[ CBL Week 1 Highlight ]

The 2008 Chinese Baseball League Season Opens - Tianjin and Shanghai Get off to a quick start, Win 3 in a row -

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The 2008 Chinese Baseball League (CBL) season began on April 11th at Tianjin Dodgers Stadium, the home field of the Tianjin Lions. In the opening day ceremony, which began at 6:00 in the evening, Lei Qian, (Pronounced Lei Chen), who sings this year’s CBL theme song “Show Time” (avex China), was invited to the ballpark and made a flower presentation in the first-pitch ceremony, creating a great mood in the stadium.

This year’s CBL season schedule is different from past seasons because the Beijing Olympic Games are going to be held during the season. The first half will be played in April and May and the second half will resume in September, after the Olympics.

Tianjin Lions vs Guangdong Leopards at Tianjin Dodgers Stadium

The opening day match-up at Tianjin was between the Tianjin Lions and the Guangdong Leopards. The two teams have faced each other in the Championship Series of the past two seasons. The Tianjin Lions won the championship both times, but the two teams have been extremely competitive over the past few seasons. With this great match-up on the opening day, Tianjin Stadium was so packed on Friday night that the many people had to stand.

All three games had exciting starts with Guangdong scoring first, then Tianjin coming back to take the lead. In the end, Tianjin played up to their full potential and won all three games. In the season opener, Liu Zhi Cheng (Tianjin) hit the first home run of the CBL season, and gave his team momentum. “We are pretty evenly matched with Guandong but we were able to do the little things. That is probably the biggest reason we won the games”, Manager Jiao of Tianjin said proudly after Game Three. Tianjin was able to jump off to a quick start by putting three games in the win column to begin the season, just as they did last season. This was a great start for their quest in becoming League Champions in three consecutive seasons.

* Click here to view photos of games between Tianjin and Guangdong from week one. http://www.cbl.org.cn/photo/index.asp?pic_type=6001

11-April 18:20 Tianjin Dodgers Stadium

Jiangsu Hope Stars vs Shanghai Golden Eagles at Jiangsu Wuxi Stadium

The game at Jiangsu Wuxi was played between the Jiangsu Hope Stars and the Shanghai Golden Eagles, both of which have many young developing players. The season opener turned into a tough pitching dual. Shanghai’s Zhang Jun and Wuxi’s Zhang Xiang both pitched complete games masterpiece. However, Jiangsu made some errors at crucial points in the game and Shanghai ended up with the win, defeating Jiangsu 2-0. In the season opener and Game Two, nearly 2000 fans were in attendance routing for the Hope Stars, but it was Shanghai who exploded with some offense. Wei Zong Hai (Shanghai) blasted a 130 meter long homerun in Game Two, and Shanghai, whose offense was on a role, began their season with a three game winning streak.

* Click here to view photos of games between Jiangsu and Shanghai from week one. http://www.cbl.org.cn/photo/index.asp?pic_type=600103

11-April 18:00 Jiangsu Wuxi Baseball Stadium

Sichuan Dragons vs Beijing Tigers at Chengdu Jinniu Stadium

The season opener was played in Chengdu, Sichuan. The Sichuan defense, despite having the home field advantage, could not adapt to the rain soaked playing conditions. They committed two errors and were unable to take control of the game, resulting in an 8-0 defeat. However, in the second game on the following day, Sichuan came on top in a slugfest, and was able to get some revenge for their loss the day before, winning 10-6. In Game Three, Liu Ya Qing (Sichuan) hit his team’s first homerun of the season, and Sichuan played a tough game against Beijing, one of the best teams in the league. Sichuan hung on until the end, but Beijing expanded their lead in the eighth, and Sichuan lost the close contest 9-7. Beijing was successful in winning the rubber game of the series.

* Click here to view photos of games between Sichuan and Beijing from week one. http://www.cbl.org.cn/photo/index.asp?pic_type=600102

11-April 14:30 Chengdu Jinniu Baseball Stadium

In the opening week, there were homeruns in each of the match-ups. Each of the teams had key players invited to the Olympic national team, and the opening series ended up being a valuable experience for the young pitchers in the league. It looks as though the coaches will be scratching their heads during the season when facing different managerial decisions, but in looking at the first week, it did not appear that there were any pitchers that were ill-prepared for the season.

In week two of the season, games will be played at Shanghai, Tianjin and Wu Xi. Shanghai will host Guan Dong, while Tianjin hosts Beijing. Sichuan will go to Wuxi to face Jiangsu. The game between Shanghai and Guangdong is a match-up between the two teams that are top two favorites to win the division (Southeast / Eastern China Division) and is a must-see game. In addition, the game between Tianjin and Beijing is classic between two very tough teams in the league.

Expect to see some great competitive games that will top the excitement from the opening series.