TV crews, Taiwanese baseball legends, government officials and the fans will flock to Kaohsiung tomorrow for Taiwan's own annual Fall Classic.
\nGame 1 of the highly anticipated 2003 Taiwan Series will begin at 6:35pm where the second-half champions Brother Elephants will host the champs of the first-half, the Sinon Bulls, in the highest rated championship series in the CPBL's 14-year history.
\nThe Elephants will begin the contest with home-field advantage in the best-of-seven series, because their winning percentage for the entire regular season was a hundredth of a percentage point better than the Bulls. This means that the Elephants will play host in Games 1, 2, 6, and 7 (Games 6 and 7 if necessary), while the Bulls will return the favor in Games 3, 4, and 5 (plus Game 5 if necessary).
\nWhile the local Chinese-language media is focusing on the offensive stars in the series, experts believe that pitching and postseason experience will matter most.
\nThis will be the third consecutive title run for the Elephants, who won six straight games in the past two postseasons to sweep their way to two championship trophies.
\nThe Bulls failed in the 1998 and 2000 series.
\nIn addition to experience and a recent history of success, the Elephants appear to also have the edge in pitching, with a starting rotation that includes Yokota Hisanori (most wins this season with 16), Nakagomi Sin (2.53 ERA) and Jonathan Hurst (former major leaguer with abundant postseason experience).
\nAlthough the Bulls have ace Jeff Andra (14 wins with a 2.01 ERA) and Osvaldo Martinez (league-best 182 strikeouts), the rotation lacks depth.
\nThe third starter for the Bulls could be Tsai Chung-nan (
World No. 1 Tai Tzu-ying yesterday eased past her Thai opponent to advance to the second round of the Toyota Thailand Open. The Taiwanese star toppled world No. 46 Supanida Katethong 21-16, 21-11 in 29 minutes at the Impact Arena in Bangkok. “I think I played OK today. I am feeling a little better than last week,” Tai said. Tomorrow, Tai faces Indonesia’s Gregoria Mariska Tunjung. The two have faced each other six times, with Tai beating the world No. 21 in all six matches. Tai on Sunday reached the final of the Yonex Thailand Open before losing decisively against Carolina Marin of Spain.
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