Players in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) yesterday participated in the Home Run Derby and Skills Challenge, after playing in an All-Star Game on Saturday in which the White Team prevailed over the Red Team by one run.
For the first time, Australian players were invited to the Home Run Derby, with Andrew Campbell and Logan Wade coming from the Australian Baseball League’s (ABL) Brisbane Bandits.
After a preliminary round between six contestants, it came down to a duel between Campbell and defending titlist Yang Yao-hsun of the Lamigo Monkeys.
Photo: Chen Chih-chu, Taipei Times
Campbell won in the final, hitting four homers, while Yang knocked out three.
“The pressure was on as I faced Taiwan’s big stars, but it was an enjoyable experience,” Campbell said. “I hope that my participation helped to build up a closer working relationship between Taiwanese and Australian baseball.”
In Saturday’s All-Star Game, the Red Team, sponsored by the Bank of Taiwan, scored in the opening frame, then surged in front 2-1 going into the third inning.
The White Team, sponsored by Mercuries Life Insurance, went on the defensive.
Outfielder Su Chih-chieh from the Uni-President Lions drove in two players with a double, accounting for two of the White Team’s three runs to make it 4-2, and helping the White Team to hold on to the lead until the clock ran out.
Although the opposition scored three late runs in the ninth, the White Team hung on for an 8-7 victory.
Su had two hits, which put his side in front for good and for which he was awarded Most Valuable Player (MVP).
“It was a surprise for me to get the MVP honor. My Lions team had only a few days rest and I did not get much batting practice over the past week, so I was a bit rusty,” Su said after the game.
“I thought that other players did well tonight. It was not just my effort — the win belonged to everyone on this squad who made a contribution,” he added.
The big numbers were posted by the Red Team’s Hu Chin-lung from the Fubon Guardians, who hit a solo homer against Brothers pitcher Chen Hu to open the scoring in the first inning.
Hu, who had a brief stint in the US’ Major League Baseball as a shortstop for the Los Angeles Dodgers, but returned to Taiwan to join the EDA Rhinos in 2013, went 2-for-4 and finished the contest with four RBIs.
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