'Taiwan was also surprised': South Korea's starter for the China game is not Hanwha's Wang Yencheng, but an unknown 20-year-old right-hander from industrial baseball... facing off against Kwak Bin [Aichi Nagoya AG]

*This content was translated by AI.

Taiwan, South Korea's first opponent in the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, has played a card that defied everyone's expectations. Instead of Wang Yencheng (25, Hanwha Eagles), who has faced Korean batters in the KBO League, right-hander Lin Yi-wei (20), with no professional career and a background in industrial baseball, will start against South Korea.

South Korea, led by manager Ryu Ji-hyun (55), will face Taiwan in the first Group B match of the tournament's baseball preliminary round at Okazaki Central General Park Baseball Stadium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, at 6:30 p.m. on the 21st.

As expected, South Korea has announced Kwak Bin (27, Doosan Bears) as its starter, while Taiwan has named Lin Yi-wei. The decision has also drawn surprise reactions in Taiwan. Taiwanese media outlet ET Today emphasized in its headline on the 20th when reporting the starter announcement: "Not Wang Yencheng!"

This was not only expected by Korean media but also widely anticipated in Taiwan, where left-hander Wang Yencheng, with KBO League experience, was considered a strong candidate to start against South Korea. After all, Wang Yencheng joined Hanwha this season under the Asia quota and had a successful first KBO season.

He appeared in 26 games this season, recording 11 wins, 6 losses, an ERA of 3.97, 133⅔ innings pitched, and 100 strikeouts, placing him tied for fifth in wins. His familiarity with Korean batters was a clear advantage for Taiwan.

However, Taiwan made the opposite choice. Instead of deploying the well-known KBO left-hander with 11 wins, whose every detail has already been exposed, they opted to use an unknown 20-year-old industrial baseball pitcher as their first card against Korean batters.

ET Today explained: "Wang Yencheng's team imposed restrictions on his appearance and usage during the Asian Games period. As a result, the (Taiwan) coaching staff had to carefully adjust Wang Yencheng's pitching intervals." It added, "One of the plans that emerged from this process was to deploy an amateur pitcher relatively unfamiliar to Korean batters in the first game."

Lin Yi-wei is also unknown not only to South Korea but also to Taiwanese baseball fans. According to ET Today, Lin Yi-wei attempted to enter the 2024 Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) rookie draft but went undrafted. He then signed with Taiwan Cooperative Bank and pursued a career in industrial baseball. Additionally, this tournament marks his first selection for the Taiwan Seong In (CEO) team.

Regardless, South Korea will face off with its proven ace. Kwak Bin recorded 11 wins, 7 losses, and an ERA of 2.26 in 26 KBO League games this year. Over 155 innings, he allowed 125 hits and issued 39 walks while striking out a remarkable 186 batters. His WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) was just 1.06. With both ERA and strikeouts leading the league, he is widely recognized as the top ace and aims to firmly seize the initiative.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.