Hwa Nan Financial Cup: Kaohsiung Defeats Taichung in Extra Innings

The Hwa Nan Financial Cup National Youth Baseball Tournament, which serves as the selection event for this year's U15 Baseball World Cup, kicked off yesterday. Kaohsiung City faced Taichung City today. Kaohsiung scored one run in each of the first two innings, but Taichung responded with a 4-run rally in the second, highlighted by a solo home run from Lin You-liang. By the end of the fifth inning, Kaohsiung trailed 2-6. However, in the top of the sixth, Kaohsiung capitalized on the opponent's pitching and defensive errors, stringing together four hits to score four runs, with Huang Hao-zhe hitting a key triple to tie the game. After seven innings, the score remained tied at 6-6. In the top of the eighth, Kaohsiung's offense exploded for four runs to secure the victory. Kaohsiung pitcher Lin Ding-wei entered the game in the bottom of the seventh with runners on base, recording two outs to freeze the opponent's momentum. He continued his strong performance in the eighth, inducing a double play and striking out a batter to seal the win. Lin pitched a total of 1.2 innings, allowing no hits, no walks, and striking out two, earning the win. Kaohsiung manager Ni Guo-zhan praised the team's resilience, noting that the players adapted to the opponent's pitching rhythm as the game progressed. Lin, a third-year middle school student, currently throws up to 142 km/h and aims to reach 145 km/h before graduation while earning a spot on the national youth team.