chinese Professional Baseball League. Some of them were kicked out of the game or lost their jobs because of a betting scandal that erupted in 1996.
Often they will be paid to play and receive what is termed a chema fei (車馬費), or "car/horse fee." ie. something for the taxi home and a bit extra.
One former pro-baseball player, who did not want to be named, said that some teams are practically professional.
Local government departments and businesses, he said, value the kudos that winning a major competition will bring, so they put good players on the payroll.
The will to do well has always been there, but there is an added incentive for softball players in Taiwan to do even better as it's the game Taiwan plays best.
Terry Chung said, "In Taiwan there's always a problem with promoting sports because there has been so little success."
But with softball and baseball it's different, Chung said.
International softball and Little League victories, a silver medal at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona and strong showings at the Baseball World Cup have shown promise.
With plans to start up an Asia-Pacific Cup and even a World Cup (in partnership with the US), the Chinese Slow-Pitch Softball Association intends to build on this.
Tomorrow, the Budweiser Kings, the last foreign softball team in Taiwan
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