Back-to-back wins by the Macoto Cobras over the President Lions earlier this week have shrunk the Lions' lead over the second-place Brother Elephants to a half game and made the first-half title chase a three-way race, which includes the Elephants.
A clean sweep by the Lions in the four-game series had their fans talking about the Lions' potential crowning of the first-half title at home in Tainan tomorrow.
PHOTO: CPBL
But now that they have lost two straight, the top three teams in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) are separated by only two games in the standings with five left to play, which means the winner for the first-half will not be determined until the final week of the first-half next week.
Wrap Up
Tuesday night's series opener had the Cobras jumping out to a 2-0 in the top of the first inning when shortstop Hsu Sheng-jeh's (
The 2-0 lead would stand until the bottom of the fourth when Lions right fielder Chen Lien-hung's (
Cobras starter Yang Chi-jia (
Lee's brilliant performance made him the unanimous choice for the game-MVP honor in following 3-1 victory.
Game 2 of the series on Wednesday had the Cobras out in front 2-0 after the first inning once again -- this time on cleanup man Hsieh Jia-shien's (
The serpents then scored runs in the fourth, fifth, and seventh inning to seal the 5-1 win.
An illegal substitution by the Lions removed the designated hitter from the lineup and forced Davenport to bat for the first time this year. The sinker-ball specialist from the US, who has recently become notorious after striking a league-high 11 batters with inside pitches this season, grounded out to first -- but the thought of pending retribution may have crossed his mind.
Cobras starter Kleber Ojima earned his fifth victory by surrendering one run on three hits while striking out nine batters in a complete-game effort.
The Brazilian-born Japanese right-hander has quietly dropped his team-leading ERA to 1.65, fourth best in the league.
Upcoming Games
With the first-half title still up for grabs, all three series among the six CPBL teams will carry some weight in a tight race.
The Lions can only play for a tie in the four-game series by winning the remaining two games against the Cobras tonight and tomorrow.
It may be tough for the big cats to accomplish even a tie because they will have to face a pumped-up Lin Ying-jeh (
As for the Elephants, their three-series against the streaky Chinatrust Whales could be the difference in their title hunt because they need all three wins to remain in the race before the showdown against the Cobras next week.
The three-game home stand in Kaohsiung against the Sinon Bulls this week are essential to the La New Bears because they would love to prove that their 3-1 series win over the Elephants last week was no fluke, while any more losses by the Bulls could all but eliminate them from the first-half title hunt.
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