CTBC Brothers win first half, earn CPBL playoff spot

CTBC Brothers win first half, earn CPBL playoff spot
20/07/2020
After a slow start, the Brothers took the lead in mid-June. They clinched the title with a win against the Uni-President Lions in front of approximately 5,500 fans.

TAINAN CITY, Taiwan -- The CTBC Brothers, one of the founding franchises in the 31-year history of the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL), clinched their 16th half-season title in the franchise history on 14 July to become the first team to earn a spot in CPBL 2020 playoffs.

The Brothers defeated another founding franchise the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions, 6-1. The game was played in Tainan Stadium, which the Lions call home and has hosted three editions of the WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup.

A sell-out crowd of 5,500 (half of the capacity, since COVID-19-pandemic-related safety measures are still in-effect), mostly Brothers fans, celebrated the win by throwing out yellow ribbons as Brothers starter Jose DePaula struck out the final Lions batter to end the game.

CPBL was the first professional baseball league in the world to start the 2020 season amid COVID-19. The league started its season with the approval from local governments and cooperation from health and welfare authorities on 11 April behind closed doors. CPBL later opened its gates to fans on 8 May as the first sports organization to do so this season.

In three potential clinching games, more than 25,000 fans poured into stadiums in Taichung, Taoyuan and Tainan to cheer for their teams, while as many as 10,651 fans attended one of the games to set the season-high record.

Brothers manager CHIU Chang Jung became the ninth first-year manager in CPBL history to win the half-season title. He led the Brothers to a 37-23 record after the completion of the first half, setting a franchise record for most wins in a half-season. Chiu was a member of the Chinese Taipei team in the XXXII IBAF Baseball World Cup in 1994 in Managua, Nicaragua.

The CPBL 2020 season started with Rakuten Monkeys taking an early lead during the first two months and holding first place for 57 consecutive days. The Brothers were off to a slow start but went on a seven-game winning streak in the middle of the season. They took over first place in mid-June after an 11-2 run.

The Monkeys finished the first half of the season in second place. The Lions were third and the Fubon Guardians finished in last place.

CPBL opened in 1990 with four teams: Brother Elephants (now known as CTBC Brothers), Uni-President Lions, Mercuries Tigers and Weichuan Dragons. CPBL became an associate member of the WBSC in 2014.