After struggling for years the Brother Elephants were finally able to put together a winning team last year and won the championship they have been craving for seven seasons.
As Elephants ace Jonathan Hurst told me during an interview in March, "The power these guys are displaying is the most impressive difference I've noticed since I was here with the Elephants two years ago."
Among the heavy hitters on the Elephants' roster, Peng Cheng-min(
Nicknamed ha-cha (恰恰 [a famous Taiwan comedian]), Peng is a 24-year-old infielder who was selected as the overall first pick by the Elephants during the last pre-season draft, after picking up accolades as a power hitter in his amateur years.
It took him a while to find his feet in the professional game and he concluded his first season with a batting average of .316.
Peng's numbers were better during last year's best-of-seven Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) Championship Series, when he batted .464 -- the best figures for any batter, with two home runs and 10 runs batted in.
He was selected MVP of the Series, in which the Elephants came from behind and dramatically won 4-3.
Having established himself at the end of the season, big things were expected from him for the new season -- and that's what he's been doing. On July 19 this year, Peng achieved the milestone of hitting three home runs in a single game [tying the league record] in Taichung against the Bulls.
Peng became the 11th player overall [fifth among local players] to accomplish such a feat in the 13-year history of the CPBL.
He modestly credited his success to his hitting coaches Wang Kuang-hui (
"When I was in a slump, they all told me not to worry about what had happened, just to think of what was ahead and concentrate on preparing for the next game," Peng said.
Strengthening the Brothers' lineup even further is 26-year-old Tsai Feng-an (
He is a seasoned player in the sixth season of his professional career and used to play for the now-dissolved Mercuries Tigers.
In the previous five years of his career he never had a .300 season, but now he's batting at .314.
When Tsai was with the Tigers, he was called the "Blind Swinger" because he often wildly attacked the ball and missed.
After the Tigers folded Tsai went to the Elephants and improved as a hitter, choosing power and selection over hit or miss.
Last season saw Tsai's average rose to a career-high .285 and an improved slugging percentage .427. He puts down his improvement to Elephants coach Lin Pai-hung (
The slugger currently has 16 home runs and is on second place on the home run chart.
Frequently batting third and fourth on the order, Peng and Tsai have become the "Bash Brothers" and carry a threat of taking over the game whenever they play. When pitchers decide to go around Peng for fear of his power, Tsai always makes them pay the price.
RSS