The big question around the league these days is when will Sinon Bulls third baseman Chang Tai-shan (
There is even a "prediction contest" sponsored by the Bulls and a local sporting-goods dealer "betting" on when Chang will make the milestone.
Known as "the prince of the forest" because his name is the translation for "Tarzan" in Chinese, Chang began the season with 90 home runs to his credit after seven years as a pro, first with the former Weichuen Dragons (1996 to 1999) and the Bulls (2000 to 2002).
TAIPEI TIMES FILE PHOTO
His eight homers and 26 RBI's currently place him first and second, respectively, in the two key offensive statistical categories.
At 172cm and 84kg, Chang appears not to have the physical build needed to be the power hitter that he actually is.
He has reached double-figures for home run production in six of the past seven seasons that he has been in the league.
This year is the fifth in a row where Chang has hit at least one grand slam, something that no other hitter has matched in the history of pro baseball in Taiwan.
"It's too bad that he [Chang] wasn't discovered by the Major League scouts earlier," Brother Elephants ace Jonathan Hurst told the Taipei Times, "because with the proper instruction and the right environment, he would have gotten in the US minor leagues system."
"This guy could easily be playing in the Majors by now. He is always a home run threat anytime he steps into the batter's box."
Many baseball experts attribute Chang's hitting success to his amazingly fast batting speed.
His powerful arm and wrist strength often can carry a pitch that would have been a routine fly-out by other hitters over the fence for a home run.
"With a batting speed clocked at well over 150kmh, there aren't that many people in Taiwan who can compete with Chang Tai-shan." said local baseball writer Chang Wen-hsiung (
"He doesn't have much trouble at all hitting fastballs, especially against local pitchers," he said.
Round Up
Makoto Gida has improved its record against the Elephants to 6-1 this season after taking three out of the four games in last week's matchup against the team.
Many Elephants fans suspect there may be a curse on beating Gida because no other teams have dominated the Elephants the way the Gida have.
The same Gida team is 3-14 against teams in the rest of the league.
The ChinaTrust Whales avoided being swept by the President Lions by taking last Sunday's series finale against the Lions in a 7-0 shutout.
The Lions loss spoiled rookie starter Pan Wei-luen's (潘威倫) bid to tie the record for most consecutive victories by a rookie pitcher to begin the season.
Pan is now 5-1 for the year, while fellow teammate Joe Davenport recorded his sixth win for the season to take the sole lead in the league for most victories.
Two come-from-behind wins by the resilient Sinon Bulls against the First Securities Agan was the main story in Taichung during the three-game series between the two teams last week.
Upcoming games
CPBL action continues this weekend in all major cities around the country.
Down two games to none earlier this week, the Gida will look to even its four-game series against the league-leading Lions in Kaohsiung today and tomorrow.
Rookie sensation Pan Wei-luen will try to bounce back from his first defeat of the season as he faces a Gida lineup that features Hsieh Jia-shien (
In Hsinchuang, the Whales will take on the visiting Agan (yesterday), today and Sunday.
This is a key series for both teams because the Whales need to win if they are to keep pace with the Lions and Bulls, which are facing weaker opponents this week.
As for Agan, winning the series will move them out of the cellar in the league standings and give skipper Hsu Sheng-ming (
The showdown between the Elephants and the Bulls in Hsinchu (Thursday) and Taichung tomorrow and Sunday should determine how good the Bulls really are this season.
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