TAICHUNG, Taiwan -- The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL), the first sports league in the world to start the season amid the outbreak of COVID-19, opened its Taiwan Series at Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in front of sold-out crowd of 15,600, the highest allowed attendance (78% of its capacity) under current pandemic prevention measures by the authority.
Fans were treated to a 10-inning thriller, as the Lions defeated the Brothers, 4-2.
Both teams sent their foreign pitchers to the mound to start Game 1 as the Brothers turned to Dominican Republican Esmil Rogers while the Lions countered with Canadian Brock Dykxhoorn. Both Rogers and Dykxhoorn held their opponents scoreless in first five innings; Rogers only allowed one hit while striking out three and Dykxhoorn only gave up two hits while striking out six.
In the top of the sixth, the Lions scored the first run of the night on two hits. Leadoff hitter Chih-Chieh Su produced a 14-pitch at-bat against Rogers, setting a new Taiwan Series record.
Having given up one run in the top of the sixth, the Brothers answered right back in the bottom of the inning. Brothers Chih-Hung Hsu’s double drove in one run but Hsu had to exit the game with cramp.
Dykxhoorn was replaced after six innings of work, as the Lions bullpen held the Brothers scoreless for the following three innings.
With the game locked at 1-1 after nine innings, Lions veteran slugger Wu-Hsiung Pan came into the game and belted a three-run home run to give the Lions a 4-1 lead in the 10th. The 2008 Olympian became the first player in Taiwan Series history to get a pinch-hit home run in extra inning, and the 39 year old became second oldest player to hit a home run in series history.
The Brothers managed to get one run off Lions closer Yun-Wen Chen in the bottom of the 10th.
Taichung mayor Shiu-Yen LU, who was invited to throw the ceremonial pitch, cited the extensive pandemic prevention work of the city and the CPBL, which made the 2020 season possible.
The Taiwan Series continues at Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium with Game 2 on Sunday at 17:00 local time.
