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10/15/2003 Archived Entry: "Taiwan Baseball News: Oh Brother! Elephants Take Game 3"
Taiwan Baseball News: Oh Brother! Elephants Take Game 3
By Paul Huang
Another start against the Sinon Bulls for Elephant pitcher Wu Jung-yi; another win for the Brother Elephants. That has been the story for eight straight games in the past two seasons. Though it may seem predictable or even boring at times, no one from the Elephant squad seems to mind at all. The latest episode of Wu・s amazing 8-0 run against the Elephants came on Tuesday・s Game 3 of the 2003 Taiwan Series, where the visiting Elephants cruised to a 6-1 victory in front of 10,500-plus fans on a cool autumn Taichung evening.
The victory brought Wu・s season record to 11-1 and gave the defending champs a 2-1 edge in this year・s hard-fought best-of-seven Fall Classic.
Wu was two outs from his first postseason complete-game win, when skipper Lin Yi-tseng sent reliever Wang Ching-li to the rescue with runners at the corners, after Wu had shown signs of physical fatigue. Asides from a bumpy eighth, where he allowed a run on Bulls designated hitter Chen Tsung-fu・s single, Wu kept the powerful Bulls offense at bay by changing speeds against the anxious Bull hitters.
：I should have stuck with his call for a changeup against Chang Tai-shan, instead of the curve that I threw.； Wu reflected his regret on shaking off catcher Chen Rei-chang in a play that ended with Chang ripping a double off him.
Offensively for the Elephants, it was a night with mixed emotions. While Chen Chih-yuan and Tsai Fong-an both rediscovered their swing in a combined 3-for-7 night with three RBI・s, cleanup man Peng Cheng-ming went 0-for-4 to end his record for longest postseason hitting streak at 12 game. The victory also cost the Elephants dearly in that All-Star centerfielder Chen Chih-yuan suffered a twisted ankle in the fourth on an awkward slide to second base. Team officials have listed his status on a day-to-day basis.
Bull starter Tsai Chung-nan was his usual self as his splitters failed to drop on several occasions. Failing to win in his first career postseason start, Tsai lasted only 2-2/3 innings, yielding four runs (two earned) on five hits.
：I guess the splitter that didn・t drop against Chen Chih-yuan really hurt me a lot.； Tsai was referring to Chen・s first-inning double that knocked home two runs to give the Elephants a 2-0 lead. He did not comment on his teammates・ two errors that led to two unearned runs against him.
Both errors that led to the two unearned runs against Tsai came at the hands of shortstop Cheng Jau-han, whose three errors in the game set a new postseason mark for most errors committed by a fielder.
Down two games to one, the Bulls face an uphill battle against American veteran Jonathan Hurst in Game 4 on Wednesday night in Taichung. 24-year-old rookie sensation Yang Chien-fu will look to even up the series at two-all for the Bulls in a matchup that feature two starters whose age are 12 years apart. It will be the last game played in Taichung this season because Game 5 will be moved to Kaohsiung on Thursday before the Elephants will host the Bulls in Tienmu on Saturday and Sunday (if necessary).
