Pan Chung-wei's solo blast to deep-left field off Macoto Cobras starter Lin "Little Chick" En-yu for the game's lone run in the bottom of the second inning spoiled another stellar outing for the Cobras ace as the Bears edged the Cobras 1-0 at Kaohsiung Friday night.
The Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player winner from last season lost his second straight start in which he has allowed only one earned run over six-plus innings to even his record at 2-2.
"Not many people in the league could hit a pitch like that out of the park, but Pan did it," Cobras manager Wu Fu-lien said.
Topping Lin's effort was Bears starter Kenny Rayborn, whose one-hit gem in eight magnificent innings was the reason that the Bears were able to fend off the serpents for their league-leading 10th victory of the season.
Hsu Wen-hsiung allowed a ninth-inning single to the Cobras' Amaury Garcia with two outs in relief of Rayborn to put the tying run on base, but fellow righty Hsu Chih-hua was able to get the last Cobra batter to pop up to right to preserve the win for Rayborn.
The Cobras had two decent scoring chances in the sixth and seventh innings with the leadoff man reaching first via a single off Rayborn and a Bears throwing error, respectively, putting a runner in scoring position with one out in both innings.
Whales 4, Bulls 2
Three unearned runs against the Sinon Bulls in the bottom of the eighth inning turned a 2-1 deficit into a 4-2 win for the Chinatrust Whales in Chiayi to even the first two games of the series at 1-1.
The self-destructing Bulls all but gift wrapped the win for the Whales as catcher Yeh Jung-chang's poor throw to second base on a sacrifice bunt put runners on first and second with no outs to start off the eighth inning.
After the Whales advanced the runners to second and third with a sacrifice bunt on the ensuing play, the Bulls then coughed up the lead on a passed ball by Yeh that scored both runners. Kao Jung-chiang's one-run single off Bulls starter Alfredo Gonzalez then gave the Whales a 4-2 lead.
Starter Tseng Jau-hao picked up the complete-game victory with nine innings of two-run ball, allowing seven hits while fanning and walking a pair.
On the verge for his second win of the season with eight innings of one-run ball on seven hits and eight strikeouts, Gonzalez found himself tagged for the loss instead.
Bulls outfielder Tseng Hua-wei's 2-for-4 hitting with an RBI extended his hitting streak to nine straight games.
American League
Pitching at home for the first time this season, Curt Schilling allowed one run and three hits in eight innings to lead the Boston Red Sox over the Seattle Mariners 2-1 on Friday.
Schilling (3-0) has won his first three starts for the first time since 2002, showing once again that the right ankle that bothered him the last two years is strong. His ERA dropped from 1.93 to 1.64 as he struck out seven and didn't allow a walk.
"I wasn't sure what I was going to be this year," said Schilling. "I feel I'm pitching better than I ever have."
Schilling got all the support he needed from an unlikely source. Alex Gonzalez, signed as a free agent for his fielding prowess at shortstop and not his hitting ability, drove in both runs with a double in the fourth and went 3-for-4 with two doubles off Jamie Moyer (0-2).
Jonathan Papelbon finished the four-hitter for his fifth save in five opportunities.
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