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Young guns tough it out

"He's been a streaky hitter his whole career. He might be heading [into a good streak] right now."

Brad Mills, Chen Chin-feng's manager at the Las Vegas 51s

We're just past the All-Star break in the major leagues, so perhaps it's appropriate to pause and see how Taiwan's contingent of young players are faring in their quests to make the big leagues.

It has been a bit of a mixed season for Chen Chin-feng (陳金鋒), who is in his first season with the Triple-A Las Vegas 51s, the top affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

He is still adjusting to the move from outfield to first base, but handling the glove fairly well with only seven errors.

But his batting -- his expected ticket to Chavez Ravine -- has been in a bit of a slump for most of the season after a quick start.

Chen is hitting .279 with 18 home runs and 54 RBIs.

His 98 strikeouts -- double those of his nearest teammate -- continue to raise doubts whether he has a good enough eye to hit on the major league level.

51's manager Brad Mills told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that Chen might have turned a corner last month after going on a tear, going 16-for-43 with six home runs and 10 RBIs.

"He's been a streaky hitter his whole career," said Mills. "He might be heading [into a good streak] right now.

"Not only his hitting, but his whole game is getting better and his confidence is rising," Mills said.

Despite his improving play, don't look for the Dodgers to call him up soon. With a strike on the horizon, Los Angeles likely wants to see Chen get as much playing time as possible this year.

Las Vegas also won't want to see him go, if only because Chen has brought so much attention to the club from abroad.

Chen's popularity dominates traffic on the 51s Web site, fueled by chat from Taiwanese fans and sales of his number 50 jersey. New fan sites keep popping up, the latest being www.chinfanclub.com/, which features links to newspapers, including the Taipei Times.

Another bright spot for Chen in the Nevada desert is that he finally has a Taiwanese teammate, for the time being at least.

Kuo Hong-chih (郭泓志) was assigned to Las Vegas on June 18 from the Gulf Coast Dodgers. Kuo made one appearance in rookie-league play before the Dodgers sent him to Las Vegas for rehab.

Kuo reportedly has had problems with his elbow this spring, an obvious source of concern after blowing out his elbow in 2000 and undergoing surgery.

Taiwan's other pitchers with semi-bionic arms are having better success on the comeback trail.

Tsao Chin-hui's (曹錦輝) journey back from reconstructive surgery on his elbow started in June, with the Tri-City Dust Devils.

Pitching in an area best known for producing plutonium in central Washington state, Tsao did not give up a run in 11 innings before heading across the country to the Class-A Carolina League.

Taking a bit of extra caution with one of their top prospects, the Colorado Rockies reportedly won't allow Tsao to throw a slider because his arm muscles are not back to full strength.

Taiwan's Yankee is also back on the mound after having his shoulder rebuilt. Wang Chien-ming (王建民) is back in Staten Island with New York's short-season squad, posting a 1-0 record and ERA of 2.49 after four starts.

Pitcher Kevin Huang Jun-chung (黃俊中) quietly continues his progress with the Boston Red Sox' Augusta Greenjackets in the Carolina League, going 4-0 (3.48) and four saves.

And so far Luo Chin-lung's (羅錦龍) radical transplant from Tainan to Casper, Wyoming, seems not to have affected the young phenomenon, who turns 17 next month. Lo is 1-1 with a 2.54 ERA on Colorado's rookie-league team.
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