A pair of convincing wins over Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League-leading Macoto Cobras last week gave the Chinatrust Whales a 2-1 record to claim their first series win in nearly two months.
After dropping the series opener at Hsinchuang in a 4-2 decision last Thursday to extend their losing streak against the Cobras to eight in a row, the Whales trailed the serpents 3-2 after six innings in Game 2 on Saturday. Then second baseman Chiou Chi-pin's two-run single in the top of the seventh gave the Whales the lead for good in a 6-3 final.
Right-hander Kao Jien-san pitched 3-1/3 scoreless innings in relief of starter Wang Guo-jing for his second win of the year as the Whales beat Cobras ace lefty Lin Ying-jeh for the first time since May, 2003 to end Lin's winning skid at six straight.
PHOTO: CHINATRUST WHALES
Offensively for the marine creatures, leadoff man Cheng Chang-ming's pair of doubles led an efficient attack that produced six runs on eight hits, making the Cobras pay dearly for every mistake they made.
Whales 10, Cobras 1
Cobras slugger Wilton Veras's fourth-inning solo home run kept the Whales from registering their second shutout of the week on Sunday as they trounced the Cobras 10-1.
Cobras rookie sensation Lin En-yu struck out the side in order in the first inning, but then he surrendered a season-high five runs on 10 hits in six innings to lose for the first time in nearly two months.
Whales lefty set-up man Shen Yu-jeh was called into the game in the second inning to relieve starter Tseng Jau-hao, who was struck in the face by a line drive from Veras. Shen pitched a beauty by one-hitting (Veras's solo homer) the Cobras in the next four innings en route to his fifth win of the year.
All nine Whales starters managed to collect at least one hit off an uncharacteristically generous Cobras staff that had not allowed more than five runs in almost two months.
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