Nine years after Wang Chien-ming, another Taiwanese will appear for the New York Yankees. Third baseman Kuo Fu-lin, 18, who is currently studying at National Taiwan College of Physical Education, is set to become Wang’s “junior” as he gets the chance to become the second “Light of Taiwan” in Yankees history.
Since studying at the Nan Ying Vocational High School of Business and Technology, Kuo, well-proportioned at 183cm tall and weighing 78kg, could never hide his star qualities. The Yankees have monitored him for over two years, and they think his batting, defense, and arm strength stand out from other young Taiwanese players. Together with his ability to hit long balls, this creates expectations for his future potential.
Because the central and southern American markets have opened up over the past few years, Major League Baseball teams have been looking for new players there. This has caused the value of Asian players to plummet. Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman’s principle that only the best is good enough makes it more difficult for Japanese, South Korean and Taiwanese players to get a chance unless they are of top caliber. This makes the Yankees’ latest move particularly interesting. The Tigers have also been active trying to sign Kuo, but considering visibility and other conditions, he decided for the Yankees.
According to reports, Kuo’s signing fee is somewhere between US$300,000 and US$500,000. Because he is still a student, the Yankees have also given him tuition fees in the same way as they did with Wang in the past. As a whole, the conditions are probably the best of Taiwan’s overseas athletes this year.
Kuo seems to keep a low profile with regards to his joining the Yankees. During an interview, he said he lets his agent handle everything, and that he will not discuss any details. He stressed that, “Going overseas is the dream of every ball player.” In addition to going to the same team as Wang, he also uses the same management company, which further strengthens their relationship. Kuo’s agent Li Wei-chuan is also unwilling to reveal any details about the signing and he only said that the conditions offered by the Yankees definitely were the best offered to any Taiwanese player for the same period, and added that the managing company was quite pleased with this.
Since the Yankees signed Wang in 2000, no other Taiwanese player has managed to arouse their interest. During this time, the Yankees have “symbolically” signed the Chinese players Liu Kai and Zhang Zhenwang in an attempt to open up the Chinese market, but these two players lacked any practical strengths. Both of them have given up this year and returned to China. Kuo is a much more valuable talent, and after a couple of years of practice, he will have the chance to wear the Yankees’ uniform and battle it out in Major League Baseball shoulder to shoulder with Wang.
(LIBERTY TIMES, TRANSLATED BY PERRY SVENSSON)
相隔九年，繼王建民之後，洋基隊農場又要出現一名台灣球員！目前十八歲、就讀台灣體院的三壘手郭阜林，已被洋基簽下，明年將成為建仔「學弟」，有機會成為洋基隊史上第二個「台灣之光」。
打從就讀南英商工時期，擁有一百八十三公分、七十八公斤勻稱身材的郭阜林，就藏不住他的明星級身手，洋基隊觀察他超過兩年，認為郭阜林不論打擊、守備、臂力都是台灣年輕球員的翹楚，而他更具有長打能力，未來潛力頗值得期待。
由於近年中南美洲市場大開，大聯盟各隊都就近搜括好手，也讓亞洲球員身價暴跌，況且洋基總經理凱許曼秉持「只要最好」的原則，在日、韓、台除非是頂級球員，都不輕易出手，因此這個補強動作格外引人注目，而期間老虎也積極爭取，但考量到能見度與各方條件，郭阜林還是選擇洋基。
據了解，郭阜林的簽約金約在三十萬至五十萬美元之間，由於他還是學生身分，洋基另外還提供他一筆學雜費，類似王建民當年的情況，整體條件算是今年旅外球員中最好的。
對於加盟洋基一事，郭阜林顯得非常低調，受訪時表示，一切都交給經紀人處理，相關細節閉口不談，他強調：「旅外是每個球員的夢想。」他除了與建仔一樣都在洋基，所屬經紀公司也都是八方環球，讓他們的關係親上加親。郭阜林的經紀人李瑋川也不願透露簽約細節，但他表示，洋基提出的條件絕對是台灣同期球員中最好的，經紀公司對此相當滿意。
洋基自從在二０００年簽下建仔後，就沒有任何台灣球員能吸引他們的目光，期間洋基一度為了打開中國市場，而「象徵性」簽了兩名中國球員劉凱、張振旺，但兩人畢竟缺乏實力，今年已經雙雙放棄返回中國，而郭阜林評價遠在這兩人之上，更有機會在幾年的磨練之後，穿著洋基球衣與建仔在大聯盟並肩作戰。
（自由時報記者鄭又嘉、倪婉君）
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