Cobras coiled and ready to strike

Having covered the top-three squads in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) earlier this week, it's time to look at the rest of the league as the Chinatrust Whales, the Macoto Cobras, and the La New Bears get set to do battle this season.

The complete makeover of the Whales starts at the top with the appointment of a new general manager in Lin Ming-cheng (林敏政), whose "no-excuse" approach includes the immediate release of all stars such as the 2002 season MVP winner Soong Jau-chi (宋肇基), starting outfielder Yang Soong-shien (楊松弦), second baseman Lin Yueh-liang (林岳亮), and the team's top hitter, Hung Chi-fong (洪啟峰).

Former pitching coach Hsu Sheng-ming (徐生明) assumed the head role after the departure of manager Lin Chung-chiou (林仲秋) and is confident that his new crew will more than rise to the occasion and rally around catcher Shih Jin-sho (石金受), home-run threat Chen Wen-pin (陳文賓), and media darling shortstop Cheng Chang-ming (鄭昌明).

Incoming foreign help for the mound is a trio from the Dominican Republic: Juan Figueroa, Antonio Dario, and last year's opening-day starter Geraldo Guzman. (Guzman did not adapt well and consequently left the Whales after just one month of play). they all have at least AA experience in the American farm system.

Speaking of make-overs, the former Macoto Gida selected "Cobras" as their new mascot and will begin this season with a new look.

Also in the new Cobra uniform is manager Kuo Tai-yuen (郭泰源), aka the "Oriental Express" of the Seibu Lions that reigned the Japanese professional baseball league for over a decade from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s.

Kuo has his work cut out for him as he attempts to take a team that could not buy a win in the latter part of last season and mold it into instant winners.

His slew of seasoned assistants could easily turn the Cobra locker room into a hall of fame display.

In an effort to tap into the fan base in Northern Taiwan, the Cobras will call Taipei their new home as they move from Taichung into a new facility just outside of Tamshui in Taipei County.

While sound pitching from the foreign pitchers will be important, the top concern will be how to assemble a batting order that has only two reliable hitters in Hsieh Jia-shien (謝佳賢), who was second in the home-run race last season with 18, and Hsu Sheng-jeh (許聖杰), who is a sound-hitting shortstop that came over to the Cobras from the President Lions in a recent a trade.

The former First Securities Agan not only changed their mascot to the Bears, they also acquired a new club owner in La New Enterprise during the off-season. The La New Bears will be headed by former Japan Series MVP Ohda Takushi and his first lieutenant Kato Hajime.

Recently acquired right-hander Dai Long-shui (戴龍水) from the Lions and American veterans Robert Marquez and Cory Bailey will anchor a pitching staff that is a couple of healthy arms away from being a formidable force on the mound.

Offensively for the Bears, team captain Chen Kai-fa (陳該發) will look to former Major Leaguer Rafael Alvarez for some needed protection from the cleanup spot, so that opposing pitchers could no longer dodge Chen as they did in the past.

Preliminary feedbacks from around the league all point to a vastly improved Bear club after two weeks of pre-season action.

"[The Bears] have definitely improved over the course of the off-season," Manager Lin Yi-tseng (林易增) of the Brother Elephants said after his club had barely beaten the Bears in a spring training game. "I wouldn't count them out just quite yet."