Taiwan Today

Even the boys’ most ardent supporters didn’t expect them to go all the way in China’s first bid for the Little League crown

Once upon a time there was a Chinese dragon that turned into a horse. That’s a myth which came true, figuratively speaking, in August of the 58th year of the Chinese Republic, or 1969. On the 11th day of the 7th moon (August 23), the Golden Dragon baseball team from Taichung became the dark horse winner of 23rd Little League World Series championship with a 5 to 0 victory over the Santa Clara team from California. The surprising colts from Taiwan province of the Republic of China had shown their heels to the seven other leading young baseball teams of the world.

Baseball has been played in the primary and secondary schools of Taiwan for many years. But not until 1968 was there awareness of the Little League World Series that is contested annually in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The sports spotlight was turned in that . direction by the Red Leaves, a school team from an aborigine village near Taitung on the remote east coast. The Red Leaves had won the Taiwan Little League championship in 1966, finished second in 1967 and won again in 1968.

In August of last year, the Japanese Kansai Little League champions came to Taiwan for a series of exhibition games and were matched with the Red Leaves. Kansai had decisively defeated the Japanese team that won the 1968 Little League World Series at Williamsport. The Kansai squad, representing the pick of young baseball players in the Osaka-Kyoto area, went down to 7 to 0 and 5 to 2 defeats at the hands of the Red Leaves. An all-star team that included seven members of the Red Leaves also drubbed Kansai by a count of 5 to 1.

If the Red Leaves could overwhelm the team that smothered the Little League world champions from Tokyo, hadn’t the time come to enter a contender in the Little League competition? By the time 1969 roIled around, the answer was in the affirmative. Baseball fever had seized Taiwan in the wake of the Red Leaves’ success, and the Golden Dragons were chosen to represent the Republic of China in the Asian eliminations at Tokyo. Two games later, the Dragons had swept by Guam and the Japanese champions and it was “On to Williamsport”. Another two games (5 to o and 4 to 3) and the Chinese dark horse was in the title contest against the California boys.

Williamsport is a city of 50,000 on the Susque hanna River about 150 miles north of Washington. Few Chinese had heard of it before August of this year. At first there was a tendency to get Williamsport, Pa., mixed up with Williamsburg, Virginia, which has been restored as a living museum of the American colonial period. Vice President C. K. Yen visited Williamsburg in 1967. However, by 2 a.m. August 24 (Taiwan is 12 hours ahead of U.S. Eastern Daylight Time), few Chinese on Taiwan didn’t know all about Williamsport and what was happening there.

It was Saturday afternoon in the home city of the Little League baseball movement and 25,000 people were on hand to see how the upstarts from Taiwan would fare against America’s best. Present, too, was a Broadcasting Corporation of China announcer prepared to relay a live play-by-play account of the game 10,000 miles to Taiwan via satellite, telephone line and old-fashioned radio. On the island, a goodly share of 14 million people had their ears glued to radios throughout the wee small hours of Sunday morning.

China scored three runs in the second inning and two more in the fourth. Santa Clara moved a man to third base in the third inning but a strikeout ended the threat. With the end of the sixth inning and China’s first world championship in a team sport, strings of firecrackers exploded throughout Taiwan. BCC stayed on the air with a victory celebration that included live testimonials from government officials and civic leaders. With almost everyone awake, there were no snarls at interviewers for telephoning in the middle of the night.

Taiwan newspapers went in for what American editors call “Second Coming” type (big enough to give tidings of the return of Jesus Christ). The news was described as “bigger than heaven and coming from out of the firmament”. The biggest type of all was reserved for the character (pang), which among other things means the “bang” of a gun, “excellent” and (in combination with chiu for “ball”) stands for “baseball”. One headline was “Pang! Pang! Pang!” - the triple excellence of three baseball victories that won a world crown.

China has known organized athletics since before the Greeks established the Olympics. One of the earliest forms of competitive exercise was ritualistic dancing. Hand-to-hand combat was encouraged thousands of years ago for purposes of physical fitness as well as military training. Western sports were introduced by Christian missionaries and schools in the second half of the 19th century. Basketball quickly caught on, as did soccer. Gymnasiums were built and track and field facilities installed.

Baseball was listed as an event at the second national athletic meet in Peiping in 1914. The diamond sport remained popular in cities right down to the Communist usurpation of 1949, even though lack of facilities and the exigencies of war prevented any widespread dissemination to the countryside. Taiwan came under the Japanese in 1895. Baseball soon came to be played in schools of all levels. Teams also were sponsored by banks, business establishments and factories. Because of the game’s American origin, the Japanese frowned on baseball during World War II. But no time was lost in reviving the sport in the wake of V-J Day. Taiwan sent three baseball teams to the 7th national games in Shanghai in 1948. An all-star squad from the Taiwan coal industry won the national title in that year.

The Hung Yeh (Red Leaves) successes of 1968 gave baseball renewed impetus. This was not merely because of the team’s victory over Japan’s best but also because of its rags to riches story. The Hung Yeh village school was so poor that only the older boys had balls and bats to play with. Younger players had to learn the game with rocks and bamboo sticks. Batting practice was curtailed because too many balls were knocked out of the small playground and lost. (See “Red Leaves of spring”, Free China Review, October, 1968.)

The Red Leaves were not able to finish in 1969 what they started in 1968. Most of their star players had reached the age of 13 and were no longer eligible. The mantle passed to the Golden Dragons of Taichung. With only a month’s intensive training behind them, the Dragons flew off to Tokyo for China’s first venture into international baseball. Sports fans didn’t pay much attention. The Dragons were not widely known and lacked the colorful background of the aborigine boys from Hung Yeh.

The first game in Japan gave indication that the Golden Dragons wouldn’t remain in obscurity for long. On July 26, they drubbed a team from Guam by 16 to 0, and that’s a lot of runs in the standard Little League ,game of six innings. China scored seven runs in the first, four each in the second and third, another in the -fifth and didn’t bat in the sixth.

Three of the Dragons’ four pitchers went to the mound. Chen Chih-yuan struck out eight and allowed only one runner on base in the first three innings. Kuo Yuan-chih pitched two innings and struck out the six American boys who faced him. Chang Jui-chin pitched hitless ball for the final frame. It was a no-hit game for the three hurlers.

Confronting China in the final game of the Asian playoff was the Chofu team from Tokyo, which had won its semi-final game against Japanese competition by a score of 9 to 0. Chen Chih-yuan, who is aptly nicknamed “Devil’s Hand”, returned to the mound with two days rest and pitched all six innings, giving up only one hit, a single. “Devil’s Hand” swished the ball past Japanese batsmen for 13 strikeouts and a 3 to 0 triumph. China scored twice in the first inning and again in the fourth.

Three exhibition games were played in Osaka before the Dragons returned home to get ready for the World Series. In an abbreviated four-inning contest with the Kankyu (Osaka Express) team, the Taichung boys showed that their Tokyo victories had been no fluke. They batted across six runs in the first, three in the second, and five in the third for a 14 to 0 win. “Devil’s Hand” was sent to left field to practice his fly, catching and Kuo Yuan-chih took over the mound chores. Correctly known as “Good Pitcher”, he needed no help. Kankyu went hitless and Kuo fanned eight.

Chen Chih-yuan returned to action in the first game of a doubleheader July 31 and struck out 17 of the 20 Japanese All-Stars who faced him in the six innings. His teammates produced two runs in the sixth for the winning margin. China took the five-inning nightcap by a score of 9 to 5. Three Dragon pitchers fanned 10.

Not so many fans had turned out to wish the Dragons’ well on their departure for Japan. It seemed as though all Taipei had jammed into the airport or along main streets for the rousing welcome home. Getting to Williamsport was going to be more than a matter of defeating two Japanese teams, however. Air travel costs money. So do hotels and food.

There had been no serious expectation that the Golden Dragons would have the privilege of making the trip to the United States and no money was available. Private and government contributions quickly raised a fund of US$42,500. The players put on a ball park show to help themselves. The American military community sponsored two events that raised US$7,589.

When the Dragons reached Williamsport, they found some surprises awaiting them. There was a Chinese cook to prepare the food they were accustomed to and thus guard against any dietary letdown. That was good. The Japanese Little League runners-up were on hand, too, as spectators and sightseers. That wasn’t quite so good. The trip had been arranged even before the Tokyo elimination, because Japan was so confident of victory. Some disgruntled adult supporters of the Japanese boys told Little League officials that the Dragons were using bats heavier than those prescribed by the regulations.

Investigation revealed that China’s bats were slightly thicker than those commonly used but not in excess of the rules. Interestingly, the bats were made in Japan. Japanese players had used similar sticks to win the 1967 and 1968 titles. Nevertheless, having tried the lighter bats of the American boys, the Dragons liked them better and changed over. The small flap about bat weight didn’t do anything to hurt the Chinese cause.

The first Williamsport opponent of China was the Canadian champion from Valleyfield, Quebec, and the contest turned out to be the longest in Little League history-12 innings. “Devil’s Hand” was on the mound and pitched a no-hitter for nine innings, striking out 21 with one consecutive streak of 12. Nine innings is the limit for a hurler in Little League play. Chang Jui-chin relieved in the 10th and allowed only a scratch single in the 12th while fanning five.

Although hitting in almost every inning for a total of 16, the Dragons were unable to get a man home until the 12th. Then the roof fell in on the Canadians. A single, error, a double, single and a three-run homer by Kuo Yuan-chih produced five big runs. That was how the game ended - 5 to 0. For the first 10 innings, Canada had put only one man on base.

“Devil’s Hand” couldn’t repeat in the semi-finals. Little League rules forbid two consecutive stints for a hurler. “Good Pitcher” Kuo was ready for the Elyria (Ohio) team, however. For five innings he had the American boys eating out of his hand, fanning 13 and pitching shutout ball. His teammates exploded for three runs on a walk, two singles, a stolen base, passed ball and an error in the fourth inning.

But in the top of the sixth, “Good Pitcher” weakened. He gave up two singles. That brought up Pierce Burt, who had moved from catcher to pitcher in the fourth inning. Burt hit a home run to tie the score at 3-all, only to lose his own game by walking in the winning run in the bottom of the sixth. The Dragons had loaded the bases with a single, a walk and a fielder’s choice. Burt ran the count to three balls and no strikes on Chen Hung-chin, then threw two strikes. The fourth ball followed and China was in the finals.

Chen Chih-yuan was back on the hill for the game with Santa Clara and turned in a three-hitter with 11 strikeouts. He walked just two batters. The Californians threatened only in the third inning. Gabe Reyes walked and went to second on a single. He advanced to third on an infield out. With two down, “Devil’s Hand” whisked a third strike past the batter to end the inning.

China collected three runs in the second. Yu Hung-kai smashed a one-out double to left. Chen Hung-chin singled and stole second. Yu scored and Chen took third on a wild pitch by Chuck Carbis. That same pitch gave Tsai Sung-hui a free trip to first base. Tsai stole second and went to third while Chen was scoring on a passed ball. Chuang Kai-ping singled up the middle to drive home Tsai.

Yu Hung-kai led off the fourth with a single and went all the way to third when third baseman Carney Lansford threw the ball into right field. Chen Hung-chin grounded to Lansford and was safe when Ron Smith dropped the ball at first base. Chen stole second.

Yu scored on a sacrifice fly by Tsai Sung-hui. Chen then scored on a ground out. That made the count 5 to 0 and completed the scoring.

Pitcher Chen’s 11 strikeouts raised his total to 32 in 15 innings of World Series competition. He said that he was enervated by heat in the first three innings. He mopped his face with a towel dipped in ice water after the Santa Clara threat in the third and allowed only one base runner in the last three innings. Although losing decisively, Santa Clara’s Carbis also pitched a good game. He allowed six hits, struck out six and walked three.

Carbis’ best pitch was a fast ball. Having seen him in Santa Clara’s first game, the Chinese players and coaches knew what to expect. To get ready, they had their practice pitcher move several feet closer to the plate than the regulation distance. In this way, the Dragons learned to speed up their swings. American baseball reporters were surprised at the discipline and team spirit of the Chinese team. One said that the Dragons paid strict attention to their coaches’ directions, took no unnecessary chances and waited for their opponents to make the mistakes.

Peter J. McGovern, president of the Little League, described the Dragons as having “good arms, good power and an overwhelming desire to win. There is no fooling around once they are on the field”. His assistant, John Lindemuth, who has seen all 23 series in Little League history, pronounced the Chinese team as one of the best conditioned and coached teams ever to play at Williamsport.

After victory, the 1969 world champions went sightseeing in Washington, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. At home, sports fans and the populace in general were preparing for one of the biggest welcomes ever on September 7, when’ the Dragons fly back to Taipei. The band of the Ministry of National Defense will be on hand to play the national anthem and the boys will walk down a red carpet reaching from the airplane to the airport exit. Appropriately, September 9 is Sports Day, and the Ministry of Education will award each member of the team a gold medal. After that will come exhibition games around the island to show off Dragon skills while the Dragons are still 12 years old or younger.

The trouble with Little League baseball is that you get to be 13 so fast and that the big leagues are still so far away. Taiwan has no big leagues and for that matter no professional baseball whatsoever. But after the success of the Golden Dragons, who knows? Japan has highly successful professional baseball that grew out of the interest of young boys and encouragement at the school level. Those dark horse Dragons may have paved the way for a similar prospect of modern competitive sports in the Republic of China.