In the first half, we covered the excitement of this season and the battles in the first and second halves of the season. In the second half, we will cover stats leaders, the achievements of former NPB players and Japanese players, off-season exchanges between the Japanese and Taiwanese baseball worlds, and developments leading up to the WBC in March next year.
*Information current as of September 24th.
Familiar faces for Japanese fans among the top individual title winners
First, let’s start with the hitter Stat Leaders: Wu Nengting (Taiwan Steel The Hawks), who reached the regulation batting average on September 19, moving into the top hitter spot.
He had a rough start to the season, with his batting average slipping below 20% immediately after the season began, and then he was forced to take a leave of absence due to a separated leg. He became a father on August 12, the day he reached 100 hit in the CPBL. He had a fulfilling season both publicly and privately.
Leading Home Run with 24 Home Run and second with a .314 batting average is Steven Moya (Taiko), who is well known to Japanese fans. Moya was on his way to Taiwan with his children to watch the All-Star Game when his wife became ill on the plane and was rushed to the emergency room after landing, but tragically passed away. ground On July 22, he played in the first game of the All-Star break, and in his first at-bat, he hit a sacrifice fly to contribute to the win. When he was suddenly chosen to stand on the podium, he called out to the fans, “Please cherish the precious time you have with your families,” bringing tears to their eyes.
With the support of the baseball team and the warm encouragement of the fans, Moya continued to excel, winning his second MVP award of the season with a .387 batting average, 4 Home Run and 12 RBI for the month of August. He then missed half a month with an abdominal injury, but returned to the first regular season team on September 20. He was the only player in the league with an OPS over 1.000.
In addition, RBI, Yoshiriki Yoshikatsu and Skeikan (Ajizen) topped the list with 79 RBI. hit The number (125) and stolen base (26) were led by Li Kawei (Ajisen) and the Premier 12 winners. Lin An-kai (Unification), also a member of the Premier 12 team, is in second place with 22 Home Run and 71 RBI, respectively, as the Japanese baseball world is also reportedly keen on his long-hitting ability.
pitcher In the top 10 teams, 12 of the 13 players who have reached the innings pitched number are foreign pitcher players. win ERA The competition is fierce, but one of the three tied for the top spot with 13 wins is Braydin Hagens (Taiko), who is in his fifth season in the CPBL and formerly played for Hiroshima.
Hagens set a league record on August 16, extending his winning streak since August 29, 2023, when he was Rakuten the Monkeys’ closer, to 22. He has since lose suffered a loss, but he has been the anchor of the Taikogei’s starting lineup, with 13 wins (1 loss) and a 2.00 ERA record, which also ranks third.
This offseason, there are rumors that Wei Chuan and Seo Ruoxi will use the posting system to transfer to an overseas baseball league. Attention will be focused on the stove league to see which team he will play for next season. ©CPBL
ERA is 1.95 for Venezuelan Nivaldo Rodriguez (Chinatrust), and strike out is 152 for Dominican Republic player Pedro Fernandez (Rakuten), both of whom were players on last year’s Premier12 team. Seo Ruoxi (Wei Chun), who is attracting attention in both Japan and the US and is rumored to be transferring overseas this offseason, has not yet reached the required innings pitched pitched in 108 inning, and his win total is 4 wins and 7 losses, but ERA is 2.17. His WHIP of 0.82 and Avg 0.193 are both among the best in the league.
In hold, Masaki Takashio (Uni-President), who contributed to the first half of the season and continues to support the Uni-President bullpen in the second half, leads with 23. Chen Guanyu (Rakuten), who is in his fifth season in the CPBL and is “Chen Chen, it’s okay,” follows with 21.
In terms of saves, Lin Shih-hsiang, in his second year with Taiko Steel, led the way with 27 saves. A hard worker who had experienced many setbacks before turning pro, he blossomed after being appointed closer. He is eight saves behind second-placed Chen Yun-wen (Uni-President), making him a sure winner.
Among the Japanese “helpers,” Kazumasa Yoshida and Shuto Sakurai of Taiko Steel and Shunsuke Suzuki of Fubon will pitch in the first team.
In the CPBL this season, several Japanese players played for the Taiko and Fubon teams, but only three players who had played in the NPB before, Kazumasa Yoshida and Shuto Sakurai of the Taiko, and Shunsuke Suzuki of Fubon, made the first team regular season roster.
The only Japanese player registered as a starter at the start of the season was Kazumasa Yoshida, who joined the TAIGANG Oisix Niigata last season and was dubbed the “Darvish of the TAIGANG closer” for his performance during the season. Yoshida, who became a starter this season due to team circumstances, made his first start at the end of April due to a back injury, but he got off to a good start on May 3, his second game, when he pitched six innings without allowing a hit runs and was named the “stand-up guy. However, he was unlucky not to receive support from the batting lineup, and his winning streak did not improve.
On August 23, before the final deadline for registration, Yoshida was removed from the roster to be replaced by new foreigner Dinelson Lamet, and finished with a record of 3-6, ERA 5.10 in 13 appearances. Nevertheless, the team asked Yoshida to stay on, hoping he would pass on his skills and experience to younger players. He continued to play for the second team.
In August, Shuto Sakurai was registered as a manager. He passed the spring camp test, and since the start of the season, he has appealed to the second team mainly as a starter with a ERA 2.54. He was promoted to the first team for the first time on August 16, and made his first appearance and first start on the following day, August 17, in a game against Unification Baseball held at their home base, Cheng Ching Hu Stadium in Kaohsiung, South Taiwan. Although he struggled with his control of the ball, he made his first win start with a 5 inning no-decision runs. On August 23rd, he made another start against CITIC, going 6 innings with a 2 runs, but was demoted to the second team the next day.
Another former BC League Musashi player, Kento Onodera, lost out in the battle with Sakurai for the managerial roster. Last season, he showed great pitch stability with his control and quickness on his pitches until an injury forced him to leave the game midway through the season. This season, after rehabbing from an elbow injury, he returned to the second team and gradually improved his game, but he was not registered as a manager and left the team.
Meanwhile, in late March, Tomibuni signed two right-handers, Ryo Negishi, formerly of the Ibaraki Astroplanets, and Kisaki Ninomiya, formerly of Kufu HAYATE Shizuoka, as “developmental foreigners”. Prior to signing with Fubon, Ninomiya, who had been eager to play in the CPBL by participating in the Taiko Steel camp and taking the test, pitched in nine games for the second team until mid-June, mainly as a starter. Negishi also reliever pitched in 21 games for the second team until early July, but neither was registered as a starter.
Suzuki Shunsuke of Tokugawa, who made a strong showing in the minor leagues and was registered as a regular player, continues to scale up pitch even in the major leagues. ©CPBL
It was Shunsuke Suzuki who joined Fubon midway through May and impressed with the scale-up. Last season, when he joined the Rakuten Monkeys as a right-hander representing the BC League, he won 3 wins (4 losses), including winning pitcher in his first appearance and first start, but his ERA was 5.55. It was canceled at the registration deadline of August 31 and left the team with regret.
Suzuki remained in Taiwan after that and played in the All-Vietnam movement of working people. In response to Ama’s performance in the spring league, in May, a foreigner pitcher was injuredFubon acquired. He left an overwhelming record of 38 inning and runs in 7 games for the second team, and on August 25, he seized the opportunity to register under control by replacing Enderson Franco as a set upper of the Premier 12 Venezuela national team, and on the 27th, although it became losing pitcher, he pitched well with 6 hit earned runs 1 in 6 innings against Taiwan Steel.
This season, when he lost about 4 kg of weight, his control, which was a challenge, improved significantly. The fork of the deciding ball has also increased its speed, and has shown a different sense of stability with 2 wins and 1 loss in 4 games so far, with a ERA of 1.90. Suzuki did not hesitate to do well in the first team, but expressed his gratitude to Tsuyoshi Shimazaki pitcher coach and staff for supporting his adjustments at the farm.
The first overall draft pick has already established himself in the first team, and a string of legendary players are retiring.
This year’s draft meeting was held on June 30. There were no big names in the national team class, but 49 players were selected, the same number as last year. The first overall pick, Taiwan Steel, selected Wei Hongliang (新北凱撒), a 19-year-old right-handed pitcher with a max. of 152 kg for working people. Tokyo Yakult ・Wei Hongliang, who is also Xiangsheng’s high school (Yingge Tech) classmate, was not drafted when he graduated from high school due to injury, but he has grown tougher and entered the pro ranks; after making his first appearance in the first team on September 6, he has already made his mark in the first team with five consecutive hold appearances.
Ajizen’s first pick is right-hander Huang Huang Jie, who was promoted to MLB with the Rangers in 2019. Although he has yet to show his full performance, we expect him to be in the starting rotation next season.
Seven players were also nominated from the Taiwan national team, which placed third at the U-18 World Cup held in Okinawa in early September.
This season also saw the retirement of a number of superstars who have led the Taiwanese baseball world for many years, including in international competitions. 43-year-old Lin Chi-Sheng (Ajisen), who holds the CPBL home run record for all-time wins, hit his league Home Run record-breaking No. 305 in the bottom of the 6th inning in the final game of a three-game retirement series at the Taipei Dome on September 7, the final at bat in his 21-year active career. He hit a grand slam into the left field bleachers to celebrate his final victory.
In his final at-bat as an active player, Mi-Jeon Lim Ji-Seong hit his 305th home run, breaking his own career Home Run record. ©CPBL
On September 20th, 41-year-old Hu Jinlong (Uni-President) and 37-year-old Lin Che-xuan (Fubong) played their retirement games, respectively. Both are former major leaguers. This season, Hu Jinlong maintained a high batting average as a DH and pinch hitter, and Lin Che-xuan’s outfield defense left a lasting impression on CPBL fans.
Off-season and WBC talk
There has also been talk of the off-season and the WBC in March of next year. On September 15th, a press conference was held in Taoyuan City, northern Taiwan, to announce the 2025 Taoyuan Asian Professional baseball Interleague Series, which will be held at Rakuten Taoyuan Stadium from November 7th to 9th. The CPBL’s Rakuten Monkeys, the NPB’s Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, and the KT Wiz from Korea’s KBO will be participating in this series.
In addition, some media outlets have reported that NPB teams are planning to visit Taiwan in February next year to play friendly games with CPBL teams and the WBC Taiwanese team at the Taipei Dome. It will be interesting to see which teams will visit Taiwan next spring.
Preparations for the WBC have also begun. On August 25th, the 80-man roster was finalized. It was revealed that the list includes all-professional players who play in the CPBL, as well as in the United States and Japan. CPBL Commissioner Tsai Chi-chang, who visited the United States in July, revealed outfielder Stuart Fairchild (Rays) and infielder Jonathon Long, who hit 20 Home Run this season in the Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate, are keen to join the Taiwanese national team.
Commissioner Tsai will visit three teams -Hokkaido Nippon-Ham, Tohoku Rakuten, and Fukuoka Softbank in early September to check on the participation intentions and condition of the Taiwanese players. The team will be narrowed down by December, and national team training camps are expected to begin in mid-January next year.
Written by Hide Komada