【Chinese Baseball League Week-5 Digest】

Southeast Division – Shanghai Loses to Guangdong,
Trends Become Clear.
Northwest Division – Sichuan Swept by Beijing,
Say Goodbye to Post-Season.

Chinese　Japanese

The 2007 Chinese Baseball League entered its 5th week, with the Sichuan Dragons playing the Beijing Tigers in their last homestand, Tianjin playing Wuxi, and Shanghai facing the number one team in their division, the Guangdong Leopards. The results this week met expectations, and there were no surprises.

【At the Chengdu stadium】	【At the Wuxi stadium】	【At the Guangzhou stadium】

The main matchup was the Shanghai Eagles visiting the Leopards in Guangdong. With the postseason and division championship on the line, each team opened up a battlestorm of offense and defense. In the Friday game, the Leopards jumped to distant 5 run lead in the first, but in the 8th, with the score at 6-3 in favor of Guangdong, the Shanghai team caught fire and turned the score around 8-3. Despite a homer by Ji Ze in the bottom of the ninth, Shanghai finished with a 10-7 victory. In the Saturday game, Guangdong’s Liu Kai, gave up 6 hits and tossed a 16 strikeout complete game – one of the most amazing pitching performances of the season. In the Sunday game, the Shanghai team rotated young pitchers in and out. The inexperienced arms gave way to 7 runs, and Shanghai finished the away series with one win and two losses.

【Guangzhou area’s game scene①】	【Guangzhou area’s game scene②】	【Guangzhou area’s game scene③】

【Chengdu area’s game scene①】

【Chengdu area’s game scene②】

The Beijing Tigers visited the Sichuan Dragons this past week, with games full of suspense. In a previous matchup with Tianjin at home, the Dragons used the home field to their advantage by claiming several victories. Unwilling to relent to the Dragons, the Tigers battled through as team veteran Sun Lingfeng proved reliable in turning the tides and making the Tigers victorious. In the May 11th game, each team’s starting pitcher threw well. In the top of the ninth, with the Dragons up one run, the Tigers’ bats came alive after a costly error put on base, as Sun Lingfeng capped off the night with a two-run homer, providing the tying and eventual winning runs, as Beijing was able to hold off the Dragons 7-6 in the bottom of the inning. In the Saturday game, Beijing provided too much offense for the Dragons, as the Sichuan pitchers seemed spent from the previous night. The final score of the game was 11-3, as Beijing power hitter Jia Yubing hit another homer. The third game featured a dramatic climax. Sichuan pitchers Zhu Wanyun and Chen Kun came out firing, however because of CBL pitch count limits, Chen Kun had to be pulled in the later innings, and the relief was unable to stop the Tigers bats once again. The Sichuan bullpen finished the game with 10 runs to their credit, as Sichuan lost 6-10.

【Wuxi area’s game scene③】

In the third match-up of the weekend, Tianjin took on the Hopestars in Wuxi. With first place in the division still within striking distance, Tianjin fought hard to capture as many wins, and division points, this weekend. Hou Fenglian, Liu Jianzhong, Luo Yubin and Zhang Wanjun took center stage at the weekend slugfest, winning the first contest 13-3, and turning the second contest around in winning 9-6. The Hopestars had the early lead in the game at 5-0, but under a stellar relief effort from Lv Jiangang, who boasted 8 strikeouts in four innings, Tianjin had the support to come back. In the third game, the Lions easily completed the sweep in winning 9-3.

With the end of the fifth week of games, the May 20th All-Star game in Wuxi is right around the corner. In the standings, the Beijing Tigers and Tianjin Lions share the lead at 11-4, with Sichuan trailing six games back at 5-10. Sichuan’s last two match-ups in the season are against Shanghai and Guangdong, giving them little chance to make headway in their division. In the southeast division, Guangdong leads at 9-6, Shanghai trails at 6-9, and the Hopestars are behind them at 3-12. Guangdong has in essence locked up a post-season birth, and Shanghai is making a strong case to be their competitors, as the cards don’t seem to favor Wuxi. Who eventually will be in the final dance? The answer awaits us after the All-Star game.

【MVP Commendation ceremony Week-4（May１１）】

【Guangdong area MVP Week-4： Beijing Jia Yu Bing】	【Shanghai area MVP Week-4： Shanghai Li Chao】
【Tianjin area MVP Week-4：Sichuan Feng Fei】