The Fubon Guardians of the CPBL have signed American pitcher Tyler Eppler, who has experience playing in South Korea and Japan, to play for them this year, the club said yesterday.
The 30-year-old right-hander played last season with the Kiwoom Heroes in the Korea Baseball Organization and the 2019 season with the Orix Buffaloes in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball league, the Guardians said in a statement.
Eppler appeared in 33 games for the Heroes, including 25 starts, and pitched 140.1 innings last year.
Photo: screen grab from Facebook
He had a 6-8 record with an ERA of 4.30, the statement said.
South Korea’s English-language JoongAng Daily reported that he played on a one-year, US$400,000 contract for the Heroes.
Eppler spent the earlier years of his career playing in the US minor leagues, mostly in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization.
After playing in Japan, Eppler was with the Washington Nationals’ Triple A affiliate, the Rochester Red Wings, in 2021, and had a 2-9 record and 8.00 ERA in 19 appearances.
The Texas native is expected to arrive in Taiwan after the Lunar New Year holiday later this month and join the Guardians for spring training, the statement said.
The New Taipei City-based Guardians finished bottom of the five-team league last season with a 46-4-70 record.
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